About 4 years ago, when the pool company closed our pool, they somehow left power to the pump and for approximately a month it was running on and off in "freeze protection" mode without water. Thankfully, I discovered it and they came out and turned off the system. They told me to see how it worked in the spring (you all mentioned that it might have impacted the pump seal). It seemed to work fine until this year's opening. The pump had power and made a humming noise but would not work. My husband got it to start by hand spinning something at the back and it's been working ever since. However, it makes a grinding noise and the body of the motor looks rusty and the paint is chipping off. Could the pool company's mistake 4 years ago have damaged the seal just enough that it could function but contributed to its issues now? The pump is about 9 years old. It is a Pentair WhisperFlo. I just wondered if I have any legs to stand on in terms of asking for a replacement, repair, discount, etc.
