Bought a house in the Jacksonville, FL (USA), area with an approximately 15-year-old pool a few months ago. I've been soaking up all I can from this forum basically ever since. Water balance is basically under control at this point, although I'm desperate to either get the SWG cell replaced or get a new SWG system in.
When we first got the house, the handle on the multivalve port was broken, and so I purchased a new top cover with handle and replaced it at the direction of the local pool shop that the previous owners worked with the whole time they had the pool.
1. Definitely ever since (I don't recall noticing it before), there is a sort of "crackling" sound whenever the pump starts up. Sometimes it continues for just a few minutes, sometimes a couple of hours. Seems to be related to air brought in when the pump loses prime after being off for a couple of hours? Don't know if this is normal. Maybe I need to check/lube the spider gasket? Sometimes water seeps out of the MVP where the top cover (part I replaced) meets the bottom assembly (whatever the screws at the top go into). I tried ordering a new spider gasket, but the part that game was not right, and I don't even see a replacement part number on Hayward's website. The pressure gauge (which I also replaced at move-in) "wobbles" as the pump runs. Always. Is that normal? Fluctuating probably .5-1.0 PSI in either direction as it goes. Like a rough idle on a car tachometer.
2. Sometimes when the pump starts up I get water spurting from the collar where the MVP meets the filter. I understand the basic thing is to check/lube the O-ring there. However... it looks to me like the lines to/from the MVP are glued in, so should I expect there to be enough play in the plumbing that if I remove the band around the collar that I can move move it? I would like to deep clean the sand as well.
3. The pump is not secured to the pad in any way, and there is a loose copper wire laying beside it, not connected. The wire runs into the ground with either the suction or return pipe (can't recall). Seems like this would be the bonding wire? Shouldn't it be connected to that exposed connector on the motor housing?
4. These vent pipes -- what exactly are they for, and how big a deal is it to move them a few feet away? I have a little experience working with PVC, learning more as I finish the sprinkler system the last owner started and didn't complete.
When we first got the house, the handle on the multivalve port was broken, and so I purchased a new top cover with handle and replaced it at the direction of the local pool shop that the previous owners worked with the whole time they had the pool.
1. Definitely ever since (I don't recall noticing it before), there is a sort of "crackling" sound whenever the pump starts up. Sometimes it continues for just a few minutes, sometimes a couple of hours. Seems to be related to air brought in when the pump loses prime after being off for a couple of hours? Don't know if this is normal. Maybe I need to check/lube the spider gasket? Sometimes water seeps out of the MVP where the top cover (part I replaced) meets the bottom assembly (whatever the screws at the top go into). I tried ordering a new spider gasket, but the part that game was not right, and I don't even see a replacement part number on Hayward's website. The pressure gauge (which I also replaced at move-in) "wobbles" as the pump runs. Always. Is that normal? Fluctuating probably .5-1.0 PSI in either direction as it goes. Like a rough idle on a car tachometer.
2. Sometimes when the pump starts up I get water spurting from the collar where the MVP meets the filter. I understand the basic thing is to check/lube the O-ring there. However... it looks to me like the lines to/from the MVP are glued in, so should I expect there to be enough play in the plumbing that if I remove the band around the collar that I can move move it? I would like to deep clean the sand as well.
3. The pump is not secured to the pad in any way, and there is a loose copper wire laying beside it, not connected. The wire runs into the ground with either the suction or return pipe (can't recall). Seems like this would be the bonding wire? Shouldn't it be connected to that exposed connector on the motor housing?
4. These vent pipes -- what exactly are they for, and how big a deal is it to move them a few feet away? I have a little experience working with PVC, learning more as I finish the sprinkler system the last owner started and didn't complete.