pool pressure

[dixiecowgirl]

My pool pressure is 20. The pressure coming out of the jet is good at times but then with no notice it goes to nothing. it may be in 15 minutes or an hour. I do not have a leak. The baskets are clean. When i back wash or open that clear lid and replace it my pressure picks up in the jet. I can not even run my cleaner because it will clean for a little while and then loose pressure but gauge is always around 20...any suggestions????

[KurtV]

I'm assuming you have a sand filter.

Does the pressure not go down after you backwash, either? If not, you probably have a bad pressure guage. Those are relatively cheap and easy to replace.

[dixiecowgirl]

yes i do have a sand filter. Some times my pressure will go down to 18 but not less. I changed from bacqacil to chlorine this year could that have something to do with it??thanks for replying.

[duraleigh]

My pool pressure is 20. The pressure coming out of the jet is good at times but then with no notice it goes to nothing. it may be in 15 minutes or an hour. I do not have a leak. The baskets are clean. When i back wash or open that clear lid and replace it my pressure picks up in the jet. I can not even run my cleaner because it will clean for a little while and then loose pressure but gauge is always around 20...any suggestions????

It almost sounds like you are losing prime. Is there air in the pump basket when it stops coming out of the jet?

I also agree with Kurt, if your guage says 20, and you have no flow, you must replace the quage.

[PhantomAndy]

I'm assuming that if you changed from Baq, to Cl that you changed your sand. If not - you need to. . .

I agree - it sounds like you are losing prime or getting air in your pump somewhere.

Could the impeller be damaged? Check that as well.

[dixiecowgirl]

I did not change my sand......how can i check the impellar

[dixiecowgirl]

the container with the clear lid is always filled with water no air

[dixiecowgirl]

when i backwash the water is cloudy then clear, when i rinse it is kinda green. The pool is cloudy but you can easily see the bottom. thought this info might help.

[KurtV]

I did not change my sand......how can i check the propeller

With this additional information, I'd put my money on an incomplete Baqua conversion (and maybe a bad guage as well).

As Andy said, you do need to change your sand. Your sand is probably full of goop from the Baquacil that backwashing can't remove. That would explain why you're not seeing much pressure drop after backwashing but you are getting better return flow for a short time. Basically, the goop in the sand has made your filter super good at removing everything from your water which is quickly plugging up the filter. The only piece that doesn't seem to fit my theory puzzle is that your not seeing any further rise in pressure as the filter gets more and more clogged. That's why I still think you may have a bad guage (heck, it could be gunked up with Baqua-goop as well).

As for checking for air in the system, there should be a small valve on the pressure guage. Open that and see if you get a significant amount of air coming ouit before any water comes out. If you get water right away, you pobably don't have any suction side leaks.

[dixiecowgirl]

i will change my sand this week end. i could not find a valve on the pressure gauge it is now at 18.this is an above ground pool..i dont know if that matters