Using up pumps left and right....

[Darrenmv]

I live in South Louisiana. I had a new pool installed in February of 2009. It's a free form design with 34,000+ gallons using a Hayward 2 speed 1.5 HP pump, 2.5" pipes, chlorine generator, SmartPure Ozone generator, cartridge filter system (4 large cartridge filters).

Pump runs full speed from about 7am until about 5pm then goes 1/2 speed till about 7pm each day.

I wish I had kept better records on the pumps, but they have been replaced at least 3 times under warranty and now the pump is out again. This time out of warranty.

The same thing seems to happen each time. Just a few months after installation salt begins to form on the outside neck of the pump closest to where the water enters the pump. Then over time the pump exterior begins to rust, then minor leaking starts and it all goes downhill from there.

The pool repair company said there was a problem with the seal the first couple of times. This last time when I called the pool company a woman on the phone asked me about the copper ground wire and to confirm it was attached to the pump, grounded into a spike in the ground and also connected to my pool timer/control panel. Turns out the ground wire goes straight from the grounding rod to the pool timer/control panel and skips the pump entirely.

So they send a guy out and he says the fault is my SmartPure Ozone generator. That because they installed the inlet for the Ozone on one of the inlet pipes toward the pump input that the ozone is damaging the seal and thus prematurely killing the pumps. He said they should have installed the ozone behind the pump, not in front of it. He recommends totally removing the Ozone system and capping the inlet. He says this will keep the pumps from dying prematurely.

Does any of this make sense? Am I being lied to or does this sound like someone I can trust.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Darren

Installed February 2009
34k gal, IG Gunite, Cartridge Filter
1.5 HP Hayward 2 speed pump
SWG, SmartPure Ozone Generator
Tiger Shark cleaner

 

[jblizzle]

Welcome to TFP!!!

We generally believe that ozone and UV systems for outdoor residential pools is a waste of money ... so removing it completely would not be out of line with what we would recommend. (whether that is the cause of your problem or not).

Also, please read: http://www.troublefreepool.com/content/152-determine-pump-run-time in Pool School
It sounds like you are running your pump WAY longer than you need to (assuming that your SWG is not already maxed out.

Also take a look around the rest of Pool School if you would like to learn about the methods of pool maintenance that we teach.

Finally, please add your pool details to your signature as described HERE as it will help us help you.

 

[linen]

Welcome to tfp, Darrenmv

I agree that removing the ozone (or at least turning it off) makes sense. Maybe I am under the wrong impression, but I thought ozone was supposed to be plumbed in after the pump? It would be interesting to hear if anyone knows if it can damage the pump.

 

[JohnT]

The issue sounds electrical to me, and the ozone generator could be the source.

 

[JasonLion]

Ozone is known to damage pump seals, and should only be injected after the pump, filter, and heater. Someone sells special ozone resistant seals, but that still leaves filter and heater (if any) problems. The ozone injection point should either be moved to after the rest of the equipment, or better yet disable the ozone system.

 

[Darrenmv]

Thanks for all of the replies. I will remove and cap off the Ozone injection system and replace the pump again. Hopefully this will solve my problem.