How to winterize Hayward SP1450TGR

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W

wwerdna

0
Jun 23, 2017
61
Sparta, NJ
Pool Size
30000
Surface
Plaster
Chlorine
Liquid Chlorine
I'm going to close our pool and spa by myself for the first time this year, because each year that we've owned the pool the various companies have each left me dissatisified in a different way. One of the things that none of them has done however, is plug the jet returns in the spa. Looking online, I think what we have is 6 Hayward SP1450TGR nozzles. Obviously they're underwater right now, but here's what they look like with my poor photography.

IMG_3781.jpg

Several of them have bits broken around the rings suggesting that people have tried and failed to unscrew these in the past, and I cannot figure out how I could plug the return with the ring parts in the way, or how I can get the ring part off to give me better access. Can anyone suggest how I can accomplish this? I'll be emptying the spa at closing, but I know from experience that it will fill up quite quickly from rain, and will freeze in January, so I'd feel much better if I could actually plug all of my plumbing
 
Thanks - I've ordered the tool, and if I can loosen the faceplate with that then I'll go ahead and order the seal plates (I'd seen the manual, but it would have been too obvious for it to actually describe how to fit/remove the faceplate)
 
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The tool arrived last night and I reached into the spa this morning (a chilly 73 degrees and dirty from the storm last night). Unfortunately it was too small - the tool reached the middle ring of the jet, but not the outer ring where the holes are (that the prongs would fit into). Is there a bigger version of this tool?

IMG_3804.jpg
 
There’s another tool, Item No. SP1430T, which might be correct, but it doesn’t look big enough.

Item No. SPX1450BG is the bulkhead fitting with gasket.

spx1450bg_1_.jpg


SPX1450BG | Bulkhead Fitting with Gasket

Bulkhead Fitting with Gasket
www.getpoolparts.com www.getpoolparts.com
 
That Bulkhead Fitting with Gasket is certainly cheaper than buying the whole jet, if I break the fittings trying to get them off. I've contacted Hayward - hopefully they'll come back with a helpful tool I can use.
 
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wwerdna said:
I'm going to close our pool and spa by myself for the first time this year, because each year that we've owned the pool the various companies have each left me dissatisified in a different way. One of the things that none of them has done however, is plug the jet returns in the spa. Looking online, I think what we have is 6 Hayward SP1450TGR nozzles. Obviously they're underwater right now, but here's what they look like with my poor photography.

View attachment 158033

Several of them have bits broken around the rings suggesting that people have tried and failed to unscrew these in the past, and I cannot figure out how I could plug the return with the ring parts in the way, or how I can get the ring part off to give me better access. Can anyone suggest how I can accomplish this? I'll be emptying the spa at closing, but I know from experience that it will fill up quite quickly from rain, and will freeze in January, so I'd feel much better if I could actually plug all of my plumbing
Click to expand...


Unless I am missing something, you can not remove the fitting. It is screwed in to the wall of the pool. They make special covers, which I have ordered for a friend (not in the business). There also should be air valves somewhere in the pool (again hard to tell). When you clear the lines, you will screw in the cover by hand with silicone on the gasket and it will create a tight seal. Once the air stops from the cover, then you can shut off the bleeder air valve. You can not remove the return housing, unless I am missing something.

What exactly are you trying to do besides clear water from the lines with air and plug them for the winter? Thank you.
 
I'm trying to clear water from the lines and plug them. I assumed that to do that I would need to unscrew the "face plate" (the rings on the front), leaving the body of the fitting behind (I'm sure that's embedded in the plaster/gunite) but I can't figure out how to remove that face plate. If there's a cover for them instead then that would also be great, but I've no idea what that part would be so I could order it. As I said, in previous years the pool companies have not plugged them, but I'd like to try and do better (and avoid a situation where I end up with ice damage)
 
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Then you can thread the special SP-1450WP pressure test seal plate, with o-ring, into the fitting. Tighten snugly to seal.

As you can see in this link, the part is threaded. You put something in the little holes to hold the fitting and you screw it in.

www.poolweb.com

SP1450WP - Test/Winterizing Plate - Hayward

This is a Hayward Replacement White Winterizing Plug or Plate, 1.50 inch Turbo-Boost Jet Fitting.
www.poolweb.com www.poolweb.com

The part is threaded as you can see in this link.


You just need to make a tool that has pegs that fit in the holes and unscrew.

For example, you can put some finish nails into a 2 x 4 at the correct spacing and use that.

Or, you can put something in the ribbed section to get a grip and unscrew.

apilqtt5n__10969.1578368306.jpg
 
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They have a special tool for removing and installing this cover, but quite expensive. I have closed the same pool year after year, with just hands, after using the Teflon Lube, etc. If there is a bleeder valve, open the valve up near the steps or the returns and when you hand tighten, you will get a really good seal. Then close the bleeder valves. We open with a cloth and a regular screw driver to push the cover counter clockwise. Whoever designed this really should go back to school. At least make it easy to install and remove by hand, not have to purchase a $35 removable tool.
 
Catanzaro said:
If the pool company closed your pool, and then they opened your pool, the plugs or covers for your returns should be at your home. If they did not remove anything, you do not need to remove anything. Please take a picture of the covers you have and upload them.
Click to expand...

I have no covers for them - they never plugged those returns. We've owned the house 4 years, and the 4 times I've had the pool closed (with 2 different companies) none of them plugged or covered the returns in the spa, though they put plugs in the drain. This is one of the reasons I'm planning on closing the pool myself this year - why am I paying extra for a closing with an attached spa, when they're not doing it properly? And I know that the water gets into the returns, as I had a bit of an issue when I was replacing my pipes in May. I cut into the PVC and the hole I was standing in got full of water, so I had to run and get my pump to get all the water out of the spa.
 
Here in Central-Southern, New Jersey, some pool companies, although few do not clear the lines and plug them. Their thinking is that water is below the frost line. However, you catch a real cold winter, lose some water in the pool (for what ever reason), and there could be damage. In Sparta, I would definitely recommend clearing the lines. There is a big difference in the weather. I have seen 2 feet of snow there, while nothing here. Temperatures can range by 10 degrees.
 
Catanzaro said:
In Sparta, I would definitely recommend clearing the lines. There is a big difference in the weather. I have seen 2 feet of snow there, while nothing here. Temperatures can range by 10 degrees.
Click to expand...

Oh definitely. The year before last we had a couple of solid inches of ice on top of the pool. We'd also had a wet fall so the water level was higher than I normally let it get and there was some cracking of slate that's around the skimmer mouth. I really don't want pvc damage. In the absence of a specific tool I might try JamesW's suggestion of nails in a strip of wood. They certainly don't turn noticeably by hand, and at least one of them is pretty broken around the outer ring, potentially from someone before me trying to turn them without a good tool. I've no idea when these were last removed (given that the pool is 29 years old), so they might be a little stuck in place.
 
So, I got the 6 winterizing plates and I discovered that all the time I'd been assuming I had to remove the existing faceplate/nozzle to be able to attach them. However, they just screw onto the threaded part of the existing faceplate to make a water tight seal with the included rubber gasket (I gave it a go, as I was worried that I'd bought the wrong part). I suspect this was what @JamesW was trying to tell me and I was completely oblivious. I'm thrilled that I won't have to worry about breaking any of the nozzles at closing (and then can think about replacing the previously damaged ones in the spring).

IMG_3842.jpg
 
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