Hayward Pump and Sand Filter Issue

[Watermom]

Sorry. Live links aren't allowed either for temporary subscribers.

[Poconos]

Reading your post several times I have to agree with Ted in that the multiport valve seems to have a problem. Doesn't explain the new one doing the same thing though. Ted is also questioning the source of the leak if I read it right. Valve or pump. That should be easy to determine. As for the pump not running up to speed, unlikely. These motors will run at a pretty constant RPM and if you load them to the point of slowing them down then they would overheat quickly. Another point, the pump has nothing to do with a leaking multiport.
Al

[kevev99]

Hi all. Thanks for the thoughts. To answer Ted's questions:

Yes the leak is still happening with the new valve. It started about 24 hours after install of new valve. When I took pump apart the impeller was able to be moved counter and clockwise albeit slowly and couldn't just be spun. The pump motor also sounds more like it is humming versus the usual sound.

I don't notice water leaking underneath the pump. Maybe from the connection from the pump to filter although it's not a flow leak more of a drip.

I can take photos and email if need be.

Kevin

[Poconos]

Hi again,
Take a look at this thread.
http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthread.php?t=9455

I still don't understand why a new valve would have that problem and really have no further advice at this point. Per that thread you can maybe diagnose the problem further. On the pump rotor not spinning freely......lot of friction somewhere. Only places are the impeller itself with something wrapped around the shaft or the bearings. I assume you broke things down far enough to rule out impeller issues. Bearings would tend to make a grinding noise when they're about to fail. You may want to take the motor apart further to isolate the problem(s). I should also mention that no part of the impeller should touch the pump housing. The clearance between moving parts is small but there should be no physical contact. I could imagine the pump chamber deforming a little due to overheating and causing the impeller to contact its housing but that's grasping at straws so to speak.
Al

[kevev99]

Thanks Al. I got down to the impeller but couldn't get it off. I didn't realize I had to remove the screws at the back of the motor and then put something in the shaft to keep it from moving to get it off. I'm going to give that a try and get the impeller off and take the whole motor apart to see if I notice anything. I'm going to clean it well because I'm guessing there is something in there impeding it from rotating properly.

I talked to a friend of mine who works on motors/generators/turbines and ran my thoughts by him on the impeller and it not rotating right would that cause the flow to be off. He asked about the normal psi and I said 15-20 but it's running about 8-10. It's half of what it should be. He said it could be that. Off to give it a try now and see if it works to fix the problem. Will report back in a bit.

Kevin

[kevev99]

So I just finished taking everything apart and putting it back together. Got the impeller off and there was a little gunk in the spring connected to it so I cleaned it out. Found the hose from the pool to the pump had a leak so I replaced that. I also took the Vari-Flo valve off and cleaned that area out. Put that back together when it was all dry.

It's filtering now but there is still a trickle coming out the backwash connection. I made sure to redo all connections with plumber's tape. Thoughts? Let me know if you still need me to post some photos.

Kevin

[kevev99]

Hi all. So I wanted to update as to the status of my pesky backwash overflow while filtering. It continued to get worse yesterday. The trickle turned into a full on flow. So in the words of Gordon Ramsay I "Shut it down!" At that point I was full on frustrated and not sure what to do.

I went back and re-read posts from you all to see if I could "see through the cloudy water" so to speak. I kept coming back to one thing: the spider gasket inside the Vari-Flo valve. My thought was this is the only plausible problem. I know that they are supposed to be sealed in place with some sort of adhesive. The reason why everyone says when you replace it to make sure you scrape the channel clean before putting in a new one with adhesive. Well don't you know the spider gasket inside the new Vari-Flo valve I installed wasn't sealed in place. I took the valve assembly off and the thing actually fell out. So I figured that was why there was a leak.

So last night my father-in-law called and offered his assistance to help diagnose the problem. I told him the above about the spider gasket and that at this stage I'm 99% sure it's the issue. He offered to come down and help, more for moral support than anything. We took it apart, took out the gasket, put in a silicone-based water approved sealant (approved for use inside aquariums) into the gasket channel, and reset the gasket. Guess I'll find out tomorrow if it worked.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions and help. Greatly appreciated. I hope this is my solution.

Kevin

[Alemeg]

New to the site. Don't know if I am asking this question in the right place but here goes. I'm a rookie at below ground pools but have been able to figure things out so far. My current problem is getting my pool crystal clear. Yesterday, I noticed after asking my wife to turn on the pump. That clouds burst from my two returns in the shallow end of the pool. Pretty sure I have a filter problem. I bought the pool with the house so I don't know how old the filter is. It could be theoriginal (aka over 20 yrs old). It is a Heyward Sand Filter. Pump is working fine. Just looking where to start trouble shooting....or do I just replace the old filter?

Any thoughts where to start?