Replacing Venturi Tee Nozzles 217-1080 3/4"

[tcassutt]

Hi,

I need to replace my 217-1080 3/4" Waterway nozzles. I am not getting bubbles in the spa and was wondering if these can be replaced with the 7/16" 217-3330 nozzles in the hopes the smaller holes would do a better job at producing bubbles. Are the threads on these the same and either can be screwed in?

 

[mas985]

I have 1080 jets and they are actually 3/8" not 3/4". I think sellers are not labeling these correctly. 3/4" nozzles are too big and would not work in a venturi tee. Measure the smaller hole and see if it is not 3/8".

If they are 3/8", going to 7/16" would make the jet very week and would not create more bubbles. In fact, I don't think going smaller would help much either. More than likely the issue is with the air pipe. Do you have a blower? How long is the air pipe and what size is the pipe?

 

[tcassutt]

Yes, you are right. 3/8" nozzle and the back is 3/4", so if the 217-3330 is a 7/16" nozzle that would just be bigger. The air pipe is near the pool equipment, not near the spa, and comes up about 3-4 feet above the ground. We do not have a blower but the bubbles have worked in the past and then stopped working. There are no obstructions, and I have another thread where I have posted about no bubbles and most have said it is the nozzles and I should replace them. Every pool professional who has come out has been stumped so I am open to any suggestion you might have to get the bubbles back. Thanks!

 

[mas985]

What has changed since the bubbles were working and not? What speed are you running the pump?

 

[tcassutt]

Nothing really has changed, the jets were weak when we moved in and we would have the problem intermittently where there would be no bubbles then they would come back. It was often after we had not used the spa for many months when it would happen. We had the pool replastered in 2017 and pretty much haven't been able to get the bubbles back. I have tried all speeds up to 3450, but no luck. Also tried lowering the water level and blowing out the jets one by one after removing the nozzles. We have a pulsator jet as well and I wonder if that contributes to the problem but not sure. There is also water in the air pipe even at 3450 and I cannot hear any gurgling noise which I know is not good. Unfortunately the shopvac method does not work as the water comes right back after running the spa once.

 

[mas985]

That sounds like an obstruction of some sort.

Did you run the spa jets with ALL jets removed at the same time?

What is the distance from the spa to the pump?

What size pipe (water and air) did they use for the spa jets?

How many spa jets do you have?

What is the filter pressure when the spa jets are running at 3450 RPM?

Have you cleaned the filter recently?

 

[tcassutt]

Thank you for helping me out with this! It might be an obstruction but blowing the pipes with the water level lower resulted in water and some plaster pieces but did not solve the issue. Is there another way to check for an obstruction? I did run the spa jets with all the jets removed, the air bubbles start, stronger at the beginning and barely noticeable at the last one, and then quickly die out so only water is coming out. The distance is probably about 75 feet or so, but it is all underground so I do not know the route they took or how straight it is. The spa is in the corner of the yard and the air pipe is on the opposite side yard so it has to travel quite a distance. I do not know what size the pipes are, we moved in 9 years after it was built, is there any way for me to tell such a thing from looking at it? There are 6 small jets with the 217-1080 nozzles and one pulsator jet with a 210-6077 (I think) in a body that is part 215-1070 and 215-1087 plus a retainer. The filter pressure when I run the spa jets is about 22. The filters were recently cleaned.

 

[mas985]

Post a picture of the pad equipment. That might help me.

 

[tcassutt]

Here is the pool equipment. Thank you!

 

[mas985]

Is the air pipe near the control panel? The opening is quite small. Can you remove the top cap on the pipe?

You may just need a blower. If there is water at that pipe, the venturis will never be strong enough to clear that pipe.

 

[tcassutt]

Yes, that is the air pipe near the control panel. I can remove the top cap as well as the top half of the pipe. Will that help get more air? We thought about a blower but people have come out have said we should not get one, that they are too loud and won't help. There is definitely water in that pipe that is not getting cleared, so perhaps a blower is the answer? It would be nice if there was a way to try one out.

 

[mas985]

If you remove the cap, does it help at all? If not, I think the only thing that will help is a blower. If you see water in the pipe, a blower is the only thing that will be able to clear 75' of water. Does the shop vacuum clear the line when you use it?

 

[tcassutt]

Removing the cap does not seem to help. A shop vacuum does clear the line but the water comes right back after filling. I could try the shop vac while running the jets to see if that would keep it going. If that works, would that indicate a blower is needed?

 

[mas985]

I could try the shop vac while running the jets to see if that would keep it going. If that works, would that indicate a blower is needed?

Yes, that is what I was suggesting. If the line fully clears, then a blower would work. That is basically what they are for.

I think they had a blower at one time but removed it.

 

[tcassutt]

All right, thank you very much, I will try that. Should I also replace the nozzles as long as I have them off? Is there any benefit to new nozzles?

 

[mas985]

No, I think the ones you have should be fine. But the venturi effect won't work without them installed. So don't bother trying the shop vac until you have them installed. That may be why they didn't work with the end cap removed. You might try that again with the jets installed.

 

[tcassutt]

Great. Thank you very much!