Leak under skimmer

[pawlom2]

Hello everyone.
I sure hope someone can help me.
We just purchased a home with a approximately 40 yr old pool....that has a few leaks. I was able to repair the all the leaks beside the skimmer leak. My problem is that the skimmer is encased in concrete so i cant see where the leak is coming from. I opened up the concrete pad and broke up a bit of the encased concrete. What i see is that if i turn the pump off right away water starts pooling in the whole i dug out. if i turn the pump on the water pools very slowly. This obviously indicates a leak under the skimmer. To my amazement however, i would plug up the hole in the skimmer that is connected to the pump and turn the pump off. expecting that the skimmer would stop leaking. Water keeps gathering into the hole but at a slower pace. In know its is not water running back from the pump because there is just too much of it. also, as i add more water to the pool the water in the hole gets fuller aswell, essentially to the level of the water in the pool. My skimmer has two holes, one to the pump and a second which i suppose is to the drain, with a little white puck size object in between...i assume that is the diverter. The other whole is plugged up which I assume is connected to the drain. I had someone come to inspect the pool with all their gadgets and they are sure there is a leak in the skimmer but never found a leak in the drain. Can anyone with experience please tell me what the heck is going on there I am ready to rip out the skimmer and install a new one but would love to find a cheaper alternative if possible. The previous owner assured us the pool was fine, recently found out from the that this pool has been leaking for years but the previous owners didnt want to spend money fixing it. It was winter when we bought the home so an inspection was not possible.
Thank you.

 

[triptyx]

If the skimmer piping has a leak below the pool water level - the water will always rise to the level of the pool, regardless of whether or not you have the skimmer turned off at the pump. The pool itself is creating pressure, and will force water through that hole until the water in the hole reaches the level of the pool. Now, if you've plugged the correct hole in the skimmer (the one that goes to the pump), and the water is still rising to the level of the pool in the hole, I'd suspect there was a leak in the skimmer housing itself.

 

[pawlom2]

Thank you Triptyx. I think what you are saying makes sense, however I cant locate any leaks in the housing. I tried the die test and am not finding anything. That being said it seems like a safe bet to go ahead and install a new skimmer. The pool tech that came to inspect the leaks found a leak under the skimmer so the only way to get to this is by removing the concrete encased one I have now anyway and replace with a new. I am just perplexed why it is still leaking considering both holes in skimmer are plugged. Thank you.

 

[triptyx]

Yes, that seems really odd to me as well considering the leak testing you've been doing, but I'd agree entirely - if you're chipping the whole thing out anyways, best to just go ahead and replace the skimmer housing too!

 

[kadavis]

In most in ground pool construction the builder will over excavate the skimmer area and the plumber will run his pipes out in this area. So you might want to plug off returns and see if it stops

 

[pawlom2]

hello kadavis. I don't understand exactly. What does plugging up the return jets have to do with an over excavated area. I thought my return line runs from the shed where the pump is to my jets along the perimeter of the pool. I will try this tomorrow regardless but some more detail would be great!
Thank you.

 

[kadavis]

It is an area that many builders bring all the plumbing from the perimeter of the pool back to the equipment pad. After they backfill and and encase this area with gunite. So if it's a leak in a return line running through this area, just might be why you can't locate in skimmer. You have said you plugged everything in skimmer and dye tested so it's just a thought it may be something else

 

[pawlom2]

Ok. I definitely would never have thought of that. But when I run the pump at half horsepower water begins to fill up in the hole. When I crank to full 1hp the leak slows down big time. When I turn the pump off it fills up super fast. Could that be water running back from the return line? Maybe I can test this by running new return line? Thank you.

 

[pawlom2]

just blocked off return lines, plugged the skimmer and still leakinginto hole. I guess now there is nothing else to do but to rip out the skimmer?

 

[kadavis]

Good luck

 

[pawlom2]

leak was from equalizer line and suction line.
time for a new skimmer
thank you verybody!!

 

[triptyx]

Glad you found it! Hope it's fixed up soon.