Spa backfeeding water to air blower

[TDTPool]

Hey again - I asked about this before, but a new install has an issue where the spa is backfeeding a lot of water to the air blower; to the point where the air blower shuts itself off in one minute to prevent over-heating.
Everyone has told me it means a bad hartsford loop, or no "t-loop", and I kind of get it.

I am now being recommended that instead we put on a 'manual controller air pump', but I can't figure out what that means. I suspect it's basically going to override the air blower to not turn off until I tell it too (or it fries) but I am curious of y'alls recommendations.

(For context; if the pump is running and I remove the air blower, water gushes ~5-10 feet out of the air pipe. So the airblower is just constantly having to push back against 'all' that water).

 

[mas985]

Can we have some more details about your setup:

The distance between the blower and the spa jets?

Air pipe diameter?

The relative height between the spa water level and the blower pipe connection?

Blower size?

Also, post any pictures that you may have took during construction and also post pictures of the current pad setup.

 

[InyoRich]

Is the blower higher than the water level of the spa? Generally, there is a check valve after the blower to prevent the water blow-back. Is it installed or broken?

 

[1poolman1]

Hey again - I asked about this before, but a new install has an issue where the spa is backfeeding a lot of water to the air blower; to the point where the air blower shuts itself off in one minute to prevent over-heating.
Everyone has told me it means a bad hartsford loop, or no "t-loop", and I kind of get it.

I am now being recommended that instead we put on a 'manual controller air pump', but I can't figure out what that means. I suspect it's basically going to override the air blower to not turn off until I tell it too (or it fries) but I am curious of y'alls recommendations.

(For context; if the pump is running and I remove the air blower, water gushes ~5-10 feet out of the air pipe. So the airblower is just constantly having to push back against 'all' that water).

First, be sure that any "eyeball" that may be on a jet is not blocking flow. Even one will force water into the air line.
Be sure that you don't have a blocked orifice in one of the spa jets. Manually turn the suction valve to pull from the spa while leaving the return valve set for the pool (or pool operation) and run the pump until the spa drains below the jets.
Then, reset the system for spa operation and see if any of the jets don't have a narrow stream of water coming out. If one doesn't, that usually indicates the orifice has a clog and will force water into the air line.

 

[TDTPool]

Blower to spa jet is probably ~25 feet give or take.

The air blower, when mounted, is roughly ~4 feet above water level. You can see the plumbing it comes out of with the plug in it in the pictures

https://imgur.com/a/NwF3COo

Blower size is 1 HP, going to 3 jets.

I have a single 'good' pic of the piping and it's the one mentioning 'pic pre bury". I can tell what I suspect is meant to be an air loop, connecting all 3 jets. Similar to what I find when I look up Hartford loop, but seems lower than it should be.

If the air blower were hooked up, I would turn it in, and I would actively get bubbles for ~1 minute. Then the air blower would kill itself due to over-heating.
There is an air valve check under the air blower, and it does work - Water is not actively getting to the air blower. It is, however, getting from the pool, to the air blower.

I understand 'why' it's over-heating, I don't believe water should be feeding all the way back in the air pipe, so it's fighting a lot of active water pressure to push that air. That said, I realize every day how little I know about pools which is why I'm asking you fine people.

 

[mknauss]

3 jets are not many. What amount of water are you sending to them? Can you slow the pump down?

 

[TDTPool]

3 jets are not many. What amount of water are you sending to them? Can you slow the pump down?

I can - Usually ~1500 RPM, and it'll still overheat, just slower.

 

[mas985]

A higher RPM should produce more suction on the air pipe to help clear the lines. Have you tried a higher RPM?

But as was mentioned above, the problem could also be a blocked jet nozzle. If you have standard venturi TEEs with hex nozzles, you can remove them with a long 9/16" socket wrench and then run the pump to flush lines and see that helps.