Air bubbles in return jets

[pb4uswim]

I have bubbles coming from my returns. Been doing some reading and a couple things:

The bubbles seem bigger when the pump is running on med (about 1/2 speed). When I bring the speed of the pump up, the bubbles appear to go away, but I think what's really happening is that they're getting really small because the water coming out of the jets looks cloudy. I assume that's just smaller air bubbles.

I looked at the basket on the pump and there is a single bubble in there about the size of a large pea. I turned the pressure release on the filter housing and a bit of air did escape ( a second or two before the water came out when I barely cracked the valve) and then water came out. However, that did not change anything. Still have bubbles.

Pressure on the pump is good. Under 10 at half speed and just over 10 at 75%. Looks normal, as in , that's the way it has been showing for a few weeks now.

Read something about the SWG creating bubbles. Is that a thing? How would I know if that's the issue and if it is, is that even an issue.

I've also read about cleaning and lubricating the seals. I can do that tomorrow, but what type of lube do you use?

Anything else I can do to analyze this?

Thank you.

 

[mknauss]

Do the bubbles coincide with the SWCG generating chlorine and hydrogen gas? The hydrogen gas does not dissolve into the water and results in bubbles out the returns.

 

[pb4uswim]

Do the bubbles coincide with the SWCG generating chlorine and hydrogen gas? The hydrogen gas does not dissolve into the water and results in bubbles out the returns.

I don't know yet. Next time I see them, I will have to turn off the SWG. That's probably all it is, because I've seen this sporadically.

Still wondering what lube to use on the basket seal. I figure I need to do that anyway because the other day when I emptied the basket, I cleaned the seal and wiped it clean. So I'm pretty sure there's no more lubrication on it.

 

[Brett S]

Still wondering what lube to use on the basket seal. I figure I need to do that anyway because the other day when I emptied the basket, I cleaned the seal and wiped it clean. So I'm pretty sure there's no more lubrication on it.

Use silicone grease. You can find it in the plumbing section of Lowes or Home Depot.

 

[Dirk]

Here's the skinny on lube and seals (called "o-rings")...

Pool Lube - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

Finding out that the bubbles coming from your returns are from the SWG and not some sort of plumbing leak is just one of the many happy realizations of running a SWG!!