Hello, This is my first post, I am VERY happy to find this forum! My problem (I think) is an air leak in the inlet side of the pump. I have read a few of your threads and know nothing about the pump other than how I turn it on. 
I usually use a pool company, but they seem overwhelmed and I just feel I should know this as well. They opened the pool May 12, 2016, and the water was WAY down about 2 feet from the bottom of the pool. They found and patched one tear in the liner where the sidewall meets the bottom in the low end. So far water is holding its level but now there are some bubbles coming out of one return.
I did not think anything of this until reading a few of your threads, but when I went to vacuum last evening there was very little suction. Before closing the pool last fall there was a leak coming from the Gas Heater. (I do not use the heater as the pool is in direct sun all day) The pool company fixed the leak but right after their repair the pool turned purple, they had no answer for why or what this was in the pool. Doing research I believe it to be Copper from the heater, I drained and refilled about half the water before closing for the season, knowing I would most likely have to deal with this on opening.
So when they opened it and water was so low, I figured at least I had a jump on the copper issue, They disconnected the heater so water does not circulate through it anymore and since the liner leak was repaired water looks much better, but bottom still needs to be vacuumed. The reading we took on the water June 8th, 2016 was FC- 0.1 , TC 0.2, CC 0.1, PH-7.2, Hardness 62, Alkalinity 69, Cyanuric Acid 90, Copper 0.2, Iron 0.2.
I filled the Chlorine Feeder, and levels seem to be coming up (from dip stick test) They want me to add 7 pounds of Alkalinity increaser and 34 pounds of Calcium Hardness Increaser but this seems like a very large amount.
Your thread said to check the pump basket, is this the box near the pump that I can see the water going around in through a clear plastic top? Sorry to sound so dumb, but wish there was a diagram telling about all the parts and what they do. I saw the list of pool parts on this site, but it does not address the pipes and the valves.
Hoping you can give me a better understanding, again thank you so much for this forum and your time.
I usually use a pool company, but they seem overwhelmed and I just feel I should know this as well. They opened the pool May 12, 2016, and the water was WAY down about 2 feet from the bottom of the pool. They found and patched one tear in the liner where the sidewall meets the bottom in the low end. So far water is holding its level but now there are some bubbles coming out of one return. I did not think anything of this until reading a few of your threads, but when I went to vacuum last evening there was very little suction. Before closing the pool last fall there was a leak coming from the Gas Heater. (I do not use the heater as the pool is in direct sun all day) The pool company fixed the leak but right after their repair the pool turned purple, they had no answer for why or what this was in the pool. Doing research I believe it to be Copper from the heater, I drained and refilled about half the water before closing for the season, knowing I would most likely have to deal with this on opening.
So when they opened it and water was so low, I figured at least I had a jump on the copper issue, They disconnected the heater so water does not circulate through it anymore and since the liner leak was repaired water looks much better, but bottom still needs to be vacuumed. The reading we took on the water June 8th, 2016 was FC- 0.1 , TC 0.2, CC 0.1, PH-7.2, Hardness 62, Alkalinity 69, Cyanuric Acid 90, Copper 0.2, Iron 0.2.
I filled the Chlorine Feeder, and levels seem to be coming up (from dip stick test) They want me to add 7 pounds of Alkalinity increaser and 34 pounds of Calcium Hardness Increaser but this seems like a very large amount.
Your thread said to check the pump basket, is this the box near the pump that I can see the water going around in through a clear plastic top? Sorry to sound so dumb, but wish there was a diagram telling about all the parts and what they do. I saw the list of pool parts on this site, but it does not address the pipes and the valves.
Hoping you can give me a better understanding, again thank you so much for this forum and your time.
Yes, the pump strainer basket is that item where you first see water (through the clear lid) begin to enter the pump. If you were to turn-off your pump and close any 3-way valves before and after the pump (to isolate water flow), you could remove that clear lid and inspect the O-ring underneath. That's a common source of an air leak. You might also want to read the TFP