It started out as “just a small leak” in May. Easy enough – we’d just replace the shaft seal on the pump, and the problem would be solved, right? Not exactly. We ended up having to replace the entire pump and motor. This was no small feat – the two combined weigh more than 500 lbs, and are located on the lower level of the pump house!
Replacing the Shaft Seal
A pool is a really harsh environment for, well, everything. The prior pump was installed about 20 years old, and when Nick Carver went to install the new shaft seal (a fairly routine job that he’s done many times before), the pump was found to be in far worse condition than expected. The new seal wasn’t going to work with the extensive rusting and pitting present.
With no immediate fix available, he has no choice but to re-assemble the pump. The leak was now significantly worse. We started losing gallons of treated pool water to the drain at a very rapid rate.
This wasn’t Nick’s fault, of course. The pump had simply failed; its time had come. Unfortunately, pumps of this size are built-to-order, and have lead times in weeks or months, not days. We made multiple calls, but nobody had a pump that could be shipped to us in short order.
We did some digging, and finally found the parts we needed. A new pump and motor were ordered on June 12th – but they weren’t scheduled to arrive from the manufacturer in California until July 20th.
Dealing with the Leak
We had to keep the pump running – without it, the pool would have to close. After a few days, it was decided that placing a bin with an automatic utility pump to recapture water would help save a majority of the water. This would keep our water and chemical bills from spiraling.
It wasn’t super elegant – but it would hopefully work until a replacement could be installed.
The Last Days
The title is a a bit dramatic, perhaps, but following a prolonged shutdown after a power outage, the motor got really loud. We suspect the bearings started to fail prematurely due to water exposure (from another, unfortunate incident earlier).
Between the massive shaft seal leak and the howling noise that could be heard from halfway across the pool deck – we knew time was becoming a significant factor!
Arrival of the New Pump
As luck would have it, the new pump arrived much earlier than expected. We picked it up (all 545 pounds worth) and delivered it to the pump house on July 8th – nearly two weeks ahead of schedule.
A Griswold 850 series industrial pump with a brand new 15 HP motor attached. A drop-in replacement for our existing setup. As Cousin Eddie would say, “she’s a beaut, Clark!”
Special thanks to the staff members that were voluntold to help unload this beast from the back of a pickup truck and get it safely positioned in the pump house.
Installation Day
We managed to convince Nick to come back to help install the new pump. To “help” is an understatement – without his experience and skill there’s no way we could have done this job ourselves. It actually didn’t take ton of convincing, he was willing to do it. Nick was B&G at Fairway for eight years (give or take), and it just goes to show – you can never leave (we’re not sure if that’s funny or not).
On Friday, July 10th, the install began at around 7:30 am.
This was a grueling job. It only took four hours, but the labor was intense, especially in the oppressive heat and humidity. Everything went fairly smoothly, outside of a couple of small mishaps and slightly crushed finger (sorry, Nick).
We had the new pump up and running at about 11:30 am, with plenty of time to spare before the club opened at noon.
A Job Well Done
In the end, we estimate that the club probably saved $15,000 to $20,000 by doing the work ourselves. The new pump is whisper quiet (by comparison) and should last many years, requiring only routine maintenance. We have some new ideas that may help preserve and protect the pump and motor to prolong its life as well.
The old pump and motor are being sent to a local company to evaluate for refurbishment. It is possible that they could be restored as backup parts for a nominal fee – a good insurance policy for the future if it works out.
If you found this interesting, be sure to take a look at this article that details the energy saving improvements we made to this system in 2022. The “VFD” in that article is still very much in use today, providing us the most efficient operation possible.
