Pump wont prime after winter.

[Moneypits]

So I have an 18000 gallon in ground pool that I imagine was installed when my house was built in 1975. I dont use it so its just a maintenance item during the summer. I'm in South Carolina and its just now getting warm enough where algae is becoming a concern. So I decided to try and run the pump Filter to atleast get some chlorine circulating via some tabs in a floating chlorinator until the local Walmarts start carrying liquid chlorine. And I can not get the pump to start circulating water. It certainly comes on but I never do see the jets start purging air and start circulating water. Normally this takes awhile on the first start of the season so maybe I'm freaking out over nothing but I gave it a full minute or two and still did not see any water movement. It was the same with Backwash. My big concern is this is the first attempt at running the pool since the winter in which we did have some freezing temps for a day or two. I do not officially close my pool but just run the pump when its below freezing out.

I'm on night shift at the moment so I don't have a lot of time to fool with it as I go in shortly. Am I freaking out over nothing? Just give the pump more time to prime? Open to any suggestions. HALP.

 

[ajw22]

Have all the plugs been removed from the pool?

Are all valves in the correct position?

Did you pour a bucket of water into the pump before closing the pump lid to turn it on to help it prime?

Give the pump up to 5 minutes to prime and time it as it can feel longer then it is.

 

[Moneypits]

Have all the plugs been removed from the pool?

Are all valves in the correct position?

Did you pour a bucket of water into the pump before closing the pump lid to turn it on to help it prime?

Give the pump up to 5 minutes to prime and time it as it can feel longer then it is.

I didnt use any plugs. I only have 3 visible valves and I dont recall changi8ng their position at all. I tried changing them anyway and had no chance. I also let the pump run for 5 minutes with no visible cycling of water even after dumping 3 buckets of water into the pump to try and get it to prime.

 

[ajw22]

Then you have a suction side air leak.

Check the O rings for the pump lid and the two pump drain plugs. Give them a good coating of Pool Lube - Further Reading

Reach into the pump and check the impeller for anything clogging it.

Are you sure you have no freezing damage to the pump?

 

[Moneypits]

Then you have a suction side air leak.

Check the O rings for the pump lid and the two pump drain plugs. Give them a good coating of Pool Lube - Further Reading

Reach into the pump and check the impeller for anything clogging it.

Are you sure you have no freezing damage to the pump?

I'll try these today. How would I know if I have freezing damage to the pump? It sounds as if its cycling just air but it used to always make the same noise just briefly before it started cycling water in the past.

 

[ajw22]

How would I know if I have freezing damage to the pump?

Have to look carefully for any cracks in the volute that are letting in air.

Examine the area around the pump lid and O ring carefully.

It sounds as if its cycling just air but it used to always make the same noise just briefly before it started cycling water in the past.

The pump is sucking in air rather than water. You have to find where the air leak is.

There are youtube videos showing various techniques for finding a pump air leak.

 

[Moneypits]

I'm about to give this another go but just to rule out me being pants on head dumb I'm including pictures of all the valves to make sure I haven't closed anything off. I really do not recall moving any valves before I shut the pool down. It stays on Filter and I just run the pump in freezing temps with no other changes.

I took your suggestion and watched a video about finding air leaks. I started at the base of the pump running the hose and then the black valve further back from the pump. There is a dribble of water from the bottom of that black valve. However it doesn't seem significant enough to prevent the pump from priming at all. Can just a tiny crack let in enough air to prevent the system from being able to prime at all?

 

[Moneypits]

If I do find some form of crack, what form of adhesive would you guys recommend to hold me over until I can get this properly repaired?

Edit- Pretty sure I found the problem since I had more time to look. The black shutoff valve is cracked with it running along to the bottom as well.

So that question about sealant or adhesive certainly applies now. What would be the best sealant to use to try and repair this until I can get someone out? I already need to eliminate the chlorinator or atleast need a new one.

 

[ajw22]

If I do find some form of crack, what form of adhesive would you guys recommend to hold me over until I can get this properly repaired?

Maybe try JB Weld although I am doubtful it will work.

 

[Lake Placid]

+1 on the JB weld. I’ve had some success using it as a temporary repair until a more permanent repair is made. It’s hard to tell from the pics how big the cracks are but you can be fairly precise laying a bead of JB weld into the crack with a toothpick or small wooden pointed skewer. Build the repair in layers (i.e. Fill the crack as full as you can with the valve dry, then let it setup and cure. If you can get 95% of the crack filled and the pump will prime, you can then use the suction of the pump to your advantage to draw JB weld into any areas of the crack that didn’t fully seal.) When you get to making a permanent repair replace the DWV elbows that are currently in use with pressure fittings.

 

[Moneypits]

Thanks for the advice guys. Yeah I only took photos of the top of the valve and the crack is all on the inside towards the sand filter and on the bottom next to the ground. Id take another photo but am losing daylight.

 

[Lake Placid]

Hate to pile on as a safety nut - but get a cover on the pump switch directly. Wet hands, rain, and open electrical can often be a bad mix. You don’t want ”shocking experience“.

 

[Moneypits]

Applied JB Weld. Waiting on results. Now a potentially bigger problem. Is there any way I can keep the pool from turning further green without a way to circulate water? That may be a silly question but I'm dealing with a significant bloom while trying to get this situation resolved.

 

[Lake Placid]

Add liquid chlorine and mix as well as you can with your brush. Or use a submersible pump to circulate the water around the pool after chlorine additions. Or a combination of both.

 

[Moneypits]

Got the issue resolved with a reasonable pool repair guy. It was a simple suction side leak but this is the first time I've encountered this in my 7 years of ownership and I was freaking out over a pipe being burst underground. I have had a cracked chlorinator for half a year and my logic was with the amount of water loss I was getting from there (bad enough that the hose had to be ran any time I was running the pump) that there is no way the crack I could see in the 3 way valve next to the pump was causing a complete inability to prime. Boy was I wrong. Thanks guys from saving me from spazzing out too much.

 

[Divin Dave]

Got the issue resolved with a reasonable pool repair guy. It was a simple suction side leak but this is the first time I've encountered this in my 7 years of ownership and I was freaking out over a pipe being burst underground. I have had a cracked chlorinator for half a year and my logic was with the amount of water loss I was getting from there (bad enough that the hose had to be ran any time I was running the pump) that there is no way the crack I could see in the 3 way valve next to the pump was causing a complete inability to prime. Boy was I wrong. Thanks guys from saving me from spazzing out too much.

Im glad you got the problem found and fixed. Yeah, sometimes things happen and we start to freak out.
I'm guilty as charged of trying to make mountains out of mole hills.