Hello everyone,
I wanna start this post by saying I've been a lurker on TFP for quite some time, and have had a lot of success with the information I've gathered on the sites forums, so a big thank you to the ones that have contributed to some of the knowledge I've gained here.
The problem I am dealing with now is the dreaded air in the pump basket / returns variety. Oddly enough, this problem appeared after replacing my pentair pool light, which has to just be a coincidence. I've never had problems such as this, and was running just fine up until a few weeks ago. It's an 18 X 36 pool, I have 2 returns and a wall drain. There are 2 shutoff valves, I assume for each skimmer. And the drain on the wall appears to connect to the skimmer line.
I have replaced the pump Lid / O-ring lubed well, both drain plugs have been teflon taped and snugged, I replaced the nylon bushing in the pump due to a small drip and fixed that particular problem. The elbows on pvc piping have been water welded (just to try and get any kind of change) I have placed a running hose over all possible suction side areas above ground and nothing seems to fill up the basket :/. I ran the water hose back through the pump to see if something is perhaps lodged, and see a decent flow of water from the skimmer closest to the pump. Regarding this skimmer, when I put my ear close to it, I can hear a rushing sound. Maybe this is normal? The skimmer further from the pump doesn't have a sound like this.
Also, while initially using silicone where the pvc enters the pump basket, I noticed that the basket would fill completely for about 5-10 seconds, then air would emerge. I thought i was on to something so I removed the silicone and replaced with water weld to no avail. Again, the water hose trick over possible leaking areas does no good whatsoever.
I have a pic attached that will look like the guilty culprit, but would like an opinion before I dive (pun intended) into replacing the entire pot. Seems strange, because after replacing the lid with a new one that is actually clear, It looks as if a rush of air bubbles flow in from the piping connected to the pot.
Either way, I'm at a complete loss. I feel like I have tried everything besides just calling in the pool company at this point.
Thanks for the input!
I wanna start this post by saying I've been a lurker on TFP for quite some time, and have had a lot of success with the information I've gathered on the sites forums, so a big thank you to the ones that have contributed to some of the knowledge I've gained here.
The problem I am dealing with now is the dreaded air in the pump basket / returns variety. Oddly enough, this problem appeared after replacing my pentair pool light, which has to just be a coincidence. I've never had problems such as this, and was running just fine up until a few weeks ago. It's an 18 X 36 pool, I have 2 returns and a wall drain. There are 2 shutoff valves, I assume for each skimmer. And the drain on the wall appears to connect to the skimmer line.
I have replaced the pump Lid / O-ring lubed well, both drain plugs have been teflon taped and snugged, I replaced the nylon bushing in the pump due to a small drip and fixed that particular problem. The elbows on pvc piping have been water welded (just to try and get any kind of change) I have placed a running hose over all possible suction side areas above ground and nothing seems to fill up the basket :/. I ran the water hose back through the pump to see if something is perhaps lodged, and see a decent flow of water from the skimmer closest to the pump. Regarding this skimmer, when I put my ear close to it, I can hear a rushing sound. Maybe this is normal? The skimmer further from the pump doesn't have a sound like this.
Also, while initially using silicone where the pvc enters the pump basket, I noticed that the basket would fill completely for about 5-10 seconds, then air would emerge. I thought i was on to something so I removed the silicone and replaced with water weld to no avail. Again, the water hose trick over possible leaking areas does no good whatsoever.
I have a pic attached that will look like the guilty culprit, but would like an opinion before I dive (pun intended) into replacing the entire pot. Seems strange, because after replacing the lid with a new one that is actually clear, It looks as if a rush of air bubbles flow in from the piping connected to the pot.
Either way, I'm at a complete loss. I feel like I have tried everything besides just calling in the pool company at this point.
Thanks for the input!
