Pool Pipe or Skimmer Leak

[suzyq]

It appears that I have a pool leak. After turning on and off valves I have isolatd the problem. It appears to be related to the pool skimmer line and main drain. The pool pump primes when these valves are shut off and the leak is stopped----I am operating the pool cleaner suction line. Now the question is why after I turned the pump on do I have over 50 steel pellets and a screw in my pump basket? I also notice that at the base of the main drain (which is not operating)....I can see a couple of the steel pellets next to the drain. What is happening here? Is my leak due to an equipment failure? How do I resolve? Please advise.

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

It appears that I have a pool leak. After turning on and off valves I have isolatd the problem. It appears to be related to the pool skimmer line and main drain. The pool pump primes when these valves are shut off and the leak is stopped----I am operating the pool cleaner suction line. Now the question is why after I turned the pump on do I have over 50 steel pellets and a screw in my pump basket? I also notice that at the base of the main drain (which is not operating)....I can see a couple of the steel pellets next to the drain. What is happening here? Is my leak due to an equipment failure? How do I resolve? Please advise.

Describe these pellets. What size are they, are they shiny or rusty? Same for screw.

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[Bama Rambler]

Sounds like someone has been shooting ducks near your pool. It could also be bearing balls but that doesn't seem likely.

Might be parts that fell off that alien space ship as it fllew overhead!

 

[carolina pool]

If it were not for the screw, I like Bama's theory about the duck hunters. I have seen strainers clogged from the owners kids shooting tree frogs with BB guns.

Since the screw was also found and maybe you exagerated about the number of balls, it could be bearings from a cleaner wheel that were hung up in the cleaner line and when you increased the suction velocity by turning off the drain and skimmer, they were sucked into the strainer.

Just a wild guess.

 

[suzyq]

No the pellets are far too big to be from a BB gun.....and yes I counted the pellets and got 50+. they look like ball bearings. The screw is a steel flat head phillips screw approx 3/4" with a sharp 3 pronged point....looks like what you would use to go though metal. It was attached to something as the middle of the screw has thick rust residue. I have a Tiger Shark pool cleaner which is operated outside of the pool pump and suction line (electric). Unless the TigerShark has ball bearings in its mechanical makeup. However the cleaner does not seem to be having any problems. Upon further investigation of the skimmer....it looks like my leak may be attributable to the skimmer as the skimmer has pulled away from the pool wall. The owner of my home before me appears to have applied a patch in the area of question and the patch is separating from the wall and skimmer. Nevertheless this new finding may support a reason for the water loss in my pool but it may not be the only reason....so I will get a professional leak tetection service to validate that there are no other leaks or a broken line. The steel bearings concern me if they are related to the pool equipment...i.e. the heater, pump or filter. If unrelated to the pool equipment it may be that the pellets are not coming to the surface due to the additional pump pressure obtained by closing the skimmer line etc. Thanks for your feedback guys....hopefully we are on the right track! HAPPY HOLLIDAYS!!