Suction Leak Near Pump

[rednick]

I have a minor suction side leak from the elbow coming out of the pump. There’s plumbers tape visible, so I’d like to remove and clean it up. I’m handy enough to do some basic indoor plumbing, but haven’t worked with pool plumbing yet. My setup is a bit old, and I don’t want to risk messing something else up, especially since I just balanced everything, and it’s ready to swim. A few questions:

1) I assume I’ll need to disconnect the pump entirely to fix, or is there a better way to remove the elbow?

2) If I need to disconnect the pump, there was blue glue put on the inlet from the skimmers/drain last year by the pool company that opened it when it seemed like there was a leak there (I’m not so sure it was in hindsight). I assume it won’t be as easy as just loosening the nut?

3) Any other tips or watch outs? Should I drain the pump and filter first, or just shut off the system, etc.?

Sorry for the novice questions!

ETA: the pump is currently a bit pitched, as the incoming lines seemed to have sunk a bit at some point. I will likely need a new filter in the next season or two, so if the solution is to just apply some sealant for now, that works for me too. Looking a bit further, I should be able to just disconnect the union after the elbow and do what I need to, correct?

 

[kadavis]

First of all the fitting on top of pump is on the pressure side of pump and would not cause a suction leak but just leak water. If the tried to fix the the fitting going into the pump by dabbing glue on it that would never seal and that is where the air is coming from. You have a union right after the threaded 90 you could untighten and then thread out the 90 fitting and retape or use Amazon.com: LA-CO Plasto-Joint Stik Plastic Thread Sealant Stick, 250 Degree F Temperature, 1-1/4 oz: Toys & Games. For a long time fix your going to have to repair the suction side pipe also

 

[rednick]

First of all the fitting on top of pump is on the pressure side of pump and would not cause a suction leak but just leak water. If the tried to fix the the fitting going into the pump by dabbing glue on it that would never seal and that is where the air is coming from. You have a union right after the threaded 90 you could untighten and then thread out the 90 fitting and retape or use Amazon.com: LA-CO Plasto-Joint Stik Plastic Thread Sealant Stick, 250 Degree F Temperature, 1-1/4 oz: Toys & Games. For a long time fix your going to have to repair the suction side pipe also

Thanks for the reply and clarifications. Do you think there will be any problems removing the suction side with glue on the outside, or just give it a good turn to loosen?

 

[kadavis]

It should thread out it doesn't look like the glue is on the inside threads, just be careful