Receiving air at newly installed 1hp Hayward Super Pump intake.

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S

Starman

0
May 24, 2014
6
Shelburne Falls, MA
Yesterday I installed a new Hayward 1hp Super Pump to replace a 20 year old 1 hp Super Pump which had been operational prior to winterizing my pool last Oct. From the start, whenever the new pump is turned on, I've not been able to get its basket to fully fill with water and my in-ground pool's outbound side jets blow a constant stream of air and water. The other weird symptom is that when the pump is turned off, water will spit out briefly from underneath the pump's lid. I've replaced the rubber gasket which helped only minimally on preventing lid "spit-out". The lid and seal appear tight and secure. It almost seems like air is being introduced somewhere before the pump's intake(i.e the plumbing between the skimmer basket and the pump's intake connection); Yet, I don't see any signs of dirt in the basket. Any thoughts re: what else I should check would be greatly appreciated as I'm stumped.

18x36 Inground Chlorine vinyl lined pool (age 22yrs)
Hayward sand filter (22yrs)
Hayward 1hp Super Pump (days old)
 
Is the skimmer full with water ? Is the weir door not jammed closed ? Have you lubed the gasket on the pump lid before closing? Are the pump drain plugs (2 of them) sealing properly? Have tried filling the pump with water first? Theses are all important for the suction side of the filter to work properly.
 
I agree re: not getting a proper seal. The two pump plugs have been checked and those seals look good. I have not tried lubricating the lid, but will give that a shot. Perhaps the biggest clue is that I am not able to fill the basket above the lowest diameter of the intake hole as the water just drains back into the intake hole. I've also tried flowing water from a garden hose into the skimmer's intake and I get nothing at the pump basket. 'course it might be that I don't have enough pressure from the hose to push water up to the pump's intake.
 
You won't be able to fill the basket unless you have a valve on the suction side of the skimmer that you can close, fill, put on lid and open the valve and hit the switch otherwise it'll just go back to the skimmer. If there isn't a suction side air leak it'll start to prime itself after 10 -15 seconds.
 
Thx wireform. From what you wrote and what I'm experiencing, my air leak is somewhere on the pump. The most logical location for the offending leak is w/the cover and its gasket. I've ordered lubricant and will give that a shot. heck, I might even try re-using my old cover.
 
Where air comes in, water will leak out.

With your pump running (at max speed if variable speed), make sure everything upstream of the pump is perfectly dry. As you watch the debris basket and plumbing leading up to the pump, shut the pump off. The water that was flowing toward the pump will have momentum. When the pump stops, there will be an momentary over-pressurization in the plumbing upstream of the impeller (in the pump). This hydraulic shock is known as a water hammer. You might be able to notice a little squirt or drip or even just a hint of wetness. I suppose you could use a dry Kleenex to reach areas that are hard to see. If it gets wet, something is leaking, or something squirted water there.

My bet would be on a simple cause - most likely the top on the debris basket. Most likely something between the O-ring and either the top or toward the basket. Last air leak I experienced was where the debris basket had a lot of air when normally it had essentially no air. The sound of the pump is noticeably different. When I heard it, I got to the pump and shut it off. Out came a sizeable squirt of water from the top of the debris basket. The night before, I had cleaned out the debris basket and missed a plastic bubble from a deteriorating pool cover. It prevented the O-ring from getting a good seal.

By the way, if you observe a uniform water leak from around the top of the debris basket when you shut the pump down, that doesn't necessarily mean that there will be an air leak there. The O-ring should normally prevent an air leak. But the over-pressurization can be quite high. Water may blow right past the O-ring, even if the O-ring is sufficient to prevent air from leaking into the basket while the pump is running.
 
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