Alright,
This is the second time in recent months that I've had an issue with one of my three way valve actuators not working correctly. It's still under warranty, so it will be fixed. However, eventually it won't be and I'd like some feedback on if this is something I can deal with myself.
I have a pool and an attached above ground hot tub. The three way valves control circulation going to either the main pool or just the hot tub. The problem is that, when the actuator won't align correctly, the hot tub will drain down until it is as the level where the valves are, which is a good foot below where the hot tub water level normally sits.
I opened the actuator today to see if I could trouble shoot it myself. For as much as these actuators cost (just looking at a replacement on Amazon), they are remarkably unsophisticated. There are little lever arms inside that trip switches to stop the rotation when a nub on the stem moves them to close. The arm is a fairly loose fit. What really bugs me is that, the actuator will actually pause at the correct position, and then will bump over a little more. The picture below shows how it ends up. The handle should be in line with the pipe below, but it is off by several degrees, allowing water to move through the hot tub side.
Since this is the second time it has happened to me already in recent months, I fear it is going to be a recurring problem. I'm hoping the seasoned folks here have seen this before and can suggest something. I downloaded the manual for the valve. However, it indicates that with the actuator installed in the normal orientation as it is, no adjustment should be needed. It doesn't address the situation I'm having in its troubleshooting section.
This is the second time in recent months that I've had an issue with one of my three way valve actuators not working correctly. It's still under warranty, so it will be fixed. However, eventually it won't be and I'd like some feedback on if this is something I can deal with myself.
I have a pool and an attached above ground hot tub. The three way valves control circulation going to either the main pool or just the hot tub. The problem is that, when the actuator won't align correctly, the hot tub will drain down until it is as the level where the valves are, which is a good foot below where the hot tub water level normally sits.
I opened the actuator today to see if I could trouble shoot it myself. For as much as these actuators cost (just looking at a replacement on Amazon), they are remarkably unsophisticated. There are little lever arms inside that trip switches to stop the rotation when a nub on the stem moves them to close. The arm is a fairly loose fit. What really bugs me is that, the actuator will actually pause at the correct position, and then will bump over a little more. The picture below shows how it ends up. The handle should be in line with the pipe below, but it is off by several degrees, allowing water to move through the hot tub side.
Since this is the second time it has happened to me already in recent months, I fear it is going to be a recurring problem. I'm hoping the seasoned folks here have seen this before and can suggest something. I downloaded the manual for the valve. However, it indicates that with the actuator installed in the normal orientation as it is, no adjustment should be needed. It doesn't address the situation I'm having in its troubleshooting section.
