Booster Pump Burnt Out?

[3boyzmomndad]

Hi There! This is my first post. We bought a house w/ a pool last summer and are muddling though trying to be a conscientious pool owner.

The pump (Whisperflo 1.5 HP) started making intermittent screeching/high pitched noises, but primarily in cold weather. After reading, it sounds like it was a bearing that was going on. We decided to go ahead and replace it due to needing to run the pump so much this winter, which has been abnormally cold for us in Atlanta. We had it replaced with a new motor, rather than replacing the whole pump. During the recent freeze, our Pentair booster pump, which runs the Polaris, literally froze. We ran the freeze protection, as instructed, but the pipes around it froze :-( This led to the motor no longer working, but it continued to run for several hours (night time) until we figured it out, and it became HOT. We over-rode the freeze protection and disabled the booster pump. The pool technician said to leave it off until the weather thaws, then try to manually turn it back on. We are having a beautiful day today, and when I turned it on, our panel is making a "clicking" noise intermittently like the booster pump is turning off and on (even though the Aux1 light, which is the power switch for the booster pump is staying on). The pump is getting VERY hot and the Polaris is not moving. I suspect its dead, huh? So, do I need to call the pool technician back out and just have the booster pump replaced?

Also, could anything have been done to prevent this?

Now I need to make sure that the booster pump isn't going to kick on w/ the timer. Still muddling through how to work the panel and make sure that the Aux1 is only in manual off/on mode. ---Edited to add: After taking a second look at the control panel, the technician indeed switched the booster pump to manual only.

Sorry if I sound like an idiot! Still learning here. Thank you!

 

[3boyzmomndad]

OK- A few more things:

The new motor on the main pump is now making a weird noise…it sounds like its not running smooth. It was installed less than a week ago. The pitch of the motor sounds normal, but instead or making a constant, even "mmmmmmmmm" noise, every few minutes its going, "MmmmmmMmmmmmmMmmmmMmmMmmMmmMmm" if that wakes any sense; almost like a staccato reverberation.

ALSO: In the top of the filter, while the pool is one, you can hear a trickling or flowing sound of water. When I open up the presser valve on top of the filter it sprays a combination or water and air.

I am soooo frustrated. It seems like there are problems w/ this thing around every corner.

 

[Divin Dave]

OK- A few more things:

The new motor on the main pump is now making a weird noise…it sounds like its not running smooth. It was installed less than a week ago. The pitch of the motor sounds normal, but instead or making a constant, even "mmmmmmmmm" noise, every few minutes its going, "MmmmmmMmmmmmmMmmmmMmmMmmMmmMmm" if that wakes any sense; almost like a staccato reverberation.

ALSO: In the top of the filter, while the pool is one, you can hear a trickling or flowing sound of water. When I open up the presser valve on top of the filter it sprays a combination or water and air.

I am soooo frustrated. It seems like there are problems w/ this thing around every corner.

If there is a mixture of air and water coming out of the filter, then you obviously have air in the system. There is not supposed to be any air in the system. Open the pressure valve and let it run until nothing but water is coming out then close the valve. You might have to do it a couple of times to get all of the air out. Dont know if this is the cause of the motor sound or not, but it might have something to do with it. Get rid of the air first and then go from there.

 

[3boyzmomndad]

OK, I let the air out of the pressure valve on the sand filter, then turned the filter/pump on. I started w/ the skimmer closed, then gradually shifted to main drain closed/skimmer open to see if there was any difference in the priming. No difference was noted. I settled w/ both intakes open and the air settled out. NO air bubbles on the pump basket and the water came out of the top of the filter w/ no air. Yay! I felt accomplished!

Then, I turned the pump/filter off. Water leaves this pump basket (is this normal?). Then, I waited a couple of minutes and turned it back on and there is a small air bubble in the basket again. Also, when I turned the valve open on top of the filter, air sprays out unless it is wide open.

On a positive note; the pump is not making any funky noises. I also wanted to ask if its normal to hear water trickling or running through the filter?

Thoughts?

 

[3boyzmomndad]

OK, I let the air out of the pressure valve on the sand filter, then turned the filter/pump on. I started w/ the skimmer closed, then gradually shifted to main drain closed/skimmer open to see if there was any difference in the priming. No difference was noted; there were air bubbles noted while running on either setting. I settled w/ both intakes open and the air settled out. NO air bubbles on the pump basket and the water came out of the top of the filter w/ no air. Yay! I felt accomplished!

Then, I turned the pump/filter off. Water leaves this pump basket (is this normal?). Then, I waited a couple of minutes and turned it back on and there is a small air bubble in the basket again. Also, when I turned the valve open on top of the filter, air sprays out unless it is wide open.

On a positive note; the pump is not making any funky noises. I also wanted to ask if its normal to hear water trickling or running through the filter?

Thoughts?

 

[3boyzmomndad]

Anyone able to answer the booster pump burn-out question?

Ice formed around the outside of the pump during the freeze (it didn't get above mid twenties for 3 days straight w/ lows 5-9 degrees). I didn't inspect it, but my husband did and he said that the pipes were frozen. The motor ran for several hours, but the polaris wasn't moving. The motor got SUPER hot, yet the breaker did not trip?? We manually shut it off and now it doesn't work.

Thoughts?

 

[Bama Rambler]

If you're still getting air out of the filter purge valve, you haven't stopped the air leak yet.
Have you cleaned and lubed the pump basket o-ring? It's the most common place to get air into the system. Also the pump drain plugs can leak in air.

As for the booster pump, it most likely ran dry and warped/fused some of the internals. That's why it's not starting.