Spa losing about an inch of water per night

[Oldpapamo]

Good morning. I have a elevated spa that loses around an inch of water when the pool is off at night. The system is pretty straight forward and I am at a loss as to what would be causing the problem. The flapper check valve is in good shape according to the pool guy that came out yesterday.

If I turn off the spa fountain using a valve I will continue to lose the water amount each day until the level reaches the same level as the pool. It then stays there without any further loss.

That would indicate to me that there is no signs of a leaking pipe. I have now drained the spa to below the water level in the pool and will observe over the next few days of normal operation to see if there is any loss of water. The flapper is mounted vertically not horizontally. Any ideas would be really appreciated.

Thanks in advance.f

OPM

 

[Texas Splash]

Welcome to TFP! It does sound as though water is making its way back to the pool. I would suggest posting some pics of your pool, spa, and the equipment pad from a couple angles so we can see all the control valves, plumbing lines, etc. I'm sure our viewers can help.

 

[ajw22]

Welcome to TFP.

Show us pics of your pool equipment and valves so we can see your situation.

While the Pool Guy says the flapper valve is in good shape it is still the prime suspect.

 

[Jimrahbe]

OPM,

When the pump is off, gravity will cause the water in the spa to "try" and drain down to the pool level.

The check valve in the Spa return line "should" prevent this.

A lot depends on your plumbing..

Show us several pics of your equipment pad.

What causes your spa to spillover into the pool? Does the spillover water come through your jets or does in come from your fountain?

The way we normally troubleshoot your problem is to let your spa drain down until the water stops..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Oldpapamo]

Thanks for the quick response. Here are some pics. Spillover mode in normal operation is through the fountain. But there is a spillover mode from the jets as well which moves more water. The picture on the left is a closeup of the spa return. The valve right now is in position to shut off the fountain. I did change the flapper out with a new one with the same results of losing water.

 

[Jimrahbe]

opm,

Tonight, shut off the manual valve that controls the jets, as well as the manual valve the shuts off the fountain, and see if the spa drains down.

If it does not, then your Automated Return valve is leaking.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Oldpapamo]

Jim,

So I would need to refill the spa? l am assuming yes. I do not see a manual valve to control the jets. I only have the Automated Return Valve. The valve to the left of the flapper controls the polaris pump. Am I missing something here? Your help is so appreciated.

 

[Jimrahbe]

opm,

Sorry, I got got confused... The older I get the more often it happens...

So.. you shut off the fountain and it still drains, so I would suspect that your Automated Return valve is leaking.

Since there is no manual valve on the spa jets line, then there is no way to test it.

I "assume" that your Return valve completely shuts off the Spa jets when in the Pool mode. If that is not true, then that is the problem.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Oldpapamo]

Jim
The spa jets are completely off when in pool mode. Saw that this AM and no water coming out of the jets.

 

[Jimrahbe]

opm,

The water normally leaks back through the check valve 90% of the time.. But since you shut off the valve, above the check valve, that should not be the problem.. The other way for the water to drain down is to go back through a closed (but leaking) Return valve.

The only other path is from the spa drain and a leaking Intake valve. But.. if this is the problem, then the water should continue to drain down well past the bottom of the jets..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Oldpapamo]

Jim,

I have replaced the gaskets on the suction valve and return valve. To be continued. I did not understand the valve above the check valve statement that you made. sorry I am a novice at this.

OPM

 

[Jimrahbe]

I did not understand the valve above the check valve statement that you made. sorry I am a novice at this.

opm,

Did you just replace the little round O-Rings or did you replace the diverter itself??

On your fountain return you have a manual valve and then below that a check valve.

This is the check valve that is bad most of the time.. in your case, the manual valve above the check valve is used to control the amount of spillover. It is shut off in your pics. This means that the check valve AND the manual valve would both have to be leaking, which I doubt is the case. So, if we eliminate the check valve, it can only be the automated Return or Intake valves.

The only other option is that the spa is actually leaking into the ground.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Oldpapamo]

Jim,

The saga continues. I replaced the main gasket on the two automated valves. The picture I sent is with the Spa fountain valve turned off. I did not see the little O-rings in on the diverter however. From your picture it appears that 2 O-rings on the top of the valve. Would those rings be present on the automated valves as well? I think I will open one up again and check for them.
You have been a big help and I appreciate it very much.

Kind regards,

OPM

 

[Jimrahbe]

opm,

You need to change the whole diverter section that the pic shows.. Not just the O-rings.

All the valves are the same.. The automated valves, just have an Actuator bolted on top of a normal valve.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Oldpapamo]

Jim

The water level this am dropped very little this am.. Big improvement!!!! Am going to get the diverter valves installed asap. Didn't have time to get them yesterday but we did move in the right direction. Thanks for all your help. Final report when new valves are installed.

 

[Jimrahbe]

opm,

I just want to make sure we are both on the same page..

The little O-rings just make sure that water can't leak out the valve and onto the ground. The diverter (Pictured above) is what closes off one pipe and opens the other pipe. When it fails to seal correctly, it can allow water to leak into a pipe that should be shut off.

If you have already changed the diverters in the Intake and Return valve, then there is no reason to do it again,

If it is now working, that is great, but not sure we have done anything to make it stop leaking..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Oldpapamo]

Hi Jim

The only thing that I changed yesterday was the gasket and the O-rings but NOT the diverter valves. I had partial success but I have already ordered the diverter valves and will replace them when they arrive. As far as the leaking there was less water loss than in previous days. But if I replace the diverters and it does not help then we move to plan 2 but I am confident that this should solve the issue. Again thanks for the help.

OPM

 

[Oldpapamo]

I have a really perplexing problem. Spa loses about an inch of water daily when the pool pump is not running. Nobody has been able to figure this out. Here is what has been done up to this point.
1. Replaced the flapper valve at least three times
2. Replaced both actuator valves insides with Jandy genuine parts.
3. Pool was replastered earlier this year and I had the entire system checked for leaks. They could not find any.\
4. Had them back to seal the conduit in the spa. Did not good at all.

At this point I am at a loss for where to go next to find the cause. Any help would be appreciated.

Last year while investigating I turned off the Spa fountain and the water drained over time to the return jets and did not go any further than that if that means anything.

Thanking in advance

PM

 

[Jimrahbe]

PM,

When the spa drains down to the return jets, it is almost always the check valve in the spa fountain line. (The one you replaced 3 times...)

Show us several pics of your equipment pad and maybe someone here can spot something.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Oldpapamo]

Thanks for the response. This is has been going on for awhile and I wanted to update what I have done. Here is the link to the older thread

Spa losing about an inch of water per night

Good morning. I have a elevated spa that loses around an inch of water when the pool is off at night. The system is pretty straight forward and I am at a loss as to what would be causing the problem. The flapper check valve is in good shape according to the pool guy that came out yesterday...

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