How to Find a Pool Leak Like a PRO! (pt. 3) | Suction Leaks
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- čas přidán 26. 07. 2024
- Watch our series on "How to Find a Leak Like a Pro" here: • How To Find a Pool Lea...
In this video, Mark goes over the different kinds of suction leaks that can occur in your pool as well as some solutions. If you're not sure what type of leak you have (structural, pressure, or suction) make sure you check out part 1!
Video diagram link: postimg.cc/pyjTTqDp
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Video Timestamps
00:00 - Intro
00:48 - What are suction leaks?
01:37 - Checking the pump
06:40 - Plugging the lines
10:58 - After finding your leak
Air Bubbles in your Pump? Watch our video here: • Air Bubbles in your Po...
Video Links:
1.5" threaded plug w/ oring: hallmarkpoolsupplies.com/p-85...
Expandable Plug: hallmarkpoolsupplies.com/p-62...
Music: zachs_tape
I've done a lot of research on learning how to care for my pool. I really like the way mark explains everything! I feel like I'm his personal student and I even take notes. Thank you to whoever decided that he do these videos and it helps me out. I have let go, three different pool guys, based on them telling me something false, or that I needed something that didn't need to be done. So, I decided to learn my system and eventually hire someone after I learned all that I needed to know. I then went back to watch all his other videos and I just want to say thank you X's 1000.
I thought I knew enough and coming across listening to the Mark explains it all, one makes me wish he was local, so I can pick his brain personally, but two he articulates everything so well, and know I feel like I understand my system better. Just like that! Thank you, Hallmark and Mark! I subscribed and I now, I won't need to look anywhere else for assistance.
This is by far the best vide I have seen on showing exactly what is happening with the suction lines and hydrostatic valves. I thank you for your time and great delivery. it all makes sense.
I love the clarity of your videos. I learn so much.
Important point IMO that should be brought up is that with modern pool pumps people are putting on pools now are WAY more powerful and variable speed. Yet many older pools have smaller 1.5" PVC lines and restrictive flow paths. So if you go closing a main drain and are only feeding the pump with a single 1.5" pipe from a skimmer, you can starve your pump and end up with air because the pump is pumping at such a high GPM and that 1.5" line cant match the GPM. To make it worse most VS pumps start woth a prime stage where it runs by default at its highest RPM so its max GPM.
Definitely helps tremendously. Thank your for your time doing all this videos. I replastered my pool I February this year and had a succion leak underground due to a bad job from people that move the equipment to o other place and the pump was sucking air when it was in spa mode. Did all the test when the pump was off and I was loosing almost 2” every 24 hours. I started digging and found the leak. I still loose water but not as much as I was before but all this information is very much appreciated.
That's great information and your video is very well done, you're a natural educator. On to find my suction side leak.
Don’t overlook the possibility that the pump simply has more horsepower than the return lines (suction side lines) can match. Remember the pump can push water out at very high pressure and speed but return flow is generated by ambient air pressure which is only 14 psi. This could result in cavitation in the pump chamber so that those bubbles are water vapour created by the resultant vacuum in the chamber, not air bubbles from a leak. If you have a VS pump try gradually dialling down the RPM until inbound flow can keep up with outbound push. (By all means also check for leaks, clogged lines and closed valves.)
Starving the pump. Thanks for watching.
You are amazing! Well spoken and very informative. I love your channel, thank you so much for doing these videos!
Best easy to understand explanation
Great video! Thank you sir.
Very easy explanation
You are a GEM!!
Thank you sir!
EXCELLENT THANK YOU!
Excellent
Thanks from Montréal
Learned a lot thank you! Didnt even know what each pipe was for. We have 3 (I'm assuming 2 drain and 1 skimmer) if I can see the water pooling up as the pump runs around one of the pipes, skimmer?
Not sure, send a picture or contact me. I will be glad to help.
Hi Mark,
Thank you so much for this informative video. I'm actually in the process of elimination, trying to pinpoint where I may have a leak. When the skimmer is turned on (only), the water level inside the pump drops creating air. I also get considerable bubbles in one of the suction lines. Other suction lines only turn on when the main drain line is on, but there are no bubbles. I will have a professional leak detection company come over on Thursday and hopefully they can figure out if I have a leak or an obstruction in the skimmer line. Fingers crossed!
If you are ever looking for new ideas to make videos, please make a video about what would be the ideal pool equipment setup (I will be need to update my equipment soon since it is old) that would be easiest to maneuver (for a single lady), I currently have 2 pumps one for the pool and the other one for the infinity overflow, both pump lids are so hard to open, it's ridiculous!
Also, I haven't had lock finding a leaf catcher for my barracuda that will be easy to open and clean; and not break easily.
Thanks again for the videos, your knowledge is a blessing to all of us who are trying to learn about pools.
I have several questions myself, if you would like to contact me I will be glad to help.
Thank you for your informative videos. You are the best Ive watched! I have an inground pool/jacuzzi. When all the equipment is turned off, the jacuzzi drains until the first jet. note- its draining out the main drain to the street (trickle). Once past the first jet, leak stops. Once the pool is running, the water then gushes (solid flow) out to the main drain to the street. Could this be a suction leak from the main drain?
It sounds like you have a spill over spa attached to the pool. If so when the system is off the water will self level. I don’t believe that you have a suction leak, it sounds more like a pressure leak. I have several questions myself, if you would like to contact me through my patreon page we can have a phone session and I will be glad to help and work with you one on one. Thanks for watching.
Hi Mark, Your videos are so informative, clear and easy to follow so thank you. When I put my pump on recirculate it removes all air bubbles form the strainer basket. If I then change to filter it gradually allows air bubbles back in. Not a great deal but obviously an issue. I appear to be loosing a very small amount of water overnight but only about 3 mm. Do you think this is a suction leak or a leak within the filter/pump? I am in Sydney Australia and love your You Tube videos !!
You may want to backwash and rinse your filter thoroughly and see if this removes the air bubbles. If not check out my video (air bubbles in your pump). This video deals with air leaks. As far as your leak, check out part 1 of this video series, mark your water level and monitor your loss with the system on for 24 hrs. Then monitor your water loss over 24 hrs with the system off. Doing this will help you determine the type of leak you have and where to look for the leak. However, a 3mm loss of water overnight in Sydney Australia this time of year, is more than likely evaporation. Thanks for watching.
Thanks Mark! This is very helpful. I am trying to find an answer online but not able to - there is lot of grit i find in the strainer basket( the moment pump starts) and one of the return line ( we have 2 return lines) is not giving enough water into the pool. Also there are lot of bubbles in both the return line. I suspect there is leak in skimmer line ( coz it is bringing in grit with water?) . We have no suction line. Appreciate your response.
I have several questions myself, if you would like to contact me I will be glad to help. I am available Tuesday-Saturday 10 to 5 EST.
I have a jandy valve on the suction side which splits the skimmer and main drains to the pump. When both skimmer and main drains are open at the same time there is no air and pump runs good. When eitherthe skimmer or main drains are on separately, air gets in the pump lid basket and pump becomes noisy.
I have a video that deals with this issue, hopefully this will help. Here is the link, thanks for watching.
czcams.com/video/SiEOIxYpJ5g/video.htmlsi=BJeOPucNuc2fGNy9
Hi Mark, I've plugged the drain line with the expandable plug. Just wondering if I am able to use the vacuum without the drain line? If I turn the drain valve back on with the drain plugged, will the suction for the vacuum still work? Or does the drain valve need to stay off now that the plug is in? Thanks for your help!
Just leave the drain line closed, now you can vacuum from your skimmer. Thanks for watching.
Hello Mark, thank you for all of you videos. The amount of water that I loss in my pool fluctuates from day to day. It could be one inch in 24 hours, then 6 inches in 24 hours without the pool running. Any suggestions?
That sounds like it is leaking out the backwash line when it's running on filter. Feel free to call me and I can discuss this further with you. I'm available Tuesday-Saturday from 10 to 5 EST.
@@HallmarkPoolSupplies thank you so much for the response. This is actually happening when it’s not running. I will definitely reach out to you in the upcoming week.
@@HallmarkPoolSupplies Thanks so much for a great explanation. I'm starting to suspect that I have a similar issue. Since it was time for a paint job, when the pool was empty I plugged up the drain line. After painting the pool still leaked, but not as much. Next I plugged up one of the suspected skimmer lines. To my amazement, the next day that same skimmer well was bone dry. Where did the water go? The 2nd skimmer well (that was not plugged) also lost water but not nearly as much. How is water from the plugged skimmer getting out? I don't see any issues with the well housing.
@@dannyparkins If the threaded inlet at the bottom of the skimmer that you plugged is cracked you could lose water. I would remove plug and inspect the threaded inlet. If you would like to contact me and discuss your situation in more detail check out my patreon page and I will be glad to help.
Hi Mark, I always have an air bubble at the top of my pump lid about 1"x2.5". Does this mean I have an air leak? Also, I have a Jandy DE filter and I have replaced the manifold, all of the grids and the upspout O-ring but I appear to be getting either DE or sand/dirt back into the pool still. We replastered the pool last September. What can it possibly be? Thanks in advance! Ron
It sounds like you need to backwash and rinse the system thoroughly, I would also clean the grids and check for any damage before adding any DE. Thanks for watching.
@HallmarkPoolSupplies Thanks for the reply but I've done that already, several times, and put new grids 2 weeks ago.
@@rleader1 If you have done all of this, then you may want to vacuum your pool to waste. When vacuuming to waste you will be bypassing the filter. If you have a lot of fine sediment in your pool from the plastering, this is one way to remove from the pool. For normal cleaning you would vacuum in the filter position. If you vacuum to waste then you will have to add water to the pool.
@HallmarkPoolSupplies thanks again. Yes, been doing that since opening (4×). Could it really still be plaster residue?
I don’t believe that its plaster residue if you have already vacuumed the pool to waste 4 times, especially over this period of time. Another possibility is if you put to much DE in the filter. I would also check the manifold and the grids for damage, even if it is new, if not I would have a local pool technician check your system. Without seeing this in person it is hard to say.
Mark we are having an issue where when we try to vacuum our pool the pressure gauge goes to zero and there’s no suction to clean. We have bubbles in the pool and air in the black box that you screw in each side and has a square basket in it. We do not have a bottom drain and only one skimmer. Our pool is fiberglass. Any suggestions?
Sounds like a suction leak, check out my video air bubbles in your pump czcams.com/video/SiEOIxYpJ5g/video.html
If you watch this and have any questions, feel free to contact me I will be glad to help.
When my pump is running, I can clearly see water seeping out of my lawn near my skimmer. The leakage stop whenever the pump stops. The pool will hold water for days as long as the pump is not running. What would be your guess? Thanks!
This sounds like a pressure leak, it is more than likely a break in your return line.
Mark, thank you so much for organized, systemeatic, and thorough explainations about all poosible pool leaks. However, I have a few questions which I hope you can help.
1: I have only one suction line to the pump, instead two in your example, with two skimmers . My skimers have two outlets but one of them has no suction or plugged. My understanding is that one outlet goes to the suction line and the other joins with the drain line at the bottom of the pool. Since only one of them has suction, what is possible configuration: joining with the bottom drain pipe or join in the middel of the suction line and then combined into one?
2: In my case, the drain line is critical for the suction and I should not plug the drain inlet. Is this correct?
3. I'm trying to locate a small leak from the return line to the pool based on the wet ground area when the pump is running. Can I use a sewer inspection camera coming in from a return to the pool to inspect the possible leak backward to the pump?
4. Do you recommend a quick fix such as Fix-A-Leak to seal the small crack or should I cut the concrete to fix the crack permanently?
There are a lot of different possibilities in the suction lines in your skimmers. The skimmers could be tied together, or tied to the drain or even tied to a vacuum line. You can plug off the outlets one at a time to help determine which outlet goes where, this is important especially if you have to vacuum the pool. If you suspect or find a plumbing leak, l would not use Fix-A-Leak. I would cut out the bad section of plumbing and replace. Thanks for watching.
@@HallmarkPoolSupplies Thank you for your instant reply! My leak is between the pump returning to the pool. Water is seeping through the soil about 10 ft away from the return jet under two possible areas: a 3' concrete walkway and the pool deck. In order to determine which area I should cut first, I use the clay soil to separate into a few different areas around the walkway and found the middle section accumulated more quickly for the water than the upper and lower sections. This indicates that I might need to cut the walkway first.
Before cutting the walkway, I am still trying to find more supporting evidences. I ordered two inexpensive toys: $40 underground pipe leak by from the variation of sound pitches and a $100 tripple lighted lenses sewerer inspection camera, from Amazon which will arrive today and tommorrow. In addition, a $110 VEVOR Electric Concrete 9" Saw will arrive this coming Saturday. I am expecting the camera will show me the location of leak by entering from the pool return jet.
You may get lucky with the camera, sometimes it is hard to find a break in the line with a camera, especially if it is a hairline crack. If you can expose the plumbing and dig towards the wet area you will hopefully find the leak. Good luck and let me know what you find.
@@HallmarkPoolSupplies No luck by using the two methods: (1) The cheap underground sound detection could not detect any changes of pitches without compressing water with air bubles to maginify the leak through pipes; (2) The tripple lighted lenses sewerer inspection camera could not show clear videos because insufficient light source insde the pipe. I start to cut the walkway first to see if I can find the leak. Thank you so much for your helps!
I’ve been watching your videos for about a year now. I’ve tried every option (I believe) and still at a loss. I’ve been losing water like crazy. I’ve tried all of the closing off skimmers, returns, the drain with the things you twist in and mark the water line etc. no matter what I do I’m losing inches of water a day and it’s getting very expensive. I have an in ground pool with a line and have patched a couple of small holes years ago that never seemed to be a problem. Today I went around again with the pool leak detected dye and the returns and everything seems fine. I’ve turned off the pump now and the heater and the water is about two feet below the skimmers. Ugh. I’m at a loss. Any ideas????
There are 4 parts to this video, if you watch part 1 first then you can watch the other videos in order this should help. There are a lot of questions that I have and I need more information in order to help. Finding a leak is a process of elimination. If you would like to checkout my Patreon page l can work with you one on one and go into more detail on this issue. Thanks for watching.
Suction side leak. I have air bubbles although small like champagne bubbles coming out of the return in the pool, the sight glass on the pump shows a lot of turbulence and air. I've tried foaming soap around all the fittings, and put a new lid seal/o-ring on the pump, isolated the skimmer and main drain lines and there's no difference. The area around the suction lines coming out of the ground is always damp. I'm fearing I may have a leak under ground.
Good luck. Thanks for watching.
I found the leak. Using butyle tape I sealed around the joints. The connection fitting to the pump was the culprit. The sight window is clear and no bubbles in the pool.
What if you plug skimmer and don't have a drain but still losing water?
It sounds like you might have a structural leak or a pressure leak. There are 4 parts to this video series, start with part 1 and then watch the rest. Hopefully this will help. Thanks for watching.
Is there no way to patch a broken drain line from the bottom of the pool without having to dig up the pool?
If the drain line is broke under the pool, it will be much harder to repair so you can simply plug the drain. If the break is not under the pool and you can access it much easier then I would repair. If you have any questions feel free to contact me I will be glad to help.
Where to get thease plugs
I do carry these plugs on my website, the links for these plugs are in the description down below in the video. Thanks for watching.
Why do you say you cannot run a pool without a skimmer? I have seen it done.
Without a skimmer you can not skim the debris on top of the pool. You can operate a pool without a drain but you need a skimmer in order to operate a pool properly, you also need a skimmer to vacuum the pool. Yes you can operate a pool without a skimmer and use a suction line or vacuum line but it is not sufficient. Thanks for watching.