OK, thanks, Rich. You've been a huge help!
You, too, gman!
I'm learning so much about this just by talking with you both here, and am starting to feel more confidant that we can do this.
In looking at the plumbing around the Jandy valve, it seems to me that there definitely must be two returns, and the plugged one was probably the second one. The pipe to the left of the valve is all PVC. However, the pipe going to the right is attached to a
metal pipe that then goes down into the ground back near the old metal manifold. Here's a closer picture of that. There is some black PVC between the white PVC and the metal pipe.
Does that make sense? Why would there be a valve and 2 pipes coming from it if there's only one return? Logic says there are two. Right?
Now, in conjunction with that, since this older metal return pipe appears to be functional, and it's going into the ground back by the old manifold, is there a
chance that it is also might be functional? Based on that chance (however slim it may be), shouldn't we have those valves in whatever is their correct position also --
just in case they are working? If so, then what should we do with them?