No Dig Pipe repair, Does it work?

[nemeth8]

Good afternoon, so after much troubleshooting and having a pool guy come out to confirm my tests, it has been established I have at least one leak from my skimmer line. I have been quoted roughly $2k for a complete fix ($400 to find leak, and anywhere from 1200-1600 to repair depending upon where it is located).

I noticed a video on youtube about 'no dig' pipe repairs. Before I looked to far into it, I wanted to see if anyone has any experience with this? Without doing a ton of research it looks like while the cost is lower, it isnt extremely cheap ($900) and I would have to rely on myself to do it.

Does anyone have any opinions or experiences/recommendations?

Thanks,

 

[Dirk]

No experience at all, sorry. And for your leak! That sucks! (Literally!!)

I've pointed others to the link below, but all I know about it is what I read on their site. Perhaps that's what you've already found, as it, too, is expensive. It seemed to me the actual solution is pretty simple, and not all that much in materials. Some special glue and some PVC parts available at any hardware store? It's probably priced by what they can get away with, based on the alternatives, not by actual cost.

Home - PipeFuze

Good luck!

 

[riley00dog]

We just had a leak fixed on our new pool. My husband really wanted them to use pipe fuze and not dig up our decking. He was really impressed with what he read about it. Our Pb did it the old school way though. Jackhammered down until it was found then fixed. It was nerve wracking as it was fairly close to wall. Nothing collapsed or cracked but it was incredibly stressful. If you could try pipe fuze cheaper somehow then I would give it a shot. Does the cost of full repair cover damage to decking etc caused in the process?

 

[Pool_Medic]

An expensive product versus a tried and true way. It’s a gamble imo.

 

[Jimrahbe]

8,

Underground suction side leaks are rare.. And when they do happen is it normally right at the skimmer..

How sure are you that you actually have a leak and how do you know for sure where it is??

Jim R

 

[tfbrown60]

Do you have more than one skimmer? If so try with the leaking one plugged off, it may work fine.

 

[chiefwej]

In my previous pool, I had a suction side leak. It turned out to be the connection right at the bottom of the skimmer. I was told that was a common place for a leak. The skimmer box was cut out and replaced. I don’t recall the cost, but I don’t recall it being extremely expensive. The key is finding out precisely where the leak is.

 

[nemeth8]

I do not know exactly where the leak is at, but through many troubleshooting experiments I determined that it had to be a leak in that skimmer line. I paid $90 to have a 'pro' come out and troubleshoot my problems as well, and he also determined it was a suction side leak. He wants to run a test to see where the leak is at exactly.

Problems were; slow water loss.... which actually would speed up when I shut suction off to that line./ air in the returns, pump making awkward noise (forget what the pb called it).

I am planning on calling some people who specialize in detecting and fixing leaks instead of just trusting the first pool guy I could find (both his diagnosis and cost).

 

[nemeth8]

I do not know exactly where the leak is at, but through many troubleshooting experiments I determined that it had to be a leak in that skimmer line. I paid $90 to have a 'pro' come out and troubleshoot my problems as well, and he also determined it was a suction side leak. He wants to run a test to see where the leak is at exactly.

Problems were; slow water loss.... which actually would speed up when I shut suction off to that line./ air in the returns, pump making awkward noise (forget what the pb called it).

I am planning on calling some people who specialize in detecting and fixing leaks instead of just trusting the first pool guy I could find (both his diagnosis and cost).

 

[JamesW]

Even if the leak is fixed by the fixaleak glue, it probably won't last. If the line is cracked, it's probably under stress and the crack will just open up again.

To find the leak, put about 5 to 10 psi of air on the line and listen for bubbles at the skimmer and along the plumbing path.

Dig it up and fix it right.

 

[jatkinson]

Your "funny noise" is the pump experiencing cavitation from the air. IF it gets bad enough and continues, it's goodbye pump.

I would say start digging too, but this actually might be worth a try. What is the mystery part A and part B? Water glass maybe?
Their rental kit is a JOKE! $1000 really? It's 100bucks worth of junk from the plumbing dept at the homelessdespot! You would need
the stuff in the blue bottles.
Using PipeFuze On A Pool Application - YouTube

 

[1Sammy]

Even if the leak is fixed by the fixaleak glue, it probably won't last. If the line is cracked, it's probably under stress and the crack will just open up again.

To find the leak, put about 5 to 10 psi of air on the line and listen for bubbles at the skimmer and along the plumbing path.

Dig it up and fix it right.

There is the right answer. If you use a "patch" fix it will be done from inside the pipe while the line is set up to act as if it was a pressure return line. Will work great, BUT when the line is returned to a suction line it will pull the junk out. Dig and replace as said above is the only way for a proper repair.