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Is your pool pump not working? Is it making a humming sound or a loud squealing noise? Well, before you call in a professional, there are 5 things you can do to troubleshoot it on your own. And one method actually involves hitting it with a shoe. No joke.
Creators & Guests
What is Pool School?
A podcast for pool owners covering pool maintenance and water chemistry.
Everyone, and welcome to Pool School by Swim University, where we help you keep your pool clean and clear all year. My name is Matt, and I'm the founder of swimuniversity.com. And on this episode, we're talking about troubleshooting your pool pump. Let's dive in. Real quick, if you want more help taking care of your pool, be sure to grab our free pool care cheat sheet at swimu.com/cheat sheet.
Matt Giovanisci:Now is your pool pump not working? Is it making a humming sound or a loud squealing noise? Well, before you call a professional, there are 5 things that you can do to troubleshoot it on your own. And one method actually involves hitting it with a shoe. No joke.
Matt Giovanisci:That was a bad Austin Powers impression, by the way. Really? A shoe? That's it, guys. That's what you get.
Matt Giovanisci:So first, if your pump is making a humming sound, it means there's something wrong with the actual motor. So here's 3 things you can try. 1, you can reset your breaker. You just need to find your electrical breaker that controls your pump, turn it off, and then turn it back on again. You know that old trick.
Matt Giovanisci:You know, did you is it plugged in? Just unplug it. Plug it back in. It could just be that the breaker tripped and that's that's why you're having that problem. Number 2 is you wanna check for a jammed impeller.
Matt Giovanisci:The impeller is the only moving part in your pump. It's what propels the water from the pool into your filter at a high speed. And if it's jammed, the motor can actually seize up. So you wanna turn off your pump at the breaker, just make sure there's no power going to the pump, remove the pump basket, and you wanna manually spin your impeller. You can find the impeller if you just reach into the pump housing, right where you remove the lid, and feeling around for the impeller towards the back of the pump.
Matt Giovanisci:You can use a screwdriver or you can use like a bent wire hanger that can help. Spinning it manually or removing anything caught inside can be enough to just restart the pump once you turn everything back on. Number 3, yes, and this is the shoe one, you give your pump a good whack. Alright? So you use a rubber mallet, or what I like to use is just a rubber soled shoe, and you hit the pump motor as the pump is trying to turn on.
Matt Giovanisci:So you make sure there's power going to it, take a rubber soled shoe, and just kinda give the the motor itself a whack. Just make sure that whatever you're using is rubber. Alright? And that you're hitting the motor, which is the the big metal part in the back, right when it turns on. Alright?
Matt Giovanisci:Obviously, you don't wanna accidentally damage your pump this way, but you'd be surprised how a few solid hits can actually solve this issue. Now the downside to this method working is that it probably means you need to replace the motor sooner rather than later. Alright. Now what if your pump is making a high pitched squealing noise? Well, that's probably coming from your motor's bearings, and it means that they're corroded.
Matt Giovanisci:Your pump probably overheated at some point, causing the leak and then chlorinated water got into the motors electrical components. Unfortunately, this means that you'll either need to replace the part of their pump this part of your pump or replace the pump altogether, and by this part of the pump, I mean the motor. Finally, if your pump is running, but it's making a gurgling sound, it could mean that you're just not getting enough water to the pump. So you just wanna make sure that your pool's water level is at least halfway up the skimmer box and try priming the pump by adding water to your pump lid with a garden hose, sealing it, and then kicking it on and that you're you're supplying enough water to the pump so that it actually has something to pull when it does turn on. And I mean, p u l l, not p o o l.
Matt Giovanisci:That's it, guys. Alright. So remember, if you need more help with pool maintenance, grab our free pool care cheat sheet at swimu.com/cheat. And if you found this episode helpful, subscribe for more pool maintenance tips on your favorite podcasting app. And when you do, leave us a review because your support will help more pool owners just like you find this show.
Matt Giovanisci:That's it. Thanks again, and happy swimming.