Air bubbles in swimming pool

Steamy Tom said:
Unions, sand filter o-ring, pump housing lid o-ring, pump housing lid, shaft seals, diffuser o-ring. I would check it in that order.

Are you losing water at a more rapid rate or any visible signs of a leak?

Does it happen with the pool cleaner disconnected also? I know obviously you won't be able to really tell if suction drops without a pressure gauge but does the amount of air under the lid and bubbles decrease if the cleaner is disconnected?
Click to expand...
Ok so I checked the sand filter lid o-ring and its fine. I also set the multiport valve to bypass so water flows back into the pool with going through the filter.
Checked the pool cleaner pipes and all good - also disconnected it from the weir so water flows directly from the weir.
Checked the pump housing lid - no cracks and o ring fine. The basket at the pump and weir is clean.
Checked the union and o-ring before the pump and its fine.
Closed the valve so water does not flow to the solar panels and goes right back to the pool after the pump.
Sprayed soapy water on all the joins and don't see any air being sucked in.

Also the pool is not loosing water and I do have a cover so water level is not dropping.

Next steps would be to check the seals on the pump itself.
 
BuckRogers said:
I bet you it's the elbow at the bottom of the skimmer box
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This did cross my mind. I'm thinking for running a temporary pipe above ground from the pump to the pool to try and isolate the problem. If there is still air bubbles then I will strip the pump and check the seals but if there is none then I will dig up the section by the skimmer box
 
Sprayed soapy water
this works for gas.
your pump is sucking in the air from somewhere, crack in a pipe or bad joint. Is the oring at the pump, in filter okay, replace it.
Fault is mostly under the paving>
 
upup said:
Sprayed soapy water
this works for gas.
your pump is sucking in the air from somewhere, crack in a pipe or bad joint. Is the oring at the pump, in filter okay, replace it.
Fault is mostly under the paving>
Click to expand...
Surprisingly enough this is one of the methods to check for suction issues, the foam from the soapy water gets drawn in around the joint if it's not air tight.
 
I seem to have a lot of tiny air bubbles at the outlet, my guess because our solar panels are quite old is that somehow air creeps inside. The panels leak on and off.
 
Running temporary suction line a good idea.

Also if you partiality block inlet do bubbles increase?
 
Update - ran a temp suction line last weekend and there were no air bubbles so this proved the pump was fine and the issue was underground. I ran the temp suction line the entire week to keep my water filtered and only got a chance today to look for the leak.

Lifted the paving and started digging around the weir and inspected the connection out the weir. This was fine even though the clamp was rusted quite bad. I replaced the clamp and tried to locate the other end of that pipe. After several attempts I finally managed to locate the other end and found a hairline crack on a 90deg elbow. Replaced that and my pool is now air bubble free:) Pool cleaner is also doing its job and the pump is much quieter since its not intermittently priming as before.

Thanx guys for all the input and suggestions.
 
dees909 said:
Update - ran a temp suction line last weekend and there were no air bubbles so this proved the pump was fine and the issue was underground. I ran the temp suction line the entire week to keep my water filtered and only got a chance today to look for the leak.

Lifted the paving and started digging around the weir and inspected the connection out the weir. This was fine even though the clamp was rusted quite bad. I replaced the clamp and tried to locate the other end of that pipe. After several attempts I finally managed to locate the other end and found a hairline crack on a 90deg elbow. Replaced that and my pool is now air bubble free:) Pool cleaner is also doing its job and the pump is much quieter since its not intermittently priming as before.

Thanx guys for all the input and suggestions.
Click to expand...
What did you use as a temporary suction line?
 
kemiy= said:
Hello. I have been given so many confusing answers at different forums but and my mystery is still just that. There are a small amount of bubbles in the pool and cavitation in the pump filter basket. You can also hear air in the sand a dollar. It all works okay…for usually a week or so then I come out one morning and the pump is not priming. I finally found a good article at a blog that shed some light on it. Bubbles in the pool are always air leaking in on the suction side so it goes. I had a leak detection company out for a leak problem, it turns out, in my tanning bed. While they were here they also performed a pressure test on the skimmer lines. Both lines held pressure, a lot of pressure. So I bought a new filter basket lid, clamp down ring and gasket. All worked well though still air bubbles. A week later, in the morning , no prime. The last place I will check is the connection at the front of the basket. When they pressure test the air bladder they use goes in far enough that it would be after that connection. But I can not easily get it to unscrew. Any tips on getting it apart? I would hate to break it. Getting parts is hard at the moment I’m told due to supply shortages from China, and I would need to replumb the line. As well, do pumps age to the point they can not pull enough water? I can only get one skimmer line to draw. The bad one I just have off at the diverter. The pool leak guys determined it is not blocked and suggested the pump can not handle both lines.?
Click to expand...

pumps do age and wear, the shaft seal and bearings wear (and obviously the windings burn etc), a common place for a leak is also on the shaft seal.

It is a union you on the pump housing you cant get undone? I assume you are struggling to get enough grip or leverage to turn it? if it were me and I physically couldn't open it I would first try a leather strap oil filter spanner, failing that I would use my vice grip style oil filter spanner.
 
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