Super Pump motor

[Mike1162]

I'm sure mine was also leaking. The face of the motor on the wet end was covered in corrosion.
New motor came today. Everything but the lube should be here tomorrow. I may put it together tomorrow with the seal that's in the gasket kit. I also ordered a new impeller because the old one had a groove worn into it.

 

[wireform]

I'm sure mine was also leaking. The face of the motor on the wet end was covered in corrosion.
New motor came today. Everything but the lube should be here tomorrow. I may put it together tomorrow with the seal that's in the gasket kit. I also ordered a new impeller because the old one had a groove worn into it.

Would be a good time to change all the o rings in the wet end now too. Have a guy that told me his pump leaked for two seasons and he thought it was intentional to cool the pump UNTIL one day the bearing gave out.

 

[1poolman1]

A.O.Smith Motor University classes used to recommend seal replacement at least every 5 years, bearings as needed. If the seal has leaked for any length of time it is a good time to get the bearings done if you can get the job at a reasonable price. Usually, a new motor is only slightly more than a bearing replacement in my area. Variable-speed motors are different. Don't ever overlook even the slightest seal leak. Many motor shops won't touch them.

 

[JamesW]

For the SuperPump, you can use a flashlight to look from the back under the pump.

There is a small gap between the pump and the ground directly below where the seal will leak.

If you want to catch a seal leak before the bearings are ruined, I recommend checking below the pump about once a week to look for any sign of a drip.

If there is debris in the gap, clear it out with a wire or something to make any drip really easy to see.

 

[Mike1162]

Last week I wanted the pump going so I could bring up the chlorine level & get the pool closed. All the parts hadn't arrived so I took a good look at the old seal & thought the mating faces looked good & wondered why it was leaking. I then took the seal off the impellor & found lots of corrosion. I cleaned up the seal & scrapped the heavy corrosion off the impellor . I then mounted the impellor on the motor, turned on the motor & polished the impellor shaft with 1000 grit sandpaper. Worked nice. See pic below. Put everything back together & ran the pump with no leaks. Just wanted to post this in case someone's pump leaks & they need a quick repair until they can get a new seal.

Received the last of the parts today & just finished putting everything back together. I can't test it due to the pool now being closed but can't imagine having any leaks with a new seal & impeller. Changing out the seal is straight forward I can't see any reason that the average DIY'er should be afraid to attempt this. I'll probably change the seal again in 5 years as routine maintenance. $15 for a seal vs $250 for a new motor. Besides I have enough seal lube to last 10 lifetimes!

 

[Newdude]

If you want to catch a seal leak before the bearings are ruined, I recommend checking below the pump about once a week to look for any sign of a drip.

+1. Everyone should be doing a weekly equipment / filter psi check anyway. It takes 3 more seconds to peek under the pump, filter and anything else.

 

[JamesW]

+1. Everyone should be doing a weekly equipment / filter psi check anyway. It takes 3 more seconds to peek under the pump, filter and anything else.

I mounted a tiny webcam below my pump to keep a continuous eye on it.

I have it in picture-in-picture on my phone, TV and computer screen and I have trained an A.I to alert me if it sees a drip while I am sleeping.

 

[Newdude]

and I have trained an A.I to alert me if it sees a drip while I am sleeping.

Well. I mean. Sure. You’d just train *another* AI and automate it all. (Is that as annoying as the rest of us having a new coworker ?). The rest of us have to peek.

Just promise me that you’ll never play Global Thermonuclear War. It’s a strange game. The only winning move is not to play.

 

[JamesW]

(Is that as annoying as the rest of us having a new coworker ?).

All of my appliances have A.I.

The refrigerator called today “Just to talk” and the toaster called to say that they were not getting along with the vacuum cleaner.

 

[markayash]

All of my appliances have A.I.

The refrigerator called today “Just to talk” and the toaster called to say that they were not getting along with the vacuum cleaner.

I have been in IT over 20 years and remember being told we have to go to ipV6 because we are tuning out of addresses because your toaster will have an IP address.

 

[markayash]

I have been in IT over 20 years and remember being told we have to go to ipV6 because we are tuning out of addresses because your toaster will have an IP address.

And most companies are still on ipv4 and my toaster doesn’t have an up address