- May 27, 2021
- 1,278
- Pool Size
- 17000
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Received a call from a client that his Rainbow 320 inline chlorinator wasn’t melting pucks for the last 3-4 weeks. Previously I had replaced a clogged/broken check valve for him that was preventing normal function and all seemed to be working fine until this call. When I arrive I noted significant cavitation in the pump. The suction side leak was so bad, significant bubbles of air were being blown out of the returns. The leak was caused by a chipped union on a Praher main drain valve housing. I shutoff the main and was able to get the suction side leak to cease. I inquired of him how long the pump had been sucking air, and he said about 3-4 weeks….the same timeframe that the chlorinator stopped functioning.
Here’s my theory….the suction side leak caused enough air/turbulence in the water stream through the Venturi in the chlorinator that it couldn’t create the necessary pressure differential to draw water from the chlorinator to melt the tabs as designed. He and I are going to talk again this weekend to verify if the chlorinator has begun functioning properly again, but I wanted to put my theory out to the brain trust here to see if my theory is plausible. Thoughts?
Here’s my theory….the suction side leak caused enough air/turbulence in the water stream through the Venturi in the chlorinator that it couldn’t create the necessary pressure differential to draw water from the chlorinator to melt the tabs as designed. He and I are going to talk again this weekend to verify if the chlorinator has begun functioning properly again, but I wanted to put my theory out to the brain trust here to see if my theory is plausible. Thoughts?
