Do you mean, the skimmer side, up by the pool, or on the opposite side of the gate valve - the photo I took, but the other side?
Proud new owner of an above-ground SWAMP
- Thread starter adoptolderkids
- Start date
I know you have plenty of help here, but I'm gonna chime in. From what it looks like to me, you have 3 possible air entry points to check, (if your pump basket o-ring is truly good). The threaded fitting between your gate valve & pump basket, The fitting that your hose connects onto the gate valve, & the stem coming straight up out of the gate valve. In other words, directly in front of the gate valve, on top of the gate valve, and finally directly behind the gate valve. Try running water slowly over those three points & see if the problem clears. Give it a minute on each point to see if it gets better or not & move on to the next point. I'm betting it's the stem coming up out of the gate valve.
adoptolderkids said:
The other end of the valve that is connected to the hose. I'm trying to see if that end has the slip/barbed connection built in or whether theres an adapter fitting screwed into it.
Well, it doesn't really matter at this point, (though it would have needed something to match up the pieces), because the pump is FIXED. None of us had it right. Last night and this morning, everything surrounding the pump was wet, but when my husband came home from work at 11, the entire area was dry. EXCEPT for one tiny little part, directly BELOW the join between the valve gate and the pump. Take a look at what our problem was folks:
A loose bolt. My husband tightened it and the pump filled right up. Everything is working smoothly now.
Thank you for all the help!
I'll keep updating on my swamp-to-swim conversion, but hopefully with a lot less drama.
A loose bolt. My husband tightened it and the pump filled right up. Everything is working smoothly now.
Thank you for all the help!
I'll keep updating on my swamp-to-swim conversion, but hopefully with a lot less drama.
RobbieH said:That's where mine was leaking, the basket drain port!
Heck I didn't even notice that in any of the pictures. So all this time you could have easily ended her agony with a simple "Is there a drain port on the pump basket?" Hahaha!
Perhaps the journey itself is more rewarding than arriving at the destination.
Glad you got that fixed and now it's on to the clearing. You can start vacuuming again.
Bama Rambler said:Glad you got that fixed and now it's on to the clearing. You can start vacuuming again.
Somehow I think more stirring was happening than vacuuming without an actual "vacuum" in the pump housing!
JesseWV said:RobbieH said:That's where mine was leaking, the basket drain port!
Heck I didn't even notice that in any of the pictures. So all this time you could have easily ended her agony with a simple "Is there a drain port on the pump basket?" Hahaha!
Perhaps the journey itself is more rewarding than arriving at the destination.
I just want to say congrats. In three days, you have 10 pages of posts !!! That's got to be some kind of record.
Make sure you drain that port this winter if you close the pool, so it doesn't freeze.
Now you're seriously in business and will be swimming in NO TIME!
Make sure you drain that port this winter if you close the pool, so it doesn't freeze.
Now you're seriously in business and will be swimming in NO TIME!
Congratulations for you and your husband's persistence and diligence. Solving this problem shows the limitations of long distance online diagnosing. While we were able to help you diagnose the general location in your system and why you were loosing prime, none of us thought to ask you the question about the drain on the pump basket. I guess the silver lining is that you and your husband know a whole lot more about the mechanics of your system. Now, as soon as you can afford it order a good test kit and with the numbers we will help you get that pool in great shape. In the meantime go back to what you were doing before the filter/pump problem.
Ha Ha - I know, thanks for your "help" Robbie! From now on, that should be your go-to answer for everything, so it doesn't accidentally get overlooked again!So all this time you could have easily ended her agony with a simple "Is there a drain port on the pump basket?" Hahaha!
I am in much better spirits now about things - the filter really seems to be doing a great job. We got the sock o' CYA hung up in front of the return and we're still topping off the chlorine whenever needed. The CYA definitely jumped our psi, and my husband did a backwash because he didn't know any better. He said he can tell everything is working now, because the backwash water is filthy, unlike before.
Also, the pump actually pulling water out has everything on the bottom stirred up - we are finding lots of leaves on the bottom today. It's like, yeah the vacuum wasn't pulling up close to anything, and now the stuff in the middle has migrated to the edges. My husband used the leaf net and got out lots.
I TOLD you guys that it didn't feel like the vacuum had suction or anything! :lol:
So progress has been made - even if it took us 10 pages.
My husband and I definitely have a pretty good idea how the pump parts go together now!Looking at my last set of numbers - is there anything else I should be adding yet?
CYA - definite 0.
Total Chlorine - 9
FC - 7.3
pH - 7
TA - 62
Hardness - 114
Oh, and I SERIOUSLY do appreciate all the help everyone has given me! There is no way I would have gotten this far without all the assistance!
Raise your shock level as if the CYA you put in is registering on the test. You can squeeze the CYA filled sock to speed up dispursement. Whenever you go out to check the filter give the sock 4 or 5 good squeezes until it has all dissolved. It is o.k. to backwash when you are using the sock method to add CYA. You would only not backwash if you had just dumped dry CYA into the pool or skimmer basket where it would get caught in the filter until it had dissolved or been backwashed out.
Running the vacuum should be much more effective now too, should you choose to do so.
Running the vacuum should be much more effective now too, should you choose to do so.
I'm glad to hear you solved the issue and that the filter is now working properly. You are doing a great job and will be an expert in no time. Can't wait to see the finished product.
Just keep shocking and getting as much stuff out as you can.
You'll get it clean and ready to swim in before long.
You'll get it clean and ready to swim in before long.
Ah. Gotcha. Makes sense.
I am TERRIFIED of the vacuum now. Leaving that to my husband. Once he uses it and doesn't break anything, I'll give it another try. I am afraid to jinx myself and mess everything up again! :-D
Now this I can do!
Thanks!
And Holly don't for get us. Please keep us informed of your progress, let us know about any problems you run into, and ask any questions that come to mind. I am with you on the vacuuming as it is the only thing about the pool that still makes me apprehensive. Someday someone is going to come up with a much better mousetrap that isn't expensive.
The good thing is even if you do not vacuum, shocking will clear the pool and then you can use the leaf net to get the remaining trash out. It will just take longer.
The good thing is even if you do not vacuum, shocking will clear the pool and then you can use the leaf net to get the remaining trash out. It will just take longer.
heh. I have 10 pages here in just a couple of days. I'm not going to forget this place. I'm stalking lots of threads and trying to cram as much info into my brain as possible. I'm excited about ordering my test kit later today!
Glad your are ordering the kit. You will find managing the pool with a good test kits is much easier. In the meantime I suggest you continue to haunt the pool store and post their results. In my experience they usually are not the most accurate, but better than nothing or the strips. Of course, the most important test right now is your FC as you are still in the shocking process. However, paying attention to PH, TA, and CYA are still important. By posting your numbers you can get advice on these other elements. Note the CYA while it will begin to take affect as it is dissolving will take up to a week to fully show up in the tests. Also, I know you are leaving on vacation on Wednesday, so let's see what the numbers are on Monday and perhaps we can give you some advice on how to avoid a setback while you are gone. Have a great shocking day!