Hi Ben,

Thanks for the reply! Yeah, that's why I said "attempted", It sure doesn't look easy with all the fins and stuff. I'm a pretty good DIY'er with knowledge of plumbing, electrical, framing and trim work (I worked for a contractor for years)... Anyway, I rerouted the filter systems pvc piping to bypass the heater. I'll probably take the heat exchanger out of the unit this weekend and inspect it.

The pool is 10 years old and it's the original heater, so I may just get a new heater maybe with a non-corrosive heat exchanger if they make one. I thought I'd ask the experts here since sometimes you guys may say some miracle stuff like "stop-leak" would work. It would have saved me some work and the $1000 for the new heat exchanger.

You mentioned pool chemistry, what chemical would be out-of-whack to cause this? My chlorine and ph are usually right on. At 10 years old, could it have been old age or do you think it was the chemistry?

Thanks again,

Jake