Bleeding Air from Filter - Water out of Pump Basket

[Sick4Trucks]

Hey everyone,

Just joined the forums, I have been reading them for advice since I became a pool owner a few weeks ago and they have been extremely helpful. I am currently a noob when it comes to pool knowledge, but I hope to slowly correct that : ) So there was a lot flow/bubbles going on in my pump basket looked like a rapid river in there basically and from everything I have read.. it should be pretty still looking air tight water. So I figured there might be air trapped somewhere so I turned the pump and pool off, opened up the pump basket and added some lube to the o-ring. I also, while the pump basket was open, opened the air valve on top of the filter to bleed the air out of the system. It is a Pentair DE Salt Water Pool system, 15,000 gallon pool and I think the filter is a 60sqft. Anyways, when I opened up the air to bleed it out, water started coming up out of the pump basket and overflowing for as long as I bled the air. Is this normal? Any ideas what is going on? Maybe its simple, but like I said, I have a lot to learn! Thanks for any and all help everyone.

 

[zea3]

Hi, welcome to TFP! When you get a chance, please edit your signature to include information about the pool such as pool type (above ground or in ground), surface (vinyl, plaster, or fiberglass), size in gallons, pump brand and horsepower, filter type (sand, DE, or cartridge), filter brand and size, and any water features, cleaning systems, and if there is a spa (attached or detached). It will show up at the bottom of everything you post and it is easier for us to help you if we don't have to search the thread for this information.

Yes, it is normal. If you have shut off valves between the pool and pump and another between the filter and pool they should be shut off when you are servicing the pump or filter. If you only shut off a valve between the pump and pool then the water was flowing backward through the return into the filter. To prevent that from happening you can use a shut off valve, or plug the return when you service the pump or filter.

 

[Sick4Trucks]

Thank you, I updated my signature. Also, I recently had my pump replaced because the original motor burned out. The guy who installed the new pump did not have the exact size o-ring for the pump connection, but he said it was okay because that connection did not need to be air tight like the o-ring on the lid of the pump basket or the o ring near the union screen. It was a little bigger than it needed to be, but he was confident it would not matter, is this true? And should I let the air bleed until I stop hearing it hiss, while the system and pump is off?

 

[Kiss4aFrog]

Welcome to the forum

What pump do you have ? (not motor)

"Anyways, when I opened up the air to bleed it out, water started coming up out of the pump basket and overflowing for as long as I bled the air."

Yes, normal. The filter is likely higher than the pump basket and when you opened the bleeder it let the water in the filter run out the open filter basket. The bleeder should be used with the system running so there is pressure to push the air out at a high point. Bleed it until you get water.

Did you use a silicone based lubricant on the rubber filter basket seal ??

 

[zea3]

I'm not quite sure I understand which o-ring he said was unimportant, but I would try replacing it with the right size o-ring and see if that makes a difference.

 

[duraleigh]

Not sure I understand exactly which 0-ring, either, but it would sure raise a BIG red flag.

 

[Sminor]

Sounds like an O-ring for a coupling on the intake side of the pump. It definitely needs to be air tight!

 

[Kiss4aFrog]

If you can give us the make and model number of the pump we can look it up and "see" which O ring it might be.

 

[Sick4Trucks]

Here is the information I was able to get off of the pump. It is a WhisperFlo Model No. WF-28 with 2 HP. Serial No 1-02-B06 and its Pentair. The pump motor number is USQ1202. It was the Oring where the black motor connects to the white pump basket area. I have attached an image. Thanks for all the help!

 

[Kiss4aFrog]

From What I can see in the exploded diagram that seal is between the white seal plate and the pump housing. The diagram doesn't show an O ring between the motor and the seal plate.
If it's the formed O ring or a circular O ring part #9 in the diagram is it's the wrong size and not sealing exactly it could be allowing water to leak out but it's on the pressure side so it shouldn't let air in.

 

[Kiss4aFrog]

That #9 O ring is located where the red arrow is pointing and the green arrow is pointing to the area I don't think there is an O ring but it's the area you are describing.Between the O ring part #9 and the motors shaft seal part #16 they seal off the seal plate to the pump housing and the motor doesn't need anything.

 

[Sick4Trucks]

I think you are right about the position of that O-ring. I must have an air leak somewhere because in the mornings when the pump comes on there are blasts of air coming from the jets and in floor pool system. When the pump starts there is a ton of motion and water flow and bubbles in the pump basket as well as the chlorinator basket, but after the first half hour to an hour it all evens out and runs normally and the bubbles stop in both the pool and pump basket. This morning I took out the chlorinator basket oring, the pump basket oring and the union oring and cleaned them and applied a lube and tried to start up the pump again, but it was the same results. The water level seems a bit low so maybe air is being sucked in through the skimmer basket, I am currently filling the pool up with a hose. Do you have any suggestions of where I should or how I should check for air leaks? Thanks for all the help. Here are some pictures of the set up I have also included. One of the pictures I included has a yellow area pointing to a connection point someone mentioned might be an area of concer, not sure though. One picture is the pump side, one is chlorinator side. They are named.