Pump Making aloud Noise

[Silva1181]

Good morning

This morning I noticed the pump making a really loud noise. It’s on and water is coming out of the jets.

I turned it off and on but still happening. I can’t tell which section of the pump it’s coming from.

Also unable to load the video

 

[Texas Splash]

Also unable to load the video

Do you have a YouTube channel or similar media source? If so, upload it there and share a link to this thread.

 

[Silva1181]

Got it. Hopefully this work.

 

[Texas Splash]

I receiving an error that the video is set to private.

 

[Silva1181]

I saved this as public in my channel as I did the last one. Let me know if it works, if not. I will try icloud vide.

 

[Texas Splash]

Sounds like bearings perhaps. How old is that motor?

 

[Lake Placid]

It’s bearings. The v-clamp appears to be that of a sta-rite pump wet end, but I cannot tell exactly from the video. Any water dripping if you look under the motor? It can be hard to see so you may have to crawl all over the pump.

 

[Silva1181]

Motor was replaced about 3 years ago. No water dripping anywhere. Is it safe to keep running u til I can get it replaced

 

[Texas Splash]

Motor was replaced about 3 years ago.

Geez, that's a bit early, but things like that do happen.

 

[Lake Placid]

Motor was replaced about 3 years ago.

Has it been run dry, or low in the last 3 years? I’ve watched new motors in a similar setup fail in 6 months because the pump was run dry causing premature seal failure.

 

[Silva1181]

Has never run dry. I run it 8 hours in winter and 10-12 hours now in summer. It’s been quiet and working with no issues since I last replaced it.

 

[Lake Placid]

See the corrosion in the highlighted area? That can happen if the rubber/ceramic seal isn’t installed squarely in the housing allowing water to leak by. I suspect if you pull the motor everything around the shaft will be corroded like that. Unfortunately you’re on borrowed time. It’s not a matter of if but when it will fail. The bearings will get worse. You’ve got an old Sta-rite 1 horse pump. They can still be purchased if you wanted to replace the whole unit, plumbing connections in the new units are pretty close to the original, but may require slight modification. You could also replace the motor again on the old wet end.

This was taken from the 6 month old motor I previously mentioned. Was a sta-rite 3/4 horse pump on an in ground hot tub.

 

[Silva1181]

Thanks for this detail.

 

[Silva1181]

All is it safe to let the pump/motor run under the current condition, until such time I can get a pool repair tech to my home middle of next week? Is there a risk of fire?

With this heat and humidity I am sure my water will turn green quickly if I turn the pump off for a couple of days

 

[Lake Placid]

All is it safe to let the pump/motor run under the current condition, until such time I can get a pool repair tech to my home middle of next week? Is there a risk of fire?

With this heat and humidity I am sure my water will turn green quickly if I turn the pump off for a couple of days

The pump would likely seize and trip the breakers before a fire would happen, but there are never any 100% certainties in life. I’ve heard bearings sound much worse and last for months so you’re probably just fine to let it go for a few days until it can be replaced. Keep your ears tuned as you will be able to hear it progressively get worse before a full failure.

 

[Silva1181]

Thanks again.