I am trying to trouble shoot this problem for my FIL. His pump intermittently stops and restarts itself. It only seems to do this in very hot weather (90+ degree heat waves).
Here are my theories of what could be happening but I am looking for help in trying to isolate which of these theories could be the correct one.
#1) During the heat waves, I expect that a drop in power from the power company could be enough to cut the motor. The power drop could be caused by many people using air conditioners on highest settings. This theory holds the premise that the problem only happens during heat waves. However, why the pump restarts itself doesn't seem to fit.
#2) The pump itself is overheating as a result of:
a) bad wiring between the breaker and the pump
or
b) clogged vents in the pump
or
c) motor is just going bad (it's more than 10 YO) - maybe a short or something inside.
If the problem was the motor 0verheating (#2), then why does it only seem to happen during heat waves? I should add in here that the motor itself is very hot to the touch most of the time it runs. I would think that either a,b or c above would cause the problem to happen even if it's only 70 degrees out. Could it be the heat wave temps add to the motor overheating to the point of failure and not when the temps are only in the 70's or mid 80's?
This problem started in August of last year and the pool was closed in September. This year the pool was opened on Memorial Day but this past weekend we had a 90+ degree heat wave (3 straight days). It happened on the 2nd and 3rd days of the heat wave. It always restarts itself automatically.
Any idea to further help trouble shoot this?
Here are my theories of what could be happening but I am looking for help in trying to isolate which of these theories could be the correct one.
#1) During the heat waves, I expect that a drop in power from the power company could be enough to cut the motor. The power drop could be caused by many people using air conditioners on highest settings. This theory holds the premise that the problem only happens during heat waves. However, why the pump restarts itself doesn't seem to fit.
#2) The pump itself is overheating as a result of:
a) bad wiring between the breaker and the pump
or
b) clogged vents in the pump
or
c) motor is just going bad (it's more than 10 YO) - maybe a short or something inside.
If the problem was the motor 0verheating (#2), then why does it only seem to happen during heat waves? I should add in here that the motor itself is very hot to the touch most of the time it runs. I would think that either a,b or c above would cause the problem to happen even if it's only 70 degrees out. Could it be the heat wave temps add to the motor overheating to the point of failure and not when the temps are only in the 70's or mid 80's?
This problem started in August of last year and the pool was closed in September. This year the pool was opened on Memorial Day but this past weekend we had a 90+ degree heat wave (3 straight days). It happened on the 2nd and 3rd days of the heat wave. It always restarts itself automatically.
Any idea to further help trouble shoot this?