Waterfall Plumbing Issue - Under Stone Coping and Concrete Decking

[geobrick]

I have water bubbling out of the expansion joint between the stone coping and concrete deck when I turn on the waterfall feature. The pool was installed in 2008 so it's nine years old (I don't think this is covered by a warranty).

1) What kind of contractor would I hire to handle this type of repair? Seems it would require someone to pull up the coping and break up the cement then repair the PVC plumbing. I could probably do the plumbing part myself once the cement and stone were removed.

or

2) I can delay the repair indefinitely. There are two 3' waterfalls that have separate return lines from the pump and the plumbing at the pump is set up where I can independently turn off the flow to the one leaking. The pump also supplies water to a slide (also independently controlled with the return valves). The slide has the added benefit of entering the pool right where the failing waterfall is (so you'd barely notice it wasn't on when the slide is on). If I choose option 2, would it put too much water pressure in the system because I'm only feeding one 3 foot waterfall and the slide? It's a 2 HP single speed pump (I'll add a photo of the pump return line plumbing soon). Should I put a lower HP pump in place of the 2 HP pump that's there?

Let me know your thoughts/suggestions.

 

[geobrick]

Here's the photo of the pump and plumbing.
Is 2 HP too much if I close the valve to the leaking waterfall? The slide needs very little flow in comparison (note the position of the diverter valve).

 

[Fingaling]

2" PVC is good over 150psi so that's not a concern. Unless the water isn't shooting too hard and high out the slide or water fall I wouldn't worry about the pipes. A better question is do you need that much power/electricity usage?

As for question one, the unfortunate answer is a pool builder is your best bet. Any plumber could probably break up the concrete and stone to get to the pipe, but I assume it's decorative stone and if you want it to look nice...

 

[geobrick]

2" PVC is good over 150psi so that's not a concern. Unless the water isn't shooting too hard and high out the slide or water fall I wouldn't worry about the pipes. A better question is do you need that much power/electricity usage?

As for question one, the unfortunate answer is a pool builder is your best bet. Any plumber could probably break up the concrete and stone to get to the pipe, but I assume it's decorative stone and if you want it to look nice...

Thanks. It may be hard to get a pool builder to take on a small job like this. When we had the pool built, the pool builder seemed more like a general contractor who hired the skilled people he's worked with before to implement his design.

The waterfall seems to be one of the Pentair magicfalls type and is fitted directly between the pool's beam and the stone coping. I'm not sure how the stone coping was cemented over the flat area of the PVC waterfall. I'm wondering if I can get to the area that needs repair by just having someone cut the concrete decking without removing the stone coping. Thoughts for another time.

As for the power used by the 2HP pump, it's not used that often so not that big a deal. I have a spa jet booster pump that's only 1 HP (was supposed to be 1.5 HP according to the original contract). The original waterfall design called for a 3 HP pump to feed three 3' waterfalls but we decided we only wanted two so they used the 2HP pump. I could switch the 2 pumps.

I'm really curious to see how the waterfall failed. Is it the waterfall itself or a bad PVC junction (or did a rock slowly dig into the pipe).

 

[geobrick]

I found a video from when the pool was being built. It helps show me how the plumbing was installed. This way, if I decide to repair it, I can see where I'd need to cut the concrete deck. I captured a video frame to show it here.
Seems like the plumbing was run more than a foot below the deck and rises up directly along the outside of the pool frame. This probably means I won't have to take up too much of the decking. I may even be able to get to it by just removing the stone coping. If I ever decide to repair this, I'll find out.

Any other thoughts on the 2HP pump feeding the single 3' waterfall with a small amount going to a slide? I know 'Flingaling' said 2" PVC is good for over 150 psi but the pipe going to each waterfall seems to only be 1.5". Do I risk another leak at 2HP?

Here's the frame capture: