Pump prime
Not priming a pump, or having air in the plumbing lines could have a bad effect on pumps, pipe. If your swimming pool pump has air in the line that is causing the impeller to run too fast inside of the pump it could get so hot it melts your pipes or the inside of your pump. The pump would have to run like this for hours and if caught in time you may not have these effects. A pump can loose it’s prime when you empty the basket located inside of the pool pump, a skimmer door is stuck shut therefore allowing air to be sucked in, a check valve that has gone bad or worse of all a pool leak. Any of these may cause your pump to run dry and the easiest way for a pool owner to tell if his situation is good is to look into the pool pumps clear lid and make sure it is full of water when the pump is running and when it is off. For instance if you have a raised wall or a raised fountain feature on your swimming pool, your plumbing should have a check valve. If the internal of the check valve gets stuck or goes bad it allows air to get into the pump sometimes when the pump turns off. A pool leak, on the suction side of the plumbing will cause air to get into the plumbing lines. The suction side usually consists of your pool main drain in the deep part of your pool or the skimmers. What cools down your pool pump is the actual water that is flowing through it. Also, the restriction of the water going through your impeller makes the impeller move slower. If air is introduced into the plumbing/pump the impeller spins too fast because air is easier to turn than water. Not only the impeller is spinning to fast but the pump doesn’t have the proper amount of water in it to cool off the pump. Well if your pump runs like this for hours or days what happens the heat will start to make the PVC plumbing weak and start to expand it and contract it. In this photo you have a suction line, the pipe going into the pump suck in like, therefore kinking the pipe and on the return side, or the pipe coming out of the pump expand because of the pressure of the water that is allowed through. If you have a pool with a leak or priming problems call a professional and if you live in SE Louisiana call Crystal Pools and Spas. We are a company that does our own plumbing therefore we would fix the problem and not a third hand. If you have any questions please email me at kevin@nolapools.com or comment below.
Thanks!
Pump prime
Pump prime
