Polaris 480

[Hszwill]

Hello,

After 6 weeks with no use of pool equipment because of it melting we now have our pool up and running again as of Thursday. Here are my numbers:

FC 7
CC 0
TC 7
pH 7.5
Alk 70
Cal 80
Temp 65
CYA unknown because I used up solution in August.

The Polaris vacuum worked fully on Thursday. On Friday it frequently stopped driving around. Today, it won't travel at all. I picked it up out of the water and observed that water is still shooting out of the center part that fills the debris bag. Water also shoots out the back (I assume that is what is suppose to make it travel) and out of a section of the attached hose about 3 feet from the actual vacuum. Any ideas on what could be causing the Polaris to stop moving even though I see water traveling through it?

Shannon

[waste]

Hey Shannon, it's been over a decade since i was certified on Polaris but I imagine they haven't changed much. You can pop the body of the unit open with a philips head screwdriver and check the belt and the water wheel which drives it. Just keep track of the screws and it should be easy to open it and reclose it - once you open it you'll see just how simple they are inside, there are very few things that will stop it from working.

Glad you are back in working order - how do you melt the equipment?

One last thing, re: CYA - what was your level in Aug? and how much water have you backwashed or wasted, also have you used di or tri- chlor/ or added any cya? It shouldn't change that muchhaven't been dumping lots of water or adding it -- your last reading may still be a good number to use

[aylad]

I have the Polaris 380 and the last time mine acted like that was when the backup valve (the part of the hose section that is bell-shaped and about three feet from the unit that you see water coming from)cracked. You should see water coming from that valve for about a 30 second time period every 10 minutes or so, but no longer---if the valve is cracked, it allows a constant flow of water through that makes the unit perpetually back up--which counters its normal forward motion.

The only other thing I can recommend is like Waste said, to check the drive belt, which is fairly easy to get to on a 380 model, and are available at Leslie's.

Janet

[Hszwill]

Hello,

I was able to get my husband to take the unit apart and he was so pleased to find that he had fixed it quickly. He said a screw inside was loose and the belt wasn't straight. It has been working beautifully since yesterday I so appreciate this forum.

As for the CYA, my last reading was mid-August and it was 20. The pool was back washed recently after we got it up and running again. How do I order more regent? Oh, how many seasons should a test kit be used for?

Finally, my pool pump melted due to a strange set of events. Every time I checked my filter guage to see if I needed to back wash it always said "clean" ; the entire summer It never dawned on me that it was broken. So, we didn't backwash all summer long. Well, obviously the pressure was building up but I was clueless. To add to that, we went back home to AZ for 2 weeks in Sept. and didn't remember to tell our friends to fill the pool as needed when ever they came to swim in it and bleach it. Little by little the water level dropped dangerously low. Every night the timer kicked in for the pump to filter the water. It was all working against itself. In fact the day we returned it looked like someone had closed my pool We started filling it immediately because we knew that it needed to reach the skimmers for the filter to clean it properly. When the water reached the proper height we turned on the pump, but nothing happened. Our pool man was here within hours and determined that we had melted our stealth pump. The pvc pipes had gotten so hot they turned light brown! It then took a month for the part to come and the pool man to find time to come and install it. So, there were the 6 weeks without operation and a very sick pool.

BTW, I can't firgure out how much calcium my pool should have. It is at the lowest number I've ever seen it at.

Thanks,
Shannon

[aylad]

How do I order more regent? Oh, how many seasons should a test kit be used for?

BTW, I can't firgure out how much calcium my pool should have. It is at the lowest number I've ever seen it at.

Generally, you'll run out of CYA reagent over the course of a summer. Leslie's usually has it in stock if you have one near you. I also order reagents from the Taylor Technologies website, since I have Ben's kit and most of those reagents have Taylor numbers on them already. You can use reagents for up to 2-3 years with no problem, as long as they are stored in a fairly dark, temperature controlled room where they won't freeze. I keep mine in a cabinet in my pantry. Poconos (another mod) keeps his in the refrigerator, I think.

Calcium levels for a pool with any kind of contact with plaster/concrete should be kept in the 200-400 range, I believe...

Janet