Hey do you know who the best and cheapest people are to contact to get someone out to check out our pool pump and quote us a replacement if need be? It died a few days ago. I think the filter needs new sand as well which is gonna be costly isnt it.. :(
Need a Pool Guy to fix my pump. Who do I call?
Riczter on 03/07/2013 - 17:26
Comments
If there's something strange,
In your outdoor pool,
Who you gonna call?http://www.epools.com.au! (had to break the combo, thanks Linkstate)
I'm sad to say I 'sang' that in my head to the tune.
I hate your avatar picture. Has me wiping my screen every time.
If there's something strange,
In your outdoor pool,
Who you gonna call?The Hot Bikini Girl
Pools are a bit like computers in that if you don't want to do repairs and the upkeep yourself then you are best forming a ongoing relationship with the Local pool guy.
I have had good success with this company for pumps , filters and fittings etc http://www.epools.com.au, good luckWhat's with people trying to act funny? OP has asked a question. If you can't help, just don't bother replying with not so funny remarks.
ec can get away with it, he's been here a while :P
Trying in vain to get some +ve's
Slowly OzBargain is becoming like Reddit.
All aboard the karma train!!!
So how would I find my local pool guy. Do the big stores do Call outs? theres a PoolMart at my local shopping centre… They worth asking?
Every pool shop will come out and give you a quote. Haven't had to replace my sand yet so no idea how much it will cost. If you're using the sand system it doesn't sound like your set up is to old. If it's just the actual pump that you think needs replacing you're better off going to a pump place taking in your current pump and they might be able to recon it or just buy a new one all together and hook it up yourself they aren't expensive.
But it sounds like your problem is just the pump. Unhook it and take it in and you should be good to go. Don't even bother replacing the sand unless it seems like it still needs it after putting in the new pump. I'm not sure what your set up looks like, but it shouldn't be to hard to take the pump off, unscrew a few pipes and unplug it at least that's how mine is anyways. Good luck.
Also if you do end up getting a new pump try and get an energy efficient one… if they exist because as you would know they chew through the electricity!
Thanks for the info :)
why do you think the sand needs replacing.?
Agree with escimojoe, just replace the pump, these are cheap enough if you can do a little plumbing yourself, its often pressure pipe that may need changing, when you fit a new pump, due to different sizes and age of the pump connections.
Cos when the floor is dirty and i suck it up with the vacuum, half of the finer dirt goes back into the pool making it all cloudy, making me thing the filter isn't doing a good job and maybe the sand needs replacing, and it is pretty old as well.. But I'm no expert.
Watch out for the dodgies. As far as I know anyone can set themselves up as a pool guy and you are letting them into your home.
I've had one lot knick tools from my garage.
One guys plan was to subcontract the work to someone else and charge me $100 an hour for him to supervise.Ask everyone in Perth you know with a pool. If you we're in Bris I'd say Steve Lesbirel. Honest as the day is long.
Hey man, I have worked in the industry (swimming pool supplies, incl. pumps/filters/chlorinators/service/chems) for almost 10 years now. Did you need some advice or did you get things sorted?
Nah not sorted, I was gonna pop into Pool Mart on my way home from work and get them to send a guy around to have a look.
The pool pump has been making some funny noises lately, loud noises like instead of a low hummm its making much louder, almost like grinding noises, like its really struggling to get the water through. Now when you turn it on it it doesnt even start pumping, it just makes a buzzing sound like its tryign to start, but failing, so i turn it off.
I've backwashed the sand filter recently but I don't think this should have much of an effect.
As of now the pump just doesn't work.
And you can see my comment above about the filter not working so well, is this indicative of the sand needing to be replaced?
I appreciate your expert advice :D
Also the power box running the chlorinator stopped working over a year ago, (the timer activating the pump still works fine) we tried a new chlorinator, new wire, new fuse, couldnt get it going so it must be the box which the last guy we had quoted a really large sum to get looked at, so we disconnected the chlorinator and stopped using salt and started using chlorine. But this is over a year ago.
To fix all of it its gonna cost a fortune so we'll probably only do what we need to get it running again.
How old's the pump? I can assure that most of the time a pump STARTS making noise like that, it's the bearings. We charge about $220 to replace seals and bearings - anywhere around that ballpark is pretty standard. HOWEVER it depends on the make and model of your pump as to how long I'd expect it to last. Some brands (like Onga) had pumps for years (and still do) with metal endshields, that just corrode away. So, you open them up to change the bearings, and you break the end shield. Which is another couple of hundred.
Because your pump isn't moving, it sounds like it has seized up. Which means you left it too long to fix, and it's now probably more economical to get a new pump. Otherwise maybe your capacitor has gone at the same time? It's hard to say without actually seeing the pump (sorry man!).
Given what you've described, it's not the sand filter. At all. However the sand needs to be changed every 3-5 years to actually filter the water efficiently.
Ah, you're doing something a lot of people with broken chlorinators do: bit hard to fix (or had the wrong person look at it!) so I'll switch to another source of chlorine. In short, this is always bad idea. Why? I like to do the maths for people in-store some times, but for the average pool (50,000L) buying and installing a completely new chlorinator will pay for itself in 18 months (on average). And that calculation doesn't include you own labour time and clean up if you don't add any chlorine for a while. So it always worth either getting the chlorinator repaired or replaced. You WILL save money. The other thing is that you can't afford to be cheap with powdered chlorine in particular. Again, most people who aren't looking to spend much will go to supermarket/Bunnings chlorine. First of all, they're most likely getting calcium hypochlorite, which you DO NOT WANT TO ADD to particular pools (particularly concrete pools with a crushed-quartz render). Calcium is such a pain in the arse, and again will cost you heeeeeaps more to get under controi. The other factor is the fillers and crap, which love to leave a residue.
I'm sorry for the flood of information - I do like to have a good chat with customers and work out exactly what they need. I'm out to give people the best advice so that they WANT to keep coming back.
Worst case scenario: you're up for a new pump (essential) and a new chlorinator (optional).
What can you do in the mean time if you want to avoid that as long as you can? Well, disconnect the pump (unbolt from ground, undo barrel unions coming in on the horizontal and leaving on the top of the pump, unplug from power) and take to a local pool shop. ASK FOR A QUOTE ON REPAIR! That way you can at least determine if it is JUST the bearings + seals, or whether it's not worth repairing. TRUST ME - IT IS REALLY, REALLY EASY TO SAVE A LOOOOT OF MONEY ON A SERVICE CALL OUT BY DOING SOME EASY THINGS YOURSELF!! We make a lot of money from lazy (and old!) people hahaha who insist that we come out to disconnect a pump and take it back to the shop.In terms of the chlorinator…well, you can give me a make/model and I can tell you what I know about it if you like. Life expectancy from pumps on average is anywhere from 3-12 years. Chlorinators though - the cells will get 3-5, and the control units about 5-10, depending on brand.
RIGHT SO! That worst case scenario was new things, right? If that happens: get me the make/model of current pump, and the make/model of your current sand filter. That way I can determine exactly what size pump you're good to go with, and can recommend a few brands that I know are a better option.
Sorry again if this is all a bit all over the place, but I'd rather you read through and get the facts so they don't rip you off. I work in an independent shop, with a few guys who've been in the industry for 20+ years. The franchise stores (in general) are designed to make money however they can. We get a loooot of customers coming to us after being ripped off something shocking by a few franchise stores. Good luck! Any more questions, let me know
You sir, are a legend.
The pump is an onga silentflo 750W. doesnt say how many HP on the label, but half of the label is worn away.
The reason we didnt replace the chlorinator is because we were planning to move out in less than 12 months… but that might be changing now so we might look into getting the chlorinator control unit replaced if we are staying.. i know its cheaper long term and soooo much easier.
You've convinced me to stop being lazy and try to disconnect the pump myself so I will do that :) And im guessing the sand is somewhere between 3 & 20 years old haha. We only moved in 2 years ago, but the people in the house before us didnt use or maintain the pool. You should've seen it, it was like a jungle. Things were growing into AND out of it. I expected the loch ness monster to poke his head out haha.
When I get home I'll try and get some info on the sand filter and control unit.
Cheers for the info mate.
Any rough idea on the cost of a new pump. My mum works at bunnings so she can get a discount if they stock the right ones at a decent price…
The pump is an onga silentflo 750W. doesnt say how many HP on the label, but half of the label is worn away.
It's a 1.0HP pump. From memory, metal end shield. Salt water pool means that if that has been in there 3+ years, it will be corroded to shit. They are rarely worth repairing, because you're repairing something that just doesn't have the longevity. Disconnecting it and taking it to ANY pool shop in your area for a quote will IMO tell you this pump has had it. I'd love to be wrong here of course, so it doesn't hurt to take it for a quote and see what they think is wrong with it.
we might look into getting the chlorinator control unit replaced if we are staying.
This is a tricky thing. Get plenty of customers in this situation, where they're moving soon so don't want to spend any money on something they won't get to use haha. Which is fair enough! Work out how long you're going to be here first, then I can tell what it is worth doing. Repair will be much cheaper than replace, but you won't have long before you need to do something else with that unit. If it was something like an old Clearwater, you'd get a good run. If it was a Zodiac LM2 with the old-style cell, you probs won't.
We only moved in 2 years ago
Did you buy, or are you renting this place? Because if you are paying rent for a place that has a pool, and the equipment is not in working order, I am pretty sure you shouldn't be paying for the repair. That's pretty dodgy.
Any rough idea on the cost of a new pump. My mum works at bunnings so she can get a discount if they stock the right ones at a decent price…
Hnnnngh. Bunnings don't tend to stock anything decent haha. Good pumps at the moment…well, a Hurlcon/Astral CTX series, or a Davey Silensor, or a Zodiac Flo Pro I've had good experiences with recently. Most of their 1.0HP models should be fine, but what you're really matching up is the flow rate + pressure or the pump with the size of the sand filter, so that might need adjusting (unlikely though).
HOWEVER! If you were moving out in a year…well, yeah, a cheap+nasty pump from Bunnings might get you through the summer. The prices? Well, I can tell you now - PLUMBING A POOL PUMP IS VERY EASY with the right instruction of course :). I say that so I can talk about pump costs alone. A Davey SLS 150 1.0HP Silensor should set you back around the $400 mark. Same with the Hurlcon/Astral and the Zodiac. Although I did a quick search and found this http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Davey-Silensor-SLS-150-Pool-Pump-… for $90!! THAT would be cheaper than your Bunnings pump and a much better option. If I were you, I'd buy that now (it's what I have on my own pool haha) and work about plumbing it up with you have some time.
Yeah we are renting, but it is a property that is soon to be demolished, we are in an area that is being turned into industrial so we dont know how long we've got left and they aren't interested in maintaining the pool. They said they could fill it in or we could sort it out ourselves. All pretty dodgy.
The Chlorinator is a Monarch Chloromatic model PCL… and judging by the 7 digit service phone numbers on the side that dont start with a 9, I'm guessing it's pretty old.. if you have any recommendations let me know :)
The sand filter is an Austral, not sure on the model.
Pics: http://imgur.com/a/xmUjw#0
I'm guessing the budget decision would be to just get a cheap pump and continue using liquid chlorine until we move out… Dunno how I would go fitting it myself, I guess I will know more after I remove the old one. I'm sure theres guides on youtube. Theres a guide for everything on youtube haha
All pretty dodgy.
Hahaha yeah it sounds it.
Monarch Chloromatic model PCL
Look, the older model of Chloromatic was a decent unit (they were superseded by the ESC model and that had a few really pricey issues). However, the key word here is 'older'…
I'm guessing the budget decision would be to just get a cheap pump and continue using liquid chlorine until we move out
Yeah, if you're going to be there for this summer (and, more importantly, use it over summer), keep it in shape for now with a new pump and chlorine…if not, I'd hire a sump pump and drain the thing.
Right, so, if we work around the idea that you'll get rid of it after this summer and just want to save as much money as possible on it (with least amount of effort) your best option would be to find a second hand pump of the exact same model. Why? Means no need to play around with the pipe work. Next best option? Well, a shitty Bunnings pool pump that you can get cheap I guess, OR keep checking ebay for a pump that someone has replaced on their pool and are selling cheap. The important thing to remember for any pump you put on there is that you'll want to make sure it's 1.0HP (or less if you find something super cheap) that has a flow rate no more than 180 litres per minute. Any more than that and you'll burst the sand filter tank.
Any new pump will be have slightly different dimensions, which means a little bit of replumbing. See the barrel unions/nuts on the top and the front of the pump that screw the pipes to the pump? They are specific to the brand of the pump. So any pump you get that is a different model to the current one will need to come with new barrel unions (all new ones will, I only mention this if you get a second hand one off ebay).The plumbing is easy if you're practical minded. I'm sure there are guides out there on youtube, but yeah, do it yourself and save a lotttttt. I can pretty much tell you exactly what to do in text when you get around to it. No point running you through it now!
Cheers man, really appreciate the advice :)
Not a problem! All the best!
Hey I managed to remove the pump real easy. Amazing what you can do if you actually try haha. I think i know whats wrong with it. http://imgur.com/Q5OthkC The metal underneath the blue paint is corroded to shit.
Anyway I saw this on ebay for $299. Is it the same model? Do you know if it would fit in place without any modification to the pipe/plumbing? Might be the best/easiest option for me.. Let me know if you are familiar with the sizing.
Cheers man.
whats the name of the company mate?
Are you in Sydney Area?
I have a similar problem.Filter doesnt filter very well and chlorinator is broken I think.
Are you in Sydney Area?
Nope, sorry, I'm in Melbourne.
Filter doesnt filter very well
Need a little bit more detail than that haha. Do you mean the pool is constantly going cloudy? Because most of the time, that is a chlorine issue. For an appropriately sized sand filter, you want to have the pump running ~8 hours a day in summer and ~4 hours a day in winter to get the whole volume of water filtered a few times and enough chlorine produced. Sand NEEDS to be changed every 3-5 years - after that amount of time, the granules of sand polish off a bit and can't trap things as well, but also everything clumps together in the bottom of the tank. A monthly backwash+rinse is also essential to clean the sand (and remember, always a 3minute backwash and a 30sec rinse!)
and chlorinator is broken I think.
As I've said above, chlorinator not working = poor chlorine production = cloudy/green pool. Furthermore, because your pump is plugged into the chlorinator and using its timer, if the chlorinator is broken you might have the pump not coming on when you need it.
Easiest thing to do with the chlorinator is take the control unit and the chlorinator cell to your local pool shop and it tested + quote for repair. Most of the time, it will need a new cell, and they'll set you back anywhere from $200 to $1200+ depending on the make/model and where you order it from (and whether you get genuine or aftermarket).
So, I'd be taking the unit down to a pool shop and getting an opinion! Good luck!
Get the pump model number and find out how much it is new and replace it yourself or get a quote from him and let him rip you another hole.
Ghost Busters