Spa draining over night, not check valve

[rjcasserly]

All - hoping someone on this forum may be able to help. My spa keeps draining overnight, and I know this is usually indicative of a check valve issue. However, I have replaced several times with different brands on Amazon, and nothing seems to prevent it. The water level drains all the way down to the spa return.

Further, there is a Hayward PSV valve right above my spa check valve. To help isolate the issue, I've closed this a few times to see if the water still goes down...which it does but not as much. Please see below picture for how far it goes down with the PSV valve shut - not a ton, maybe a foot, but should be nothing. It goes down several feet with the PSV valve open.

So, I am no expert here and still learning the joys of homeownership with a pool, but I assume I have either 1) a bad check valve that I cannot seem to get the right size/replacement for (if this is possible), 2) a bad PSV valve above it, or 3) a leak somewhere in the spa return line. Or I have some combination of the above.

I believe it has been this way since I bought the house, so nothing new to my knowledge that could have caused this. Any thoughts on how to diagnose/isolate and fix would be immensely appreciated.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Rj,

Show us several pics of your equipment pad, so we can see all of your plumbing.. Leave the valves in the position that you normally shut the pool off in..

Like you say, it is normally the check valve. If not that, it can't be much else.. Unless you have a leak, which I assume you would have mentioned.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[rjcasserly]

Ok see below for the setup, I imagine this is more complicated than most. I guess theoretically it could be anything on the spa (one of the actuators for the drain or the spa jets), but using a dye test on the spa shows that a slight amount of water is being pulled through the spa return - the far right pipe and the one that matches the picture in my first post.

Going from left to right - pool heater, salt cell, wall return, fountain return, jet booster for spa (end of 1st picture), spa drain, main drain, skimmers, spa jets, valet return, spa return, spa heater.

Appreciate any help or guidance.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Rj,

Does your spa normally overflow into the pool when in the pool mode?

If your spa drains down to the floor drain in the spa, then like you already know, it is not a check valve issue.

In theory, the floor drain only goes back to the main pump and no where else.. But, since you have a pump just for the spa jets, where does it get its water?

I would assume the intake valve on your main pump is leaking.. If not then a pipe/coupling leak on the spa drain line.

Kind of what you were already thinking..

Let's see if we can get some better opinions... Calling @JamesW and @jimmythegreek

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[rjcasserly]

To answer your first question, yes my spa normally overflows into my pool. In the 2nd picture of my last post, on the left, the actuator is off on the spa drain and just pulling from the pool drain and skimmers (pool mode).

On your 2nd point, I've never shut the pump off for a very long time to see how low it goes, but both my dye testing and typical levels indicate that water is only leaving through the spa return overnight.

For all of the pipes on the 1st picture of my last post, I truly could not tell you exactly what the order of operations are or where exactly they are drawing from. However again, my isolation of the spa return line via the dye test and further isolation using the PSV valve as mentioned in my first post really leads me to think it is something on the spa return.

 

[jimmythegreek]

Where is the equipment in height in relation to the level of the pool/spa. How raised is the spa to the pool level?

 

[Jimrahbe]

Rj,

But you said...

It goes down several feet with the PSV valve open.

Several feet have to be well below your spa jets, so I am confused???

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[rjcasserly]

Jimmythegreek - the top of the spa is about 18 inches above the pool waterline, and the return line in the spa is basically level with the pool (18 inches deep in the spa). The equipment height (the bottom of the concrete pad) is about a foot below the pool waterline.

Jim R - yes, apologies if I messed up my description. But with the spa return PSV valve open (as it usually is), the spa drains down to the spa return line overnight. I was just guesstimating before, but now that I measured it is 18 inches. With the PSV valve shut (just did this to help isolate the problem), the spa drains down to the spa jets as you see in my very first picture. However, using a dye test leads me to think that it is still draining through the spa return line, even with the PSV valve shut. The dye flow is very visible with the PSV valve open, but still looks like very slight flow with the PSV valve shut.

Lastly, if any help, the check valves I've tried using are Zodiac 7056 and ATIE 7056. Hope all of that makes sense, thanks all.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Rj,

I am sure it is just me, I am often very slow...

Most spas, only have spa jets and a spa drain.. When in the spa mode, water is sucked out of the spa drain, through the pump and filter then back to the spa jets..

Your spa may be different.. In your first pic, can you tell us which parts are which? What are you calling the "Spa return line"

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[jimmythegreek]

In the second equipment pic can you tell me what is each pipe in the block of 4 pipes originating from the powered 3 way valve in the middle. You have 3 pumps total correct? Pool, water features, spa?