Pipe upstream of he pump and equipment mounting

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cmc#5

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Feb 21, 2015
27
Magnolia, TX
I went to see a friends pool since it is similar to what I intend to have built and it was built by a PB for whom I've received several positive referrals. I was surprised to see two things on the equipment pad and thought I'd ask your comments...

1) the plumbing to the pump inlet did not include the manufacturers recommended length of straight pipe before the inlet, there was a t valves right there. I've looked at several pictures from folks on this site and notice that is pretty common. Is this manufacturers recommendation just not that important?

2) all do the equipment was just sitting on the pad and not anchored down. Surely that is not ok, right?
 
1) It is common and commonly done by most pool builders. Why having the proper distance would be better than not. I really couldn't say that after 20 years of owning that pool if you would have ever noticed the difference. If you want yours with that distance just ask the builder to do so.

2) We rarely anchor equipment (most of ours is inside though) because it makes it much harder to work on. I can't ever say that I regretted not anchoring something. Anchoring it doesn't take much Just ask the builder if you want it done, and they will be happy to help.
 
1) Correct, just not that important. I have only ever hear of two or three setups where it turned out to matter, and thousands where it was too short and there was never an issue.

2) Anchoring can actually cause the equipment to make more noise. Unless you are in an earthquake prone area I recommend against anchoring.
 
I'll add another one. Not enough straight pipe leading to the SWCG. I have all three. We have 45 right in front of and right behind our IC40. No issues at all.

I would not want to have my equipment anchored to the equipment pad. We have black clay here and it moves quite a bit as moisture content changes. Pipes in the ground going into equipment that is bolted to something above the ground is not going to move at the same rate. Something will have to give.
 
I'll suggest another reason for not anchoring...

During the assembly and connection of the equipment, some glue joints can be somewhat "forced" to fit. If every point is anchored, those forces will continue and could eventually cause a pipe to crack or a joint to come loose.

Leaving the equipment un-anchored allows for a little movement and an overall equalization of forces on the glue joints and fittings.
 
The main reason for the straight pipe requirement is to create a laminar (not turbulent) flow before certain things such as at the inlet of the pump and before a flow switch. Turbulence can cause some problems in some cases, but as noted it usually isn't a problem.

The straight pipe requirement is nice to have but in most cases it's not practical. It usually doesn't provide enough benefit to be worthwhile if the plumbing would have to be done in a way that took up too much room. If it's easily done, then it's better to do it.
 
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