Lossing Water

Bama Rambler · Apr 11, 2012

Ok, You do have a suction side cleaner and I have a guess.

It's gonna require you to run a couple more tests.

First, my guess. You have a suction side leak in the skimmer line and it doesn't leak water out when your pulling from it. However, when you switch to the vacuum side, the suction head (negative pressure) in the simmer line goes positive and it leaks water out.

I want you to plug the hole in the bottom of the skimmer that's coming back to the pump and open the valve to the vacuum line. Then run the bucket test overnight and see if it shows a leak. If it doesn't then that pretty much confirms my suspicion.

Post back once you've done the test and we'll go from there.

shufen · Apr 11, 2012

Dave, Thanks for your directions. I will give it a try? What is the best way to plug the hole to the skimmer? Any suggestions?

Bama Rambler · Apr 11, 2012

You cause a gizmo if you have one, if not you can use a rubber ball squished down into the hole.

shufen · Apr 13, 2012

I was going to test the vaccum this morning but when I turn on the pump, either the skimmer nor the vaccum works. There is no suction at all. What do I need to do?

Bama Rambler · Apr 14, 2012

Probably need to prime the pump. Fill the pump basket with water and put the lid back on and see if it'll prime

shufen · Apr 17, 2012

Dave, your theory appears to correlate my pool problem. I was not able to squish a ball down the skimmer tube as it floated right up. However, I was able to use a saran wrap and a couple of bubberbands to tie up the opening. After running the vaccum for 3 days (about 7-9 hours) and doing the bucket test for the whole time, it did not appear to loss any water in the pool. What do I do next?

Bama Rambler · Apr 18, 2012

There's a leak somewhere between the skimmer outlet and the 3-way valve in front of the pump. There's not much piping above ground and I suspect it's underground somewhere. It's not much of a leak and you're probably better off getting a leak detection company to come out and pinpoint it. You could try and find it yourself if you don't mind digging up the yard. It may even be under the decking.