Been trying to diagnose what's going on with my pool pump. I have a Hayward 1-1/2 HP Super Pump. We had a crazy rainstorm the other day where my pool almost flooded out and pump stopped operating. I thought it was an impeller jam or issue. Removed the motor from the housing and determined the impeller was free moving just fine with no clogs. Turns out the capacitor was bad from a cracked housing. After swapping it out, my pump works again, but now my filter is running at 7 PSI, when normally it runs at 15 PSI. I can't seem to perform a proper backwash on the system and the jets have a reduced flow rate. Also, there appears to be a rattle/grinding type noise coming from the impeller area (video link below with sound). I don't know if something else went bad on the motor and where to go from here. Any thoughts?
Going through and disassembling my pump motor to replace the seals and inspect the internals. Is this some kind of foreign material? Or is this some type of insulation? I wasn't going to disassemble further than thing but if this is something that should be removed I'll try to figure out how to open this up further.
- Jun 24, 2021
- 16,042
- Pool Size
- 29000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-60 Plus
- May 3, 2007
- 18,076
- Pool Size
- 20000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
Sounds like cavitation to me. Something might be blocking the inlet pipe. Try backflushing using a garden hose with a rag sealing into the pump inlet pipe from the pump toward the skimmer and see if anything comes out.
- Jun 24, 2021
- 16,042
- Pool Size
- 29000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-60 Plus
- Jul 21, 2013
- 65,259
- Pool Size
- 35000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
- Jun 24, 2021
- 16,042
- Pool Size
- 29000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-60 Plus
Maybe I made a wrong assumption on the ask,@smcaggy do you mean the corrosion or the hair like ball on the fan in the motor?
The hair like substance. There's quite a bit so that's why I was confused what it could be. I ended up taking a leap and learned how to take the rest apart. It does appear it was some type of fur or fibers. I cleaned it up and replaced all of the soft goods and the pump is running good again.
- Jun 24, 2021
- 16,042
- Pool Size
- 29000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-60 Plus
I had a previously attempt a flush on my intake and didn't get anything. I ended up learning how to do a complete disassemble to inspect the internals. It looks like there was some signs of corrosion and a lot of the soft goods looked worn out. I also had a weird build up of animal fur or fibers inside around the shaft. I cleaned everything up, replaced all of the gaskets and seals and ensured everything was tight and seated. Once I turned it back on it was running back at normal PSI again. I'm guessing the degraded seals caused a loss of pressure?
- May 3, 2007
- 18,076
- Pool Size
- 20000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
If the seals are on the suction side of the pump and they are not sealing properly, then there should have been an air leak visible in the pump basket.
On the pressure side of the pump, failed seals will result in water leaks.
The exception to both of these is the diffuser o-ring. If bad, it can cause more recirculation losses and reduce flow rate and pressure.
Normally, a reduction in filter pressure is due to a suction side blockage, pipe or impeller. However, a blockage between the impeller and filter can also reduce filter pressure. The animal fur might have disrupted flow.