Pump Ran Dry Now Motor Won't Start

[RandyM1911]

Exactly what I did. Retail store of the builder I used was very fair with the pricing. I bought a new motor, seals, gaskets & impeller (just in case) and cleaned up all of the other parts thoroughly before reassembly. Fired right up and sounds sweet, much better than the old motor before the failure. I put a gallon of shock in the pool and ran the pump overnight so the SWCG could replenish the chlorine that was essentially gone after four days of no operation. Free chlorine levels came right up and the chemistry looks good across the board.

Other than a couple of green algae spots on the liner (which will scrub out), it doesn't seem any worse for the wear. Only my wallet was damaged in the process but a valuable (and expensive) lesson was learned as well. That being, if you let someone use you pool while you're away, even if it is a family member or someone you really trust, don't let them touch anything. No valves, no timers, no adjustments, nothing. Leave it as you found it or don't use it at all.

[aylad]

Yep, that's a valuable lesson. Here's the other end of that one...if you see a leak around the pump, even a very small one, don't ignore it--go ahead and change out that shaft seal. Ignoring it will eventually produce the same result that you had.....ask me how I know!

Glad you got it up and running again. Funny how that stuff always happens when it's hot outside, huh?

[RandyM1911]

True enough!

Although I can't say that I ever noticed any leaking around the pump at all. The majority of the corrosion was behind the motor mounting plate where it attaches to the front of the motor. Also under the front of the motor where the air cooling slots are located. But none of that was visible until taking everything apart.

I did notice some bearing noise in the motor this season and had planned to pull it (the motor) to have the bearings replaced after closing the pool in the fall. The bearing noise was noticeable but not horrible and I'm sure it would have made it to the end of the season (mid-September for me) had the seal failure not occurred. I may still rebuild the old motor and either keep it as an emergency back-up or see if I can sell it on E-bay. I can tell you that going forward I will be much more attentive to the sound of the pump motor and I'll be on the lookout for any signs of leaks or corrosion.

In the meantime, thanks for the help and the words of encouragement. It's nice to know I'm not alone out here!

[PoolDoc]

Although I can't say that I ever noticed any leaking around the pump at all. The majority of the corrosion was behind the motor mounting plate where it attaches to the front of the motor. Also under the front of the motor where the air cooling slots are located. But none of that was visible until taking everything apart.

You may want to check during a rainstorm, to make sure something is not causing water to splash up into the motor.

[RandyM1911]

Thanks PoolDoc.

I was thinking about building a little "doghouse" style roof over the pump / motor to mitigate that possibility. I have been wondering how the motor came to have so much corrosion in just 5 years of service and can only imagine that some combination of premature shaft-seal failure or leakage and possibly heavy rain / flooding of the motor vents contributed. I will keep an eye out so I (hopefully) don't have to go through this again in another 5 years!

Randy

[kelemvor]

I have a similar problem (pump motor gets regularly drenched in the rain). Mine is on a pad but we get lots of heavy rain here in FL. I was considering doing the exact same thing with the "doghouse". I was thinking it might present a problem for cooling/airflow, though. I had considered one of those solar fans for the roof of a house. The problem with that is the combined cost makes me doubt the economics of doing that vs buying a new pump every few years. Hopefully someone else can weigh in on the merits of the idea.

[PoolDoc]

I was thinking it might present a problem for cooling/airflow, though.

Exactly.

The ideal solution is probably to raise the pump a bit - a split or partial 2" patio block is enough in most situations, AND to put a roof over the pump, but NOT sides.