A couple of months ago, a friend and I replaced my pool's suction line -- the one running from the skimmer to the pump. It was leaking -- sucking air to the extent it was audible. The suction was so poor, as a result of this, that my suction-powered pool vac wouldn't run. So we replaced the run of pipe from the skimmer to the pump with no problems. Suction's great now and that little vacuum even climbs the walls as it cleans the pool.
But I've been noticing a drop in the pool level now -- as much as an inch over a period of 3 or 4 days. We're getting a lot of rain here in Houston right now, so this isn't an issue, since the rains have made up for any losses. But I need to look forward to times when we won't be getting much rain.
When we replaced the old suction line, we didn't entirely uncover the old line. Yes, we did uncover sections of it, but not all of it. And we obviously missed where the main drain at the bottom of the deep end tied into the old line. At the time I completely forgot about the deep end drain. So the result is the main drain has been disconnected from the pool suction, but it's still connected -- somewhere to the old suction line. Honestly, I don't see what this hurts -- it not being hooked up to the suction line anymore, I mean. The pool vac is taking care of anything on the floor of the pool and it's handling the flow to the pump just fine. We're getting plenty of suction throughput through just that one line. But then, there has always been one line -- but a line that previously somewhere the main drain tied into. Now that the old line leading from the main drain to the suction line is inactive, I suspect it is the source of the water loss I'm seeing now. We didn't cap that old line -- we just left it down there. So as long as the water level in the pool is greater than that old suction line, I think it will continue to be a source of leaks.
I suppose we could dig around and find out where it ties into the old line and then tie it into the new line, but here's the thing -- for all I know, it might have been the source of the leaks we were experiencing previously. Or it might have at least shared in them. This is a 30 year old pool with 30 year old PVC piping, so I don't put a lot of trust in the original stuff anymore. No, I would much rather just plug off the deep end and be done with it. Because if I wanted to replace the deep end piping and tie it into the new suction line, I'd have to get a backhoe out here and a two or three man crew to handle all the earthwork removal. This is a 10 foot deep pool, so I'd be looking at having to dig at least a 12 foot hole and then having to tunnel over to where the drain's outlet is. Thousands of dollars to repair what is ultimately a small water loss from a drain that this pool is getting by just fine without.
So unless I drain the pool, I'll probably have to get somebody out here with scuba gear just to plug off the main drain. And right now I'm thinking of something that would be quick but effective -- like plumber's epoxy putty. Ever seen the stuff? It's a stick of thick epoxy that comes in a tube. You cut off the amount you need, then kneed it until it is of a uniform color, then spread it or push it into the shape you need. It sets up in about 5 minutes, even if fully submerged in water. I'm thinking the epoxy can probably just be pushed into the drain's slots or holes or whatever it has under that cover. If it's just a hole, then perhaps epoxing in a piece of capped off pvc. Either that, or maybe we can use some sort of concrete mix that will also set up submerged. I know that such a thing exists, but I dunno how easy it will be to find it or how easy or hard it will be to actually put it where it needs to go. If I go the concrete route, I'd probably just want to completely fill whatever there is below the drain cover.
Any thoughts or suggestions on this? I bet you're gonna tell me I need to drain the pool to do it right, I'll bet. I'm still kicking myself for forgetting about that drain, but oh well. Chances are that, even if I would have blocked it off, I'd still have been looking at a leak situation.
But I've been noticing a drop in the pool level now -- as much as an inch over a period of 3 or 4 days. We're getting a lot of rain here in Houston right now, so this isn't an issue, since the rains have made up for any losses. But I need to look forward to times when we won't be getting much rain.
When we replaced the old suction line, we didn't entirely uncover the old line. Yes, we did uncover sections of it, but not all of it. And we obviously missed where the main drain at the bottom of the deep end tied into the old line. At the time I completely forgot about the deep end drain. So the result is the main drain has been disconnected from the pool suction, but it's still connected -- somewhere to the old suction line. Honestly, I don't see what this hurts -- it not being hooked up to the suction line anymore, I mean. The pool vac is taking care of anything on the floor of the pool and it's handling the flow to the pump just fine. We're getting plenty of suction throughput through just that one line. But then, there has always been one line -- but a line that previously somewhere the main drain tied into. Now that the old line leading from the main drain to the suction line is inactive, I suspect it is the source of the water loss I'm seeing now. We didn't cap that old line -- we just left it down there. So as long as the water level in the pool is greater than that old suction line, I think it will continue to be a source of leaks.
I suppose we could dig around and find out where it ties into the old line and then tie it into the new line, but here's the thing -- for all I know, it might have been the source of the leaks we were experiencing previously. Or it might have at least shared in them. This is a 30 year old pool with 30 year old PVC piping, so I don't put a lot of trust in the original stuff anymore. No, I would much rather just plug off the deep end and be done with it. Because if I wanted to replace the deep end piping and tie it into the new suction line, I'd have to get a backhoe out here and a two or three man crew to handle all the earthwork removal. This is a 10 foot deep pool, so I'd be looking at having to dig at least a 12 foot hole and then having to tunnel over to where the drain's outlet is. Thousands of dollars to repair what is ultimately a small water loss from a drain that this pool is getting by just fine without.
So unless I drain the pool, I'll probably have to get somebody out here with scuba gear just to plug off the main drain. And right now I'm thinking of something that would be quick but effective -- like plumber's epoxy putty. Ever seen the stuff? It's a stick of thick epoxy that comes in a tube. You cut off the amount you need, then kneed it until it is of a uniform color, then spread it or push it into the shape you need. It sets up in about 5 minutes, even if fully submerged in water. I'm thinking the epoxy can probably just be pushed into the drain's slots or holes or whatever it has under that cover. If it's just a hole, then perhaps epoxing in a piece of capped off pvc. Either that, or maybe we can use some sort of concrete mix that will also set up submerged. I know that such a thing exists, but I dunno how easy it will be to find it or how easy or hard it will be to actually put it where it needs to go. If I go the concrete route, I'd probably just want to completely fill whatever there is below the drain cover.
Any thoughts or suggestions on this? I bet you're gonna tell me I need to drain the pool to do it right, I'll bet. I'm still kicking myself for forgetting about that drain, but oh well. Chances are that, even if I would have blocked it off, I'd still have been looking at a leak situation.
