It's the Jandy 3-way suction valve leaking air

[ride525]

Ok, this saga with fiancee's pool started with the return to the pool sending bubbles. Plus, when the valves were in pool mode, the return valve had to be shaded slightly off the spa return being closed. (The spa drain obviously was leaking when in pool mode.) So, I changed out the three O-rings, and things worked great for a very short time.
No bubbles in the return. The 3 way return valve could be turned all the way to off of the spa, since the spa drain closed up.

But, the old Whisperflo pump ran with no water for a day or so, and the pump basket was warped. For some reason the pump unions were loose. Not sure why.

Wanting a new VSP for her, this now seemed like the right time to get the VSP.

Installed the Intelliflo 011018, but could not get spa to work. Switching the Jandy suction 3 way valve would just lead to no pressue in the filter. Tried various ways to test for flow from the spa drain, they always seem to be open spa piping, with no apparent blockage.

Changed out some of the piping when installing the Inteliflo. Changed out most of the rest of the spa suction piping today,but still spa won't drain. Was running pump in various modes, and notice 750 RPM, which was very quiet, that there was a air leak when the 3 way valve was in spa mode.

So, off to try O-ring replacement one more time, or just replace the whole Jandy 3-way valve.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Ride,

Is this valve close to where you had the 2" pipe that had expanded to 2 1/8th inch due to the pump running dry for a long time?

If so, I'd be inclined to replace the whole thing, as it sounds as if you have already replaced the O-Rings once before...

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[ride525]

Ride,

Is this valve close to where you had the 2" pipe that had expanded to 2 1/8th inch due to the pump running dry for a long time?

If so, I'd be inclined to replace the whole thing, as it sounds as if you have already replaced the O-Rings once before...

Thanks,

Jim R.

Jim, Good suggestion, I've been thinking of replacing the valve for awhile, but hard time getting one very quickly. Now I think I will just order one in case my "fix" below does not last.

The Jandy 3 way suction valve is not that close to where the pipe grew to 2 1/8". The pipe that grew, was immediately above the old pump return connection, above the pump impeller. The Jandy Suction valve is proably abou 20" of pipe away from the pump input.

The second replacement of the O-rings works! No more air leaks! Why? This time I used an extra amount of Magic Lube (and I mean a lot extra) , and gate valve works wonderfully. And the Spa sucks, so to speak. (The spa drain now works.)

Thanks, this was quite an ordeal.

Jeff

 

[ride525]

Ride,

Is this valve close to where you had the 2" pipe that had expanded to 2 1/8th inch due to the pump running dry for a long time?

If so, I'd be inclined to replace the whole thing, as it sounds as if you have already replaced the O-Rings once before...

Thanks,

Jim R.

Addressed your question about PVC heating in my previous post. But your thought about replacing the Jandy Valve made me realize that there might be some wear after 25 years, or however long the Jandy valves have been there. While it looks like it's working now, I wonder if that is just because I lubed it up a lot. So I decided that $15 for the valve cover would be a worthwhile investment, as I think the center hole where the shaft come up is where the air (and just a bit of water) was leaking. Replacing the valve would involve a bit of piping work. (Maybe I should just make more use of unions!)