Leak detection

[pauster]

Hi Everyone,

I'm hoping to get some help finding a leak in my pool ...

After opening the pool and having it acid washed for the first time in the seven years that we have the pool, I now have the first leak in my inground plaster pool. I had a suspicion it might be losing water on Friday so I did a dye test on all openings in the pool, light fixtures etc - not the main drains though as the water is frigid still here in NJ. Did not see any water movement at all.

To be safe I ran it on main drain only over the weekend. When we returned last night the water level was down three inches from where it was when we left - exactly just below the skimmer inlets. We continued running the pump overnight on main drain and the water level remained stable, just below the skimmer boxes.

This seems to tell me that the issue is in the skimmer boxes somewhere. Did the food dye test again and could not detect any water movement in the skimmer - I would have expected some movement if we loose three inches in < 48 hours.

If someone has tips what else to check and how it would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks ...

 

[JVTrain]

So you've isolated it to the skimmers. It could still either be a seal on the skimmer mouth, inside the skimmer bucket area or a plumbing line between your pump and skimmers. Is there still water inside the bottom of the skimmer buckets? If there is, then it's likely at the skimmer mouth, not the lines or bucket area.

 

[Ripper70]

I just finished fixing three leaks that I found in my system. Two were in the line that feeds a waterfall accessory and one was in a return line. I was fortunate in that the lines are buried in a garden patch that flanks the backside of the pool and when I realized I was losing water a cursory inspection revealed soggy soil in the area where the leaks were. After digging a two foot deep trench all along the back of my yard I found the culprits. Surprisingly, the leaks seemed small but I suppose under pressure the water loss can still be pretty significant. The lines are actually a type of flexible hose that seems like it might be susceptible to these kinds of pressure leaks (particularly after the brutal winter we had here in the Northeast) but they were relatively easy to fix with PVC fittings available in Home Depot.

I hope the solution to your issue is as simple and straightforward as mine was.

 

[pauster]

So you've isolated it to the skimmers. It could still either be a seal on the skimmer mouth, inside the skimmer bucket area or a plumbing line between your pump and skimmers. Is there still water inside the bottom of the skimmer buckets? If there is, then it's likely at the skimmer mouth, not the lines or bucket area.

Good point, thanks! Yes there is still water in the skimmer bucket. I thought I'd be able to see if water was leaking there by dropping in food coloring but to no avail.

To test the theory if the skimmer bucket is leaking we installed the gizmo in the skimmer in question and added water to the pool. Tonight or tomorrow we'll see if that was it.

 

[pauster]

Thanks Ripper70- for us it seems to be on the skimmer side where it is leaking. Unfortunately the plumbing is almost entirely under a stone patio ... so I can't see evidence of excess moisture. I'll have to try to eliminate possibilities before I start chopping up the deck. Installing the stone cost me a few months of evening and weekend work so it hurts to even thing about ripping into it.

 

[swimcmp]

Did you remove the light from the niche? That would make a difference in eliminating it. Also need to be at light niche level when you are testing. Pool needs to be full.