Is there a good post I can refer to that will help me figure out how to properly prime my pump to get it going again. Today I cleaned the cartridge filters on the pool at the house we moved into 2 months ago. The only instructions I have are from the pump manual left by the previous owner. I opened the air relief valve on the top of the filter, filled the pump basket with water and turned on the pump. The pump cuts out after a few seconds and the pump displays an alarm that says "Pump Prime Dry". I reset the alarm and tried this several times with no luck. I'm missing something.
Lost Pump Prime
- Thread starter dwdickson
- Start date
1. Is this the first time you have had to prime it?
2. How far above pool water level is the pump?
3. Is the water deep enough in the pool so the skimmers are not sucking air?
4.
5. Have you looked at the pump manual for some "how to prime" instructions?
2. How far above pool water level is the pump?
3. Is the water deep enough in the pool so the skimmers are not sucking air?
4.
Really? just a few seconds? Less than 10?
5. Have you looked at the pump manual for some "how to prime" instructions?
1. Yes first time.
2. The pump is on the side of the house and the suction pipe comes out of the ground at 12". Allowing another 6 to 12" down to water level in the pool I'd say a total of 1.5 to 2'.
3. The pool is full and the water is half way up the skimmers.
4. Probably about 30 seconds. It runs about 10 seconds at a lower speed (best I can tell from the sound) and then goes to a higher speed.
5. Yes. It says to:
A. Fill the pump strainer pot with water. Did that.
B. Check and ensure water has open path for free system flow. Didn't modify and valves and the pump has been running daily for 8 hrs.
C. Reinstall Pump clamp and lid onto the strainer pot. The pump is now ready to prime.
D. Be sure electrical connections.....didn't modify any electrical connections and they are all intact.
E. Open air release valve on the filter and stand clear. Did that.
F. Switch the pump on at the circuit breaker. Ensure that the green power light is on. I actually used the remote control unit to turn on the pump.
There are continuing instructions about setting the pump at 750 RPM and I did not do this. Maybe this is my problem. When I turn on the pump via the remote control it runs at the low speed for about 10 seconds and the goes to a higher speed for about 20 seconds before tripping on the "Prime Dry" alarm. Maybe I need to figure out how to manually control the pump speed and set it to 750 RPM as the instructions say.
2. The pump is on the side of the house and the suction pipe comes out of the ground at 12". Allowing another 6 to 12" down to water level in the pool I'd say a total of 1.5 to 2'.
3. The pool is full and the water is half way up the skimmers.
4. Probably about 30 seconds. It runs about 10 seconds at a lower speed (best I can tell from the sound) and then goes to a higher speed.
5. Yes. It says to:
A. Fill the pump strainer pot with water. Did that.
B. Check and ensure water has open path for free system flow. Didn't modify and valves and the pump has been running daily for 8 hrs.
C. Reinstall Pump clamp and lid onto the strainer pot. The pump is now ready to prime.
D. Be sure electrical connections.....didn't modify any electrical connections and they are all intact.
E. Open air release valve on the filter and stand clear. Did that.
F. Switch the pump on at the circuit breaker. Ensure that the green power light is on. I actually used the remote control unit to turn on the pump.
There are continuing instructions about setting the pump at 750 RPM and I did not do this. Maybe this is my problem. When I turn on the pump via the remote control it runs at the low speed for about 10 seconds and the goes to a higher speed for about 20 seconds before tripping on the "Prime Dry" alarm. Maybe I need to figure out how to manually control the pump speed and set it to 750 RPM as the instructions say.
The fact that the pump starts at a low speed and then increases to a higher speed sounds normal to me during an initial priming start up. If you look in your pump manual under Priming Features (page 14 in my manual) it explains the sequence and various options. If me, the first thing I would do is make sure the seal under the lid was ok. Next I'd increase the Priming Delay time and try it again. You should be able to see water being sucked into the strainer basket area. If water is coming in but the you still get the "Pump Dry" alarm, then I'd increase the Primed Sensitivity %. Assuming you don't have an air leak in the suction side, playing with these two setting should get you working again. Are your valves manual or electric. Either way, I'd double check their position to make sure the pump is actually connected to the pool.
boston62
LifeTime Supporter
I have a Jandy vsp and mine primes at 2250 rpm for 3 min... this can be changed. I dont see how you can prime at 750 rpm, seems to low to me..
750 RMP is the slowest speed default value in an intelliflo and has nothing to do with if the pump actually primes or not.
With an empty filter it can be tricky getting it primed back.
I find it takes me a few times too, and I have to open and close the relase valve back and forth several times to get the water flowing through correctly.
Tun on the pump, and then open close - open close - open close.... (a few seconds, maybe 5-10 between opening and closing) until water starts spewing out of the valve full force. Then close it.
You may have to go through that scenario a few times to get it going.
With an empty filter it can be tricky getting it primed back.
I find it takes me a few times too, and I have to open and close the relase valve back and forth several times to get the water flowing through correctly.
Tun on the pump, and then open close - open close - open close.... (a few seconds, maybe 5-10 between opening and closing) until water starts spewing out of the valve full force. Then close it.
You may have to go through that scenario a few times to get it going.
750 is the lowest preset speed but you can go as low as 450. The manual doesn't say anything about setting the pump for 750 RPM in the priming section. My pump starts at 1800 for a few seconds and then ramps up to 3450 until it's done priming. It might help to isolate suction to the closest skimmer when priming.
Thanks to jethacat and Jimrahbe for suggesting the seal/o-ring. When I finished cleaning the cartridge filters it was getting dark and I didn't notice that when I removed the pump basket lid to add water for priming the o-ring fell off on the ground! I found and put the o-ring back on this morning and priming worked on the first try. This forum and the helpful members are awesome! Thanks again!