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[JoyfulNoise]

Yes this is correct on the return side. No check valve on the suction side from the spa drain, though.

But you stated previously that you can open the pump lid and no water comes out … is this not true? Have you placed the valves in SPA mode and then opened the pump lid?

 

[dailygenesis]

So no water actually touching the jets when there’s a chance of it freezing?

Correct, in this scenario if I pulled the plugs on everything the spa water level would come down below the jets and sit there through the freeze. There might still be water in the spa return lines but it wouldn't be under pressure as everything would be opened up. The water level in the pool would stay the same.

 

[dailygenesis]

But you stated previously that you can open the pump lid and no water comes out … is this not true? Have you placed the valves in SPA mode and then opened the pump lid?

Correct in pool mode. But yes, if I put it in spa mode and open the lid, water does flow out of the pump (tried this for the first time yesterday). The spa water level sits 1.5-2 feet above the pool water level.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Correct in pool mode. But yes, if I put it in spa mode and open the lid, water does flow out of the pump (tried this for the first time yesterday). The spa water level sits 1.5-2 feet above the pool water level.

That is unfortunate. The pool builder should have had to plumber put a Hartford loop on the suction side of the spa plumbing to act as an anti-siphon. It costs nothing more than a few extra lengths of pipe and it can be buried in the wall of the spa with the rest of the pipes. But nothing to do about it now.

You can certainly try to do an air lock but it may not hold. You can also cut out a small amount of bubble to put over the spa to reduce evaporative heat loss. That can help to reduce the amount of cooling. Even throwing a plastic tarp over the spa and tying it down can help a lot.

 

[dailygenesis]

That is unfortunate. The pool builder should have had to plumber put a Hartford loop on the suction side of the spa plumbing to act as an anti-siphon. It costs nothing more than a few extra lengths of pipe and it can be buried in the wall of the spa with the rest of the pipes. But nothing to do about it now.

Ok, so I think I was mistaken or just went too fast when I checked it yesterday. Just tried it again. When I put it in spa mode and the system is full of water but off, if I remove the pump lid, a little bit spills over and it kind of seems like it's going to keep overflowing, but then it eventually drains down to where the water is covering about half of the inlet port. It oscillates back and forth slowly, filling up a little and then draining down. This time, I left it for a good long time and it just kept doing that, ebbing and flowing a bit, but it never got higher than the inlet port of the pump pot.

That said, I need to do what you suggested earlier and do a dry run with pulling all the plugs, etc. when it's warm. Today would have been a great day for it but lots of family stuff going on. I will try to do so before we get cold temps again. The good news is at least the next 14 days appear to be above freezing.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Ok, so I think I was mistaken or just went too fast when I checked it yesterday. Just tried it again. When I put it in spa mode and the system is full of water but off, if I remove the pump lid, a little bit spills over and it kind of seems like it's going to keep overflowing, but then it eventually drains down to where the water is covering about half of the inlet port. It oscillates back and forth slowly, filling up a little and then draining down. This time, I left it for a good long time and it just kept doing that, ebbing and flowing a bit, but it never got higher than the inlet port of the pump pot.

That said, I need to do what you suggested earlier and do a dry run with pulling all the plugs, etc. when it's warm. Today would have been a great day for it but lots of family stuff going on. I will try to do so before we get cold temps again. The good news is at least the next 14 days appear to be above freezing.

If there’s a Hartford loop then the water you are seeing is just the residual volume of water between the top of the H loop and the pump. Given the run length and diameter of the intake pipe, it could be a few gallons easily.

As long as the level of the water in the spa stabilizes and remains constant when the pump is drained, you can safely assume it will stay that way through a freezes. The most important thing is getting all of the exposed, above ground plumbing drained and covered. Everything below ground or buried in the spa wall will be fine.