Fill pump basket every time?

[MostlyCanuck]

New "full time" pool owner / first season - getting a decent hang of chemistry but sooo confused about this one.

When do you manually fill your pump basket with water? Just at start up? Every time that you open the basket lid and restart it? Or every single time that you stop/start the pump (even if you dont open the lid)?

Everywhere I read that you should fill the pump... but I havent been doing it - ever - for a month and mine (Intelliflo VSF) seems to just prime up to full speed, suck in all the water it needs from the suction pipe, and take care of itself.... is this bad? am i supposed to feed it water manually every time i restart it?

Very basic concept... yet very confusing to me!

 

[Texas Splash]

You shouldn't have to refill the pump pot each & every time you re-start the system. Water draining out of the pump is an indication there may be an air leak somewhere allowing air "in" which causes the water to shift. There are some exceptions when the equipment pad is significantly elevated from the waterline, distance to the pool, etc, but I would start inspecting all around the equipment for an air leak. They are extremely tricky, so you have to inspect everywhere.

You can also post a pic or two of your equipment pad and pool. Tel us if there are any unusual circumstances there. It may help.

 

[Texas Splash]

Check all potential O-rings (clear lid, drain plugs) to ensure they are lubed well. Also check the pressure gauge on the filter. Even 3-way valves have been known to develop an air leak.

 

[MostlyCanuck]

You shouldn't have to refill the pump pot each & every time you re-start the system. Water draining out of the pump is an indication there may be an air leak somewhere allowing air "in" which causes the water to shift. There are some exceptions when the equipment pad is significantly elevated from the waterline, distance to the pool, etc, but I would start inspecting all around the equipment for an air leak. They are extremely tricky, so you have to inspect everywhere.

You can also post a pic or two of your equipment pad and pool. Tel us if there are any unusual circumstances there. It may help.

thx Pat.

what i found confusing was the while the pumps I'm using are marketed as "self-priming" (which i took to mean I dont have to do anything), the advice seemed to suggest the need to fill basket with water before use. and indeed, with my pumps, they ramp up to max speed for a few seconds, pull all the water they need from the pool, and within 15 sec or so are done priming and resume normal ops...

it makes sense that you dont have to refill manually every time you turn it on/off... otherwise automation would be useless of course!

that said, when is it then that you do have to manually refill with hose/bucket before starting it? do you have to do that every time that you open the lid for cleaning?

 

[Jimrahbe]

M,

There is no reason to fill the basket with water unless you have drained the pump or the basket area is empty..

Keep in mind that most pumps are above the pool's water line.. So, even if you do fill the basket area with water, it will just drain right back into the pool anyway.

I can't remember the last time I actually added water to the pump basket.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[BowserB]

Two conditions: dry empty pump with the pump basket lid off; pump off after running but the lid has not been removed (in this case the basket is still full). I wondered about this for a while. With the lid off, I could pour water out of a 5 gallon pail all day long, and it just runs back into the pool. My equipment pad is probably two feet above the pool water line, so unless the pool suction were completely closed it only makes sense that the water you pour into the basket will run back to the pool. My "worst case" is when I clean the filter. The pump is empty; filter is empty. I button everything back up, turn on the power, the VSF pump winds up to 3450, and in a half a minute (I think--maybe more maybe less) the basket is full and the pump settles back to its set speed--usually 1650. This has been going on for three years now, so I guess it's OK.

 

[jark87]

I’m glad someone asked this question, as I’ve often wondered about it. Whenever I take the filter basket lid off, usually for emptying the basket, I put the lid back on quickly and leave it there while I clean the basket. I just try to retain as much water as I can. I used to try and fill the basket, but as others have said, I could stand there for hours with a water hose and the level in the basket won’t increase. My original pump lasted more than 10 years with heavy usage.

 

[Newdude]

Whenever I popped my pump lid the water would glug-glug-glug away in both directions. Some would be left in the basket and I’d fill it back up before closing it. That was enough to keep the internals wet while it self primed. Of course, if it doesn’t prime in 20 seconds, fill it back up and try again.

 

[MostlyCanuck]

thx all. good feedback. this is one of those very basic yet somewhat confusing practices that probably vary a bit with set-up..
what i'm taking away from this is that as long as there is "some" water in the pump (mine is always at least 1/4 full after cleaning the basket) and the pump is capable to suction back water and self-prime within ~30sec or so, there is no need to manually refill the pump entirely.

 

[Newdude]

Exactly. If it’s bone dry, it will overheat quickly. *some* water is plenty. It certainly won’t hurt to fill the basket for good measure, but that gets sucked through almost instantly.

Mine took 2 or 3 spurts of pool water before it caught for good. And those spurts helped keep the guts wet in the meantime.