Trouble shooting Air bubbles in the pool

If your pool pump is having trouble priming or you're getting air bubbles coming through your returns then this video is for you. We will go step by step in trouble shooting all the problem areas where air can leak into the system on the above ground plumbing and show you some simple ways to stop the leaks. While there's no substitute for the true fix of correct plumbing methods and protection from the sun, these tricks will get you by until it's time to redo the plumbing.
Swimming Pool Science is a full service Pool, spa, and fountain repair and maintenance company located in Phoenix, Arizona 85018, 85016 . Locally we provide weekly pool maintenance both residential and commercial, pool repairs including Filter cleans, pump installs, filter installs, heater installs, automation system installs, variable speed pump installs and programming, acid washes, filter cleanings, sand changes, green pool turnarounds, and Pool 101 classes for homeowners. Nationally and internationally we provide phone consults, video chat consults, and pool 101 classes and Pool advice.
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[@johnnyb2779]

just finishing watching 38 of your vidoes in a row. thank you. so much value. great resource. love the way you explain things. relaxed well written and thought out. Lot of pools down there in SoCal.

[@ffntraining9383]

It was my pump intake drain plug. It was driving me crazy for weeks. YOU are the man.

[@jimbosander]

You had me at "another boring pool video"... Great delivery and presentation! I'd swear you were working on my pump.

[@mnkrantz]

Right on brother...with your quick trick of looking for water after turning off the pump was the key. Had a plug on the pump that need to be tightened.

[@davidparizek6741]

This was not another boring video,it was very informative thanks 🙏

[@BourneAccident]

SPAZ - Thanks so much for making this video. It wasn't boring to me. You helped me in three ways. Understanding the positive pressure side vs negative suction side, switching pump on and off trick to find suction leaks, and your mention of CPVC. So, I found my leaks and fixed them and we're all good. Thanks again.

[@blakemoreln]

After days looking for the air leak (lots of bubbles in the return), your on-off, on-off method revealed a drip at the union going into the pump. Not more than a drop or two, that's all it took to create the bubbles. Patched it, working great for now. Thanks..

[@dament18]

Very good explanations about ways to eliminate air bubbles in the pool pump!

[@leaktech1]

Hi Josh, Another way to locate suction leaks is with the garden hose. Run water from the hose over all the areas you describe in the vid while watching the pump lid. If you have a see through lid the bubbles will stop when water replaces air at any leak area. Move the hose/water on and off the suspect area to confirm a leak.

[@SwimmingPoolAZ-SPS]

Great suggestion Hap!

[@richardshoemaker1096]

+leaktech1 yes i do this too and it works well

[@machia0705]

leaktech1 Yes , this technique works well .

[@michaelhoyt7217]

This worked for me too. Thanks!

[@FarmsVilla]

Thanks for this. I’m tearing my hair out, I don’t have any, with my pool pump atm. Pressure drops and it sounds like marbles rattling around 8n the filter. I’m leaning towards the suction lines being blocked and causing cavitation. 🤷🏻‍♂️😳

[@stakesd]

This helped solve my air leak issue! Thank you very much!

[@CTINF]

Instead of a towel and garden hose you can use a hydro flush attachment.

[@txsraappraiser]

Great help. Thanks. The basket strainer was not tight and it was blowing bubbles.

[@wanesweb]

That was one of the best videos I watch thank you very much good job

[@fredabutner5325]

Thanks. Going to try these suggestions right now!

[@daultonruff2281]

Thank you... How ignorant am I? I thought the flow was in the opposite direction! I have a vacuum leak when I switch to my skimmer. Bubbles in the pool and in the pump, and a loss of vacuum so the equipment doesn't move. My pool company only sweeps and cleans the baskets with no feed back to me about problems. Now, last few days I see a small leak between the pump and motor. Next week project. I sprayed my pipes to seal a possible leak in the vacuum side with a rubber product. Did you use a PVC glue? I have used a silicone sealant in the past. Now I'll try to replace those "O" rings in the valves. Informative and helpful so thank you. I appreciate the diagrammed photo. I have a Wisperflow pump about 5 yrs old. Pool is about 30.

[@korywatson9584]

outsider of that man great video

[@jamesmiz9511]

Glad I found this video! A few months ago, I had an air leak and my pump would not prime. I notice the pipe going into the pump was loose, and I replaced the Jandy valve o-rings. However, I did not do each one individually, so I am not sure which one fixed the air leak. A few days ago, I noticed I had an air leak again; not as bad as before, but after my pump would shut off, a half hour later, the water in the pump would drop halfway. I knew it was not my lid, as my water feature pump worked fine, and I switched lids and each lid worked fine on the second pump. I checked the tightness of the front intake pipe, and it was still relatively tight (I heard not to over tighten this). I cold not figure it out, until I saw you use the glue over joints. I noticed the joint had some 'craters' at one joint which were really small. It looked like the original glue may have cracked. I olny had Christy's Red Hot Blue PVC glue on hand, and I spread it over the suspected area. I turned off the pump after it cured and it sealed the small leak! Thank you very much!! Without this video, I would still be wondering what was wrong, and probably would have continued suspecting the Jandy valve I thought I repaired earlier....

[@robertpage1153]

I tried everything on this great video. No joy! Then hallelujah! Started pump for the umpteenth time and noticed a little spit on one of the tightening knobs on the pump filter pot. Took it apart and held it up to the sun(Lid is opaque smoked plastic). Saw a hairline inch long crack developing out from the knob. Picked up some flowable silicone used for windshield repair. Covered the crack, started pump for two second to pull silicone int the crack. let set for an hour. No more bubbles. Good Luck! c

[@davismontana9307]

I tried everything I could think of to find the air leak. Watched all the videos to no avail. I found the leak in the 2" Jandy valves on the suction line. The o-ring seal on both was cracked. I replaced the o-ring with one made of Viton ( chemical resistant) and used silicone grease in the reassembly. No more air leaks.

[@arminheinzmann9438]

Thanks for the great video. Maybe you can advise me to help my bubble-problem .... Since I had algaes my pool the return jets are blowing lots of bubbles. There's also lots of air in the pump visible. While cleaning out the algaes I noticed that when the pressure in the filter went up, it showed more bubbles and after cleaning the filter (and showing lower pressure) always reduces bubbles extremely. Yesterday I cleaned the filter and then I had no bubbles at all for 24 hours. Now I cleaned the filter again and the bubbles came back. Can the filter somehow cause bubbles? Actually I was sure that bubbles can only come from the suction side and not from the return-side (where the filter is ...). I've checked everything that is suspicious to cause bubbles already (water level, pump-lid, drainage valves, union and the whole pipe all the way till it goes into ground ....) and I've also re-lubricated all the o-rings. I've also tested against leaks along the pipes with smoke-sticks and plastic-foil wrapping around - but no hint. Could an underground leak actually suck so much air when covered by so much dirt and sand? Also because of our pool isn't losing any water and the bubbles on/off thing I don't think it's somewhere underground, but what else could cause these bubbles? It's driving me crazy ... Thanks for any help!

[@SwimmingPoolAZ-SPS]

Hey John and Derek, glad you guys found the videos useful, I must be doing something right! Let me know if you have and suggestions for topics for future videos.

[@anitarushlow4022]

When the lid was off the pump basket I heard a loud gurgling noise. Is that normal or is it a sign of a problem? Thanks

[@anitarushlow4022]

Here's a boring...lol....silly question. Is an air leak the same thing as a water leak? Thanks

[@jessechavez69]

nice socks!! 🤣

[@aliveandwell2078]

Nice video!

[@croc4872]

What's that silicone called?

[@keithdantonio680]

i seem to have a little bit of bubbles coming out the jets, not much at all, should I worry about it? it seems so minimal of an issue?

[@SwimmingPoolAZ-SPS]

Keep an eye on it. If the bubbles are passing through the filter and they are minimal, I wouldn’t lose too much sleep over it. If you see the bubbles increasing, it may be time to start looking for leaks on the suction side. It could be something as easy as replacing the O ring on your pump lid or 3 way valve.

[@keithdantonio680]

Thx man ur channel is great!!

[@fapintosh192]

4:14 that's what she said

[@XrpAndy]

😂😂

[@XrpAndy]

When my girlfriend touches me 5:08

[@TheNine6]

non matching socks....check

[@victor7261]

hello, you mentioned that grease should never be put on the ring and contact surfaces. why is that?

[@SwimmingPoolAZ-SPS]

The grease will help lubricate the surfaces a little BUT, where the problem lies is that the sticky grease will pick up debris at you remove and put the strainer basket back (little rocks, sticks, etc..) and as you screw the lid back on those little bits of debris sticking to the O ring and contact surfaces will compromise the seal and damage the soft rubber O ring and cause the strainer lid to pull air. the only places O rings should be greased is when they are used to seal moving parts such as a push pull backwash valve. If the O ring can't give a tight seal on it's own with clean contact surfaces then it should be replaced. Hope that explains it!

[@victor7261]

That was very helpful, thanks for the video it helped a lot.

[@AV84USA]

According to Hayward, the o-ring should be lubricated. “Clean and lubricate strainer cover O-ring with "Jack's327" each time it is removed.”

[@korywatson9584]

silicon? really!!!

[@SwimmingPoolAZ-SPS]

+Kory Watson It's not truly a permanent fix (like replumbing) but it's really effective and long lasting.

[@johnnymcleanvlogs]

This might help have to call pool cleaner guys Cos it won’t have suck on

[@CalifonPappy]

Try a cigarette, cost less.

[@cdm1972]

4:14 that's what she said