Best solution to fix air leak at pump fitting

May 4, 2018
5
Hopkinton, MA
I have an air leak on fitting that threads into the pump and it looks like the previous owners tried to fix it with some putty/cement and that eventually gave way and it's sucking in a lot of air. The unfortunate thing is that the fittings are all very close together so I'm not sure what I can salvage here. Any ideas the best way to replace this fitting without having to redo all of the piping on the suction side? Attaching pic for reference.

IMG-2505.jpg
 
Some alternatives to cutting out the plumbing:

Suction side leaks are usually easier to fix than pressure side since with the pump running, the leak will draw in air or anything else you might put on it. If it is a very tiny leak, sometimes pool lube is enough to get sucked into the gap and seal it. Same with plumber's putty although that is a bit thick to get sucked into the gap but it is worth a try since it is so easy to do. With wider gaps, hot glue is a good choice as it is easy to remove later on. If you don't care about it being permanent, then epoxy can work well.
 
Yes, scrape out the old putty as much as you can. First try the pool lube and see if it works and lasts. If not, move on to the plumber's putty. You can soften the plumbers putty with a little water. But for both, apply while the pump is running. You will know right away if the gap is too big as it will suck it right through.
 
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