Air bubbles in return lines, found & fixed problem

[matt4x4]

anna - if yours is just loose, tighten it, if it still drips, lube the o ring and/or put teflon tape on the threads of the plug - bcb1 only replaced it because it was broken.

[NWMNMom]

Fittings from one end to another should be checked. We had a hairline crack in male end of the the solar panel diverter valve that caused all our air bubbles. It was not noticable except under close inspection. Just a little movement of the valve while inspecting caused it to almost fall apart - we caught it before that happened by itself, either by water pressure or someone bumping it, etc. What a disaster that would have been.

As soon as bubbles appear somewhere they don't belong, start checking everything before the minor crack becomes a failure, then a flood.

[AnnaK]

anna - if yours is just loose, tighten it, if it still drips, lube the o ring and/or put teflon tape on the threads of the plug - bcb1 only replaced it because it was broken.

Well, lo! I found the leaks. It isn't the plug on the pot and it isn't a crack in the pot like we first thought. There are two leaks on the fittings of the PVC pipes, the one going into the pump and the one going out. The way the water runs from one of the leaks, it collected on the lip of the pot which is what made us think the pot itself was the problem.

The real problem is that we're both as old as dirt and getting way down there to look at the fitting was more than our knees could take, so we didn't actually get all that close and personal to the plumbing. But they bothered me. It's like Mom said, when bubbles appear, something is wrong, and so I did crawl around there this morning. The dogs thought that was all pretty weird

My husband can go wrap the Teflon and tighten the connections. More than likely he'll make a weekend project out of it with a long trip to the hardware store for yet more tools and jigs and pieces. Oh well. Fun is where we find it.