O.K ...going back out to add more water.
Would it help to put some epoxy putty on the inside of the lip to seal the seam?
Would it help to put some epoxy putty on the inside of the lip to seal the seam?
HELP! Chasing down leak.
- Thread starter Magus
- Start date
So I filled it up about an inch went to all three places...both returns and the skimmer...there is no indication of dye going anywhere. The dye is not migrating to any leaks what so ever...
When you say that you checked the skimmer do you mean just the outside or did you check the inside as well? Before adding water, how was the water level in the inside of the skimmer? Was it at the same level as the pool or was it lower? I had a leak once in the skimmer where the pipe ended, under the basket.
I had the skimmer plugged so over all...the skimmer held water. I checked the outside and the inside of the skimmer. The water level in the skimmer I would say, at the same level as the pool water. I did not use any tape around the screw in plug...but again...it was not any lower than the pool water.
Funny thing you say that about where the pipe ended under the basket. The first time it lost water, this is what I found.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7ZAv5P6VFDddFdBWV81SnFqaG9TYTlrdnNZNktOUGpxcG9N/view?usp=sharing
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Im guessing on the other end of that fitting, is black poly held together by stainless steel clamps. This is why I plugged it up to eliminate it being any of the pipes. Also...it was consistently losing water at 1/8" an hour...then it just stopped.
I had leaks through the light nitch to the electrical cross box. I also had leaks in the floor main drain plugs not used and one in the hydrostatic valve that needed to be replaced. I think I have a new one but not sure for the pipe that feeds our slide. I have a valve at both the slide and at the pump so I just close the slide off at the pump when not in use. Just throwing out the crazy stuff that has come up for us.
My main drain has a hydrostatic valve and another port hole that has been plugged with a black stopper. The light nitch...is plugged up in the back and I put marine sealant on the outside before I filled the pool. I have one suction line from the skimmer to the pump located in my basement. No leaks in the basement. I do appreciate all of the ideas though...it helps me remember what I did.
From your pictures I would drain down the pool a couple more inches and replace the skimmer gasket(if there is one). There should be at least one gasket some require two. Your pool stopped leaking when it reached the bottom of the Skimmer -- therefore that is the most probable location of the leak. Don't bother with putty or silicone -- do it right replace the gasket.
where is the water level in the skimmer now? Is it like the picture or is at at the same level as the rest of the pool? One of my leaks was in the skimmer, but not through the pipe, but where the skimmer floor and the skimmer wall meet. The previous owner had freeze damage and he used an epoxy which started to leak after I became the owner. For that leak, my pool water level was about where yours is, but my skimmer would be dry.
So...I took another look at the skimmer and the face plate. I figure I would try to make sure the screws were tight before worrying about if the gasket was bad. Well...It turns out that I have some screws loose.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7ZAv5P6VFDdMzlyckdJa1pqb25HalY1MnRhb1NNeTEtUk1n/view?usp=sharing
Out of 12 screws that hold the face plate on...7 of those screws can not be tightened as the keep spinning. Could this be the source of the leak?
Maybe this will give some more light as to what I am dealing with.
Set up.
Pool Pump: Haward super pump (dont know how old)
Filter: Haward Preflex EC75 (dont know how old it is)
Location: In the house in the basement.
Both have shutoffs before they exit the house (dont know how old they are) kind of yellowing.
Pool: Fiberglass Side Concrete bottom newly painted with Epoxy Paint. Pool built in the mid 70's
Issue: Pool leaking.
Leak stops at the lip of the skimmer.
1. pool filled with water. Both returns plugged with rubber stoppers, skimmer plugged with rubber stopper. Pool Leaks, stops at the lip of the skimmer.
2. Replaced a suspect return fitting, Not leaking.
3. Skimmer...Plugged with green plug. Holds water
4. Unstop skimmer, does not hold water, goes down drain
5. Went to basement to shut the water off from coming into the house with the pump off.
6. Skimmer does not hold water in the skimmer.
7. Main drain is plugged
8. once water is taken past skimmer, the pool holds water.
Set up.
Pool Pump: Haward super pump (dont know how old)
Filter: Haward Preflex EC75 (dont know how old it is)
Location: In the house in the basement.
Both have shutoffs before they exit the house (dont know how old they are) kind of yellowing.
Pool: Fiberglass Side Concrete bottom newly painted with Epoxy Paint. Pool built in the mid 70's
Issue: Pool leaking.
Leak stops at the lip of the skimmer.
1. pool filled with water. Both returns plugged with rubber stoppers, skimmer plugged with rubber stopper. Pool Leaks, stops at the lip of the skimmer.
2. Replaced a suspect return fitting, Not leaking.
3. Skimmer...Plugged with green plug. Holds water
4. Unstop skimmer, does not hold water, goes down drain
5. Went to basement to shut the water off from coming into the house with the pump off.
6. Skimmer does not hold water in the skimmer.
7. Main drain is plugged
8. once water is taken past skimmer, the pool holds water.
I went on a chase of the water that went down the skimmer...from the top of the skimmer to where the tape measure touches water.https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7ZAv5P6VFDddG5pWUlYVnpXZXBMalFKblExTkc4LU1rNm1Z/view?usp=sharing
1. with the water shut off I imagine that the water in the skimmer is NOT supposed to do this.
2. When the pump is running, there are NO air bubbles in the pump window...none at all...I dont get it. Where could the water be going?
1. with the water shut off I imagine that the water in the skimmer is NOT supposed to do this.
2. When the pump is running, there are NO air bubbles in the pump window...none at all...I dont get it. Where could the water be going?
There was one person with a skimmer line leak that leaked into the ground but did not have a suction leak when the pump was running because the ground water was sealing the leak. After a long while it would dry out the ground water enough to create a suction leak and cause the pump to lose prime. Then it would sit and leak for a while, work fine for a while, repeat.
Today I dug for the skimmer. I did not see any visual leaks. I also put more water in the skimmer and there were still no leaks. The sand was moist but there was not a big puddle like I was expecting.
O.K..Now this is getting borderline weird. I built a pressure tester to test the main line of the pool...as I turned it on, it only went up to 10 PSI on the gauge. However...water started coming out of the light niche?....is that possible? Would they have plumbed behind the light niche to make sure that water passes over the light if its on?
