Air Bubbles in the Return Jets. My Fault?

Hello,

This year I am having a tough time clearing up the pool and noticed that my return jets have Air Bubbles in them. I opened the pool the first time this year myself and I accidentally forgot to uncap the return jets after turning on the pump for no more than 10 minutes. I am hoping this didn't cause damage but I do now see the bubbles.

After some searching around here is what I done :

1) I have a 33k gallon inground pool.
2) I switched off the skimmers and still saw the bubbles.
3) I switched off the Main Drain and still saw the bubbles.
4) I see bubbles from ALL 4 return jets.
5) My Jandy filter keeps building up air inside (ever 10 or so minutes, I can open the pressure guage and about 20 seconds of air comes out before the water.)
6) I sprayed shaving cream all over all the above ground fittings and the pump to see if I could see any air intakes (It was fun but fruitless)
7) As a cheap first start, I replaced the rubber on the hayward pumps lid.
8) I checked the 'doors' on the skimmers and they are functional.


Any ideas? Also, do you think this would be preventing me from achieving crystal clear water?

Thanks for any help.
CARLO in Brooklyn.

well, after you've checked all you have, the things that i would check is all fittings in proximity of the pump (can you hear air anywhere after you run the pump and turn it off if you stay by the pump?) can you zip around to your returns and listen for air leaks right after turning off the pump?

but now that i think about it more, given the air build up in your filter..that might be the next most obvious place you look..sounds like somewhere the pressure went too high..if normal operating pressure for my system was say 20, my filter was rated for 50 and i closed my returns and ran, i bet i'd get up to 50 plus really quick. could you have cracked a valve on top of your filter? when i had some leaks, i bought a bottle of this spray on leak checker at the hardware store. when you spray it on anything that has any airleak, it immediately will show bubbles/foam where the leak is to help pinpoint. a small bottle sprays quite a bit of area and it worked great for me.

Thanks for the reply. Tomorrow, I am gonna move up from the shaving cream to a more professional leak checker like you recommend. Hopefully it bears some fruit.

I do remember that the pressure built up to about 30 psi. I specifically remember since the Jandy had a big red warning label for operation above 50. Luckily it never got that high so hopefully there is no inaccessible leaks. Hopefully I'll find something top side.

Although I do want it fixed, I am curious what type of damage if any I could be causing to the filter with the air getting into it.

thanks again for the speedy reply.

CARLO.

yeah, seals can do funny things with too much pressure..look for hairline cracks with a flashlight as well..i know i'd likely not see one in my pool shed even though it's big and has 2 120 watt bulbs to light it up. better a crack on the top part of a filter or even a pump, then my biggest fear and why i do everything myself except close down my pool for cold canada winters..cracked or burst pipe under the ground or concrete deck:)

but you're a long way it sounds from having to worry about that at this point.

Your leak is likely between the skimmer and the pump (suction side not pressure side).
Have you checked for a vortex in your skimmer, sometimes all it is is slightly lower water levels allowing some air in.
You may also have a leak in your pipes anywhere before the pump or even the pump lid gasket could require some lube.
Outside of those areas, it's highly unlikely you'd suck air anywhere post pump, instead you'd be squirting water.
I doubt you're damaging anything with some air going through the system.

Well pointed out Matt. Air being returned to the pool is always a suction side problem. Any leaks or breaks in the line after the pump is all pressurized and will result in water leaking/squirting out.

Instead of the shaving cream, use a dish towel, well soaked with water. Take the towel and wrap it around your glue joints, valves, fittings, etc. individually. When you see the bubbles in your pump pot go away, you've found your leak.
Do you have a suction side pool cleaner? Check your hoses.

Are you loosing water when the pump is off? You may have a leak below ground level. You can usually spot this by an unusual damp area in your yard, between the pool and your equipment.

Thank you everyone for the great replies. I did just replace the Pumps lid rubber seal but did not put any lube on it so I will try that. Unfortunately, there is not much above ground piping between the pump and the skimmers. (Although since I see air even when I switch from skimmers to Main Drain - It is probably somewhere from that y switch to the pump right?) That section is all expose and I will try the towel trick to see if I can make the bubbles disappear from the lid of the pump. I'll keep everyone posted.

Thanks again for the suggestions.

CARLO.

Funny that this post should appear when it did. I just spent this morning solving this very problem.

Lubed the gasket on the pump where you access the basket. - bubbles
Checked the tightness of all the fitting on the plumping coming into the pump - bubbles
Replaced the Teflon tape on the fittings to and from the pump - no bubbles

I think the real cause was the intake fitting wasn't tight. I think over time the installing and removing of the pump each winter loosened it.