Help untangling and learning new EasyTouch pool?

[cwb71]

I recently bought a home with a very nice pool with all Pentair equipment. I will add a list of what I see and some pictures to this post. I could really use some help figuring out what I have here and how to operate it all. Many of the functions in ScreenLogic don't work as I would expect, very possibly because my expectations are wrong but maybe some things are set up poorly as well.

The "Pool" function seems to spill over some water from the spa into the pool. I'm not sure what the "Spillway" function does at all. There are "Jets" and "Air Blower" functions which I guess are different? There is an in-floor cleaning system which seems to be activated all the time--I don't see/feel any water coming from the returns. I've tried reading the EasyTouch documentation but it's really not that helpful, it assumes I know a lot of things that I don't, and understandably Pentair doesn't know how my pool was built and set up.

Any help you experts could offer is greatly appreciated! I'm glad to share extra pictures, info, etc. if needed. Thank you!

- ~6800 gallon pool with a ~600 gallon spa
- Pentair EasyTouch control system (with ScreenLogic)
- Pentair IntelliFlo VS pump
- Pentair IntelliChlor IC-40 SWCG
- Pentair BioShield UV system
- Pentair Clean & Clear cartridge filter
- Pentair MasterTemp 400 heater
- A&A in-floor pool cleaning system (6 zone?)

 

[Jimrahbe]

71,

Do you have ScreenLogic on your PC?? It make understanding things much, much easier

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[cwb71]

Hi Jim! Unfortunately I don’t have a Windows PC around. I just discovered that there’s also the SLConfig iOS app, does that have what we need?

 

[Jimrahbe]

71,

If you use your phone you should have two apps.. ScreenLogic and SL/Config..

I'd be glad to help but need new pics.. You need to make the pics bigger so that when I click on them they expand so I can read the labels..

The thing I wanted to see the most was your Return plumbing and you did not show it at all..

There are two automated valves.. I need to see all the plumbing around both of them.

If you have the Spillway function set (I am not sure you do yet) then your spa should not be spilling over into your pool.. If I can get some better pics of your automated Return valve (After the heater) then I can give you some better feedback.

Your IFCS will only work between 1 am and 5 am when the pump speed is high enough to make the pop ups.. pop up. It will pass water all the time, but the heads won't pop up unless the pump is running fast enough.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[cwb71]

I see what you mean about the SLConfig screen shots, I found pictures of the Windows version elsewhere on the forums and put them in the tables attached. Let me know if this is not what you're looking for?

I'll get some better pictures of the valves as well. Thanks so much for helping out with this!

 

[cwb71]

Alright, here we go. Sorry about the maze but I'm sure it will make a lot more sense to you than it does to me, and I wanted to make sure to get all the labels! Just let me know if there's an angle or close up I missed.

 

[wireform]

With that equipment list I doubt you have that small of a pool, I mean an Intellichlor ic40 would be terribly oversized for that and the 400k heater too.

 

[Jimrahbe]

71,

Thanks for the pics.. Still working this, as it is a mess..

Look at the link below and turn the blue ball valve on the right side of the pic and tell me if the spa spillover quits.. Tell me what the label on the pipe says..

https://www.troublefreepool.com/attachments/img_2332-jpg.578875/

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Jimrahbe]

71,

Here is a crude diagram of your water flow... I have no idea what the manifold with the three blue ball valves is for. You do have a valve that can shut off the IFCS and send all the water back to your pool returns.. Does your pool have wall returns???


Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[cwb71]

Haha thank you for the schematic, Jim! Above and beyond the call of duty.

The pool does have wall returns, and when I was taking those pictures yesterday I noticed that is probably what that valve does. It was just a little confusing that the EasyTouch has "Pool" and "Cleaner," but I guess those are just different pump speeds unless I manually move that valve? Is this normally how an IFCS is set up?

The front ball valve that you see with a label on it is for an aerator. There are jets at the side of the pool as well, which may be the other three though I don't know why you would put an individual valve on each jet?

I also noticed that several of the other valves seem to be in "middle" positions, I guess intentionally? Is there any danger in messing with the valves to figure them out? I can start moving things around to try to learn more but I admit I'm a little intimidated by the whole thing and don't want to break something.

 

[cwb71]

With that equipment list I doubt you have that small of a pool, I mean an Intellichlor ic40 would be terribly oversized for that and the 400k heater too.

It seemed a little overprovisioned to me too, but I am not an expert and I certainly did not build it! I got those numbers from the plans that were left behind, they may be off but not by much. The entire pool and spa fits in a 27'x11' rectangle and is a maximum of 5 feet deep, so there's no way it's more than 10k gallons.

 

[Jimrahbe]

71,

I would suggest that you play with the valves and see what they do.. But, take note where they are now, and then only adjust one at a time to see what it does..

Some things I do not understand.. Why would your by-pass valves for your heater and UV, be in the middle position??? Either you want to by-pass something or you don't. So, unless you wanted to use the spa, I'd want the heater completely by-passed.. etc..

There is a horizontal pipe in the middle of that mess that has three pipes that all go down and each pipe has a blue ball valve.. Any idea what they are for..

Does your spa continually spillover into your pool? If so, I don't see why?? Yet.

Yes, most IFCS use faster pump speeds to turn on and off.. In your case you actually have a way to run without the IFCS if you wanted.

Your SWCG is installed upside down.. In theory, the cell should be installed so that water flow "up" through the cell.. It is not a big deal, but it is technically wrong.. Not much you can do now, other than replumb, and I would not suggest that..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[cwb71]

It is all a mystery. When we bought the house I asked the previous owner who installed the pool equipment, in case we had any problems or questions, and she answered "I was the general contractor" which was weird because as far as I know she is not a general contractor. The other dumb thing they said was "We don't do anything to it, it's great!" I have a feeling they might be idiots?

But anyway, now it's mine. From my other reading on TFP it seems like putting the UV system in a shallow pool in the Arizona desert was also a bonehead move. I don't know if it's even working or if I should care.

Would you recommend bypassing the heater entirely when it's not in use? Or is that something I should only do for maintenance?

Same with the UV system, I guess I should put it fully in-line since it's paid for and (probably) plugged in? Or I could bypass it as well.

The spa spills over into the pool, a bit, when in "Pool" mode. I can't figure out what "Spillover" is doing at all. I will play with the different valves one at a time and see what other info I can suss out.

Thank you again Jim for being so helpful, I would definitely not be able to sort out this dingbat's work without you!

 

[Jimrahbe]

71,

We are no fans of UV systems as the sun works just fine and the whole goal of UV is to keep your chlorine levels to the bare minimum, which we do not believe in.. So, I suggest that you decide if you want the UV system or not.. If you want it, the turn it on full blast. If not, then unplug it and by-pass the whole thing.

Do you use the Spa often?? If not, I'd by pass the heater... You would just have to remember to turn it on if you decide to use the spa.

You have the Spillway mode set up on your system.. What this does when on, is to suck water from the pool and send all that water back to the Spa. This causes the spa to spillover into the pool. The speed of the pump controls how much water spills over. But for this to work, you have to schedule it to run or manually turn it on and off..

When you use the Spillway mode, you do NOT have the spa spilling over all day as part of your normal operation. You do one, or the other..

The spa must spillover into the pool some time during the day, as that is the only way the spa can ever get fresh water..

I can't see what is making your spa spillover.. Usually there is a pipe that goes to the spa that adds water to the spa when in the Pool mode. Since the spa drain is closed, the water then spillover into the pool.. Something in your system is causing this and I am not sure what.. It may be your IFCS?? As part of your "Playing with the valves" I'd like you to turn the valve so that the Pool Returns are open and the IFCS is closed and see what happens to the spa spillover.. and how well your wall returns work.. It might make sense to automate that valve, so it can be done on a schedule..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[cwb71]

Alright Jim I think we're getting to the bottom of this. The manifold with the three valves leads to the magnificent display of which I've attached a picture so everyone else can enjoy it too. One valve per jet, ostensibly so you can make them all even or maybe stagger them like some kind of rainbow. The "Jets" function on the EasyTouch moves that top actuator to divert from the wall returns and ICFS to the jets. They will be useful when I have to get the TA down I guess!

I think you were right about the IFCS. When I throw that valve over to the wall returns, the Spillover feature works as expected. I think what was happening is that since 2 of the 6 zones of the IFCS are in the spa, that was diverting enough water from the pool to the spa to cause spillover.

Is it safe to bypass the heater, or do I need to do something to disable or power it down first? I also see information on TFP saying that some water should be allowed to flow through the heater so the water inside doesn't stagnate and leave deposits? I don't mind turning off the bypass before we use the spa if it's better not to keep it in-line all the time.