Quote Originally Posted by rqbanerjee
Hi All,
Need some help restarting my parents pool. They are out of the country for 2 more weeks, and I wanted to surprise my dad by opening the pool for him. He loves to swim.

Anyhow, it has not been opened for several years. Their are two major problems, but i need to deal with the first one.

Specs: 16'x32' Inground, Vinyl liner. Pump is a "Richardson Industries" 3/4 HP pump with a diatomaceous earth (sp?) filter barrel.

The filter is not pulling any water through. I have primed the pump by filling the pump's hopper to the brim with water, screwing the top back on, and starting it quickly. However it barely gets out a squirt of water (on waste mode). I've tried shoving my garden hose down the hopper and forcing water through the line, but that doesn't work either and water comes back up at me.

Could there be a blockage or puncture in the line? How to tell? Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks,
Raj
Hey Raj,
What a guy! You're Dad will love you for it.
Anyway to your question: I can't speak for that make of DE filter, but I have a Hayward DE and it typically takes (and the manual confirms) upward to several minutes for the prime to catch. The manual says it could take up to five minutes. Maybe some more patience?

That said, if the pump's sat idle for a couple years there may be something else amiss but first I'd make sure the valves are open properly, any plugs removed from the skimmer, the filter's been thoroughly cleaned, new DE added, etc. and give it five minutes to get up to speed. Then start looking for other possible problems.

Also it'd be worth looking for the pump on the web and seeing if you can dl the manual.

Chuck