Pool pressure - I'm new to this, explain it to me like I'm a little kid

Hey everyone,

Quick version: new pool owner, low filter pressure, weak skimmer. Help a newbie out with pool maintenance tips.

So I just bought my first house and pool last week. I’ve been doing a ton of research to learn about pool care, but I’m still a total beginner.

It’s a 25,000-gallon saltwater pool, so it’s pretty big. There’s a new chlorinator installed, but there’s only one skimmer in the deep end, even with all that space.

There’s also a spa connected to the same system, with overflow into the pool, but no heater at the moment.

I live in Tampa, FL, and there’s no screen over the pool, so leaves from the trees around us are constantly falling in.

The pool hadn’t been touched in about 6 weeks before I got here, but I’ve shocked it and balanced the chemicals with some help from Pinch A Penny’s free water tests.

I also got an automatic pool vacuum, which has been awesome for cleaning the floor. Plus, I replaced the old cartridge filter with a new one.

Now, two things:

What do you wish you knew when you first got a pool? Anything I might not be thinking of?

(The real issue) I’m getting low pressure in the pump system. I’ve read that normal pressure should be 10-25 psi, but I’m only getting between 1 and 3 psi, depending on which return valves are open.

When just using the skimmer, I can’t get past 1 psi (this was the same before and after I replaced the filter), even with a freshly cleaned skimmer basket.

When I open the floor drain in the deep end, I can hit 3 psi max.

In both cases, the water flow feels super weak – like, it can barely keep the skimmer filter in place.

Do you think the pump might be dying? From what I can tell, it seems fine – it sounds normal, no weird heat issues. Plus, there’s enough flow to keep the chlorinator happy (no low flow warnings), and after shocking the pool, it cleared up all the algae and debris, though I had to sweep the shallow end a few times manually.

Is the low pressure something I should be worried about? Or could it just be normal? Not sure what else to check.

Any thoughts or advice are much appreciated.

5 Likes

Have you looked inside the pump infeed basket? The pump will get starved and clogged.

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@DiveDeepDreamer Yes, the basket was already very obvious in the pump. but got through it and attacked the impeller. There are also no actual obstacles there.

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Disconnect the pump outlet pipe and check to see whether it looks fine; if it does, you’ll know it’s a suction issue; if not, repeat at the filter exit.

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Examine the return lines’ flow. You have good flow if you find it difficult to stop the water with your palm. Low pressure at the filter might be the result of a broken filter or a filter that is in bypass mode. Is the speed of your pump changeable or single-speed as well? The pump can be operating at its lowest setting, which results in insufficient pressure. There could possibly be an obstruction in the intake line, but nothing significant could have gotten there to create this unless you were using a filter in the skimmer without a basket. Furthermore, the amount of chlorine in the line will destroy any organic material that gets within.

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Handle you like a little kid huh?

Leave the equipment alone. What have you touched already? Oh no, my suction valves were flawless, and now they’re damaged :unamused: :angry:

1 Like

@CurrentCraze This is amusing. You got no chills :rofl: :rofl: :joy: