Pool Inspection Feedback

[bjerich0213]

Hi all, we purchased a house with an inground pool this past fall/winter and I've been reading up on how to manage myself as a maintenance company seems like it will get very cost prohibitive very quickly.
Some background: Our pool is inground with a vinyl lined interior, with an estimated volume of about 23K gallons. Our inspection report of the pool was largely very positive, with a few caveats to note. I wanted to ask the group to see if these caveats are pool novice DIY friendly, or if I should proceed with having a professional group open the pool to triage these problems:
- Use of chlorine tablets, with a few found in the skimmer at the time of inspection, which is not recommended. The return line has a chlorine tablet feeder as well, which I've read mixed reviews about on the forums. Wondering if I should abandon this feeder and move to liquid chlorine for the pool exclusively, and if so, does the tablet feeder have to be removed?
- "Mounted on the house is the breaker panel for the pump. The breaker is of the proper amperage but should be a GFCI style breaker." - Understand this is something that should probably be replaced (much like GFCI outlets in bathrooms/kitchens), but is it a pressing fix?
- "Currently, the wire from the pump motor is not secured properly to the bond wire running to the deck. This needs to be corrected." - Would be happy to send a photo if it would be helpful to better understand this issue.
- "There is a single light in the east wall of the pool that appeared to be a fiber optic pin light. I did not observe a light tower to which the optic strands would be attached." - Is there a way to try and diagnose this myself?

Thank you in advance for any and all advice!

Brad

 

[PoolStored]

- Use of chlorine tablets, with a few found in the skimmer at the time of inspection, which is not recommended. The return line has a chlorine tablet feeder as well, which I've read mixed reviews about on the forums. Wondering if I should abandon this feeder and move to liquid chlorine for the pool exclusively, and if so, does the tablet feeder have to be removed?

You don't have to remove the tab feeder...for now. NEVER put tabs in the skimmer. PERIOD.
The dark truth of tablets is that they are acidic and will damage equipment, especially heater...even if you have a backflow valve.
Tablets are NOT a long term solution, as they add CYA with every puck used.

- "Mounted on the house is the breaker panel for the pump. The breaker is of the proper amperage but should be a GFCI style breaker." - Understand this is something that should probably be replaced (much like GFCI outlets in bathrooms/kitchens), but is it a pressing fix?

Yes, pressing. Install a proper GFCI breaker.

- "Currently, the wire from the pump motor is not secured properly to the bond wire running to the deck. This needs to be corrected." - Would be happy to send a photo if it would be helpful to better understand this issue.

The pumps should be bonded. This is a more complex issue and absolutely need to be understood in the context of the inspection report and current bonding and grounding of the pool. Do NOT take this lightly...

Bonding vs Grounding

Electricity and water don't mix. Learn a few basic tips how to keep your family safe when dealing with electricity around your pool.

www.troublefreepool.com

- "There is a single light in the east wall of the pool that appeared to be a fiber optic pin light. I did not observe a light tower to which the optic strands would be attached." - Is there a way to try and diagnose this myself?

Without more information on the pin light Make/Model and source of the fiber optic, it is hard to determine the extend of the issue.

 

[Bperry]

- "There is a single light in the east wall of the pool that appeared to be a fiber optic pin light. I did not observe a light tower to which the optic strands would be attached." -

The tower being referred to would be something like this. IMO, they are outdated and expensive to repair.

 

[bjerich0213]

You don't have to remove the tab feeder...for now. NEVER put tabs in the skimmer. PERIOD.
The dark truth of tablets is that they are acidic and will damage equipment, especially heater...even if you have a backflow valve.
Tablets are NOT a long term solution, as they add CYA with every puck used.

Yes, pressing. Install a proper GFCI breaker.

The pumps should be bonded. This is a more complex issue and absolutely need to be understood in the context of the inspection report and current bonding and grounding of the pool. Do NOT take this lightly...

Bonding vs Grounding

Electricity and water don't mix. Learn a few basic tips how to keep your family safe when dealing with electricity around your pool.

www.troublefreepool.com

Without more information on the pin light Make/Model and source of the fiber optic, it is hard to determine the extend of the issue.

Hi, thank you for the feedback! I've done some reading in both Pool School and the forums on why liquid chlorine is a better option than the tablets. We did go to a pool store today to check out their stock of robot cleaners and I couldn't help but asking the sales associate about chlorine pucks versus liquid chlorine, to which she replied chlorine pucks are more consistent, and liquid chlorine gives a "weird water feel". Any validity to this? Mostly just trying to educate myself on the different options and pros/cons. I did note the increased CYA with the pucks just as an example, to which she more or less shrugged this off and said that CYA protects the chlorine in the pool.
Will put the GFCI breaker on the to do list before opening, I'm interested in installing GFCI breakers on the main panel of our house that would protect the pool's sub panel, but will be doing more research on this.
Thank you for sending the article on bonding versus grounding, very helpful and informative. Bear with me on the wiring note on the inspection report, as the language between bonding and grounding in our specific case seems nuanced. I attached two photos, one of which shows the connection of the wire from the pump motor to the bond wire running to the deck, and the other of which shows the wire ultimately leading to the deck (I believe). I'm inclined to believe the connection in these wires should be more secure rather than just wrapped around each other? Thank you again for the feedback and advice!

 

[bjerich0213]

The tower being referred to would be something like this. IMO, they are outdated and expensive to repair.
View attachment 639040

Interesting, thank you for the reply! Turns out we do not have one of these. There are two switches directly underneath our sub panel, one of which seems to be wired to the single light in the pool. Haven't gotten a chance to check out its functionality yet... more to come when we open next month.

 

[PoolStored]

to which she replied chlorine pucks are more consistent, and liquid chlorine gives a "weird water feel". Any validity to this?

Ridiculous...IT'S THE SAME CHEMICALS.....

Pool Chemistry - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

@ajw22 and @JamesW can help on the bonding and grounding...

 

[ajw22]

Will put the GFCI breaker on the to do list before opening, I'm interested in installing GFCI breakers on the main panel of our house that would protect the pool's sub panel, but will be doing more research on this.

If you put the GFCI breaker in the main panel for your pool circuit then any device that has a GFCI problem will shutdown your entire pool. You do not want that.

Put the GFCI on individual circuits for each device. It will cost a bit more but one devcie will not shutdown your entire pool.

Thank you for sending the article on bonding versus grounding, very helpful and informative. Bear with me on the wiring note on the inspection report, as the language between bonding and grounding in our specific case seems nuanced. I attached two photos, one of which shows the connection of the wire from the pump motor to the bond wire running to the deck, and the other of which shows the wire ultimately leading to the deck (I believe). I'm inclined to believe the connection in these wires should be more secure rather than just wrapped around each other? Thank you again for the feedback and advice!

Bare copper wiring is used for bonding.

Copper lugs and split bolts are used to connect the bonding wires together into one loop.

Electrical Bonding - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[bjerich0213]

Thank you for the quick reply! For clarity, if the pool is on its own circuit(s) (we had a new panel installed when we moved in, and there are two separate breakers for the pool), would this logic still apply, if technically the only devices that could trip the breaker would be the pool? Just making sure I'm fully understanding.
Got it on the copper lugs/split bolts. So these would be a better solution to connect those two wires into one loop? Should they be protected from the elements instead of lying on the pool deck like the current setup? Thank you again.

 

[ajw22]

Thank you for the quick reply! For clarity, if the pool is on its own circuit(s) (we had a new panel installed when we moved in, and there are two separate breakers for the pool), would this logic still apply, if technically the only devices that could trip the breaker would be the pool? Just making sure I'm fully understanding.

What devices are on each circuit?

I need to fully understand.

Got it on the copper lugs/split bolts. So these would be a better solution to connect those two wires into one loop?

They are the only solution approved by the NEC for connecting bonding wires together.

Should they be protected from the elements instead of lying on the pool deck like the current setup?

No. they lay on or can be buried in a few inches of the ground. Touching the dirt is good as that is what a bonding wires purpose is.

 

[bjerich0213]

What devices are on each circuit?

I need to fully understand.


They are the only solution approved by the NEC for connecting bonding wires together.


No. they lay on or can be buried in a few inches of the ground. Touching the dirt is good as that is what a bonding wires purpose is.

Only the pool pump, single fiber optic light, and heater (which is not connected, never was since install in the early 90s) are connected to one of the two labeled circuits... Have identified a few mislabels on our new panel, but have yet to find out which pool breaker is the "actual" pool breaker since we haven't opened yet.
As for the copper lugs/split bolts, got it! This seems like a relatively easy fix.

 

[ajw22]

Only the pool pump, single fiber optic light, and heater (which is not connected, never was since install in the early 90s) are connected to one of the two labeled circuits... Have identified a few mislabels on our new panel, but have yet to find out which pool breaker is the "actual" pool breaker since we haven't opened yet.

As much as you can isolate each GFCI protected device to a circuit it is best.

 

[bjerich0213]

Got it, thank you! Appreciate your insight, glad I found this community!!

 

[JJ_Tex]

... I couldn't help but asking the sales associate about chlorine pucks versus liquid chlorine, to which she replied chlorine pucks are more consistent, and liquid chlorine gives a "weird water feel". Any validity to this? M

Thats a new one. That may have to go in the "pool stored" thread.

Welcome and looks like everyone has you on the right track.

 

[PoolStored]

Thats a new one. That may have to go in the "pool stored" thread.

Being PoolStored and being pool stored, it still infurates me that these people are considered "professionals." Whether out of ignorance or malice (self-interest), I still think it is wrong.

For entertainment...and aggravation, here is the read: I knew I was Pool Stored when...