Leaks and Water Loss

It is not uncommon to have water loss in a pool and/or spa for a variety of reasons. Often times, that water loss is due to simple evaporation and even varies according to humidity and air temperature. 2" per week is a very realistic amount that pool water can evaporate. Additional water loss can also occur if the pool has spa spillways, waterfalls, or other water features.

To determine if evaporation is the culprit to your pool's water loss, it is recommended that a bucket test be performed:


To do a bucket test, you should first turn off all auto fill systems and water features. Place a 5 gallon bucket on the 2nd step in the pool. Fill the bucket with pool water to the exact same level as the pool. Wait three to five days and compare the water level in the bucket to that in the pool. If the water levels are the same, then the water loss in your pool is due to evaporation. If the water level in the pool is below that in the bucket, a leak or leaks may exist.

Types of leaks
Determining you have a leak does not always mean there is a crack in the structure. Leaks can come from a variety of different places. The following are places you should examine:

Check Valves
90% of the time, a leaking spa is due to a broken seal in the check valve. A check valve is unit that stops the water from going from the spa back into the pool.

There are tale-tale signs of a cracked or old check valve. These are a few of the signs:
Spa water is dropping when the equipment is off
Spa water is only dropping down to the water level of the pool water
The pool water is rising as the spa level drops

Reasons for a bad check valve:
Dog hair
Dirt (does not have to be large dirt particles)
It's old and just needs to be replaced
Hinges are not completely shutting the valve

How to clean/replace a check valve:

Find the right one. There may be multiple check valves on your pool.

Unscrew each screw on the cap

Take the lid off and pull out the check valve seal


Run your finger or a clean/wet rag over the seal

Replace the seal and tighten all screws. Make sure you put it in the same way it came out.


If the check valve is clean with good rubber, and you are still experiencing problems, call a pool professional. They will usually be able to target the problem to the right place and help you to find the solution.

Skimmer Cracks

A cracked skimmer is usually caused because there is significant ground movement which dislodges the skimmer from the pool structure. You should be able to see this type of crack by looking into your skimmer. You should consult a professional to repair this type of crack.

Seepage through a light, jet, or other fixture in the pool.
Sometimes, water can penetrate though small separation points of the structure and the fittings of the pool. An easy way to test weather there is a separation is to use the red dye that is commonly used for pool chemical testing and squeeze it closely around each fitting. If the red dye gets sucked into the fitting or structure, then you a found an area where seepage is taking place. Consult a professional to repair this type of separation.

Structural Crack
Structural cracks can be caused by a variety of conditions. Often times you will find them in the corners of benches, on the waterline tile, or in the transition areas of wall to the floor of the pool. If there are visual cracks, you should consult a professional.

Plumbing Crack
Sometimes movement in the soil will cause pipe joints to come apart or even break. The only way to test for this to pressurize the entire plumbing system and see if it holds that pressure. Once it is determined that it does not hold pressure, special equipment is used to locate where the leak is so it can be repaired.

Tile falling off

Tile falls off because of the following reasons:

1. There is highly expansive soil and the decking outside the pool is pushing up against the pool structure, thus causing movement of the tile and knocking it off. To remedy this, you must create a larger expansion joint between the pool and the decking than there already is so the two structures do not touch each other.

2. There was not a firm bond on the tile when it was installed. Often, installing in cold climates will cause this. Also certain tile is required to sit for a period of time prior to filling the pool with water.

Rust Spots

Often times, tie wire or steel is left too close to the surface of the pool. As water penetrates into these surfaces, the exposed steel rusts and bleeds into your pool. The only remedy for this is to chip out the area, cut away the metalic piece, and patch the area. Doing this work is simple but typically takes a pool professional to do it.

Sheer Descent doesn't have a clean sheer

If your sheer descent waterfall does not have a flat sheet of water coming from it, there is ussually debris such as calcium, rocks, or dirt stuck in the face. Like with a shower head, use a tool to clean out the face of the waterfeature. Sometimes this takes turning on and off the water feature untill the debris is knocked out.

Fill line is not filling the pool

There are very simple reasons fill lines do not fill the pool. The following are those reasons:

1. Completely severed plumbing line.
2. Water from the house is not on.
3. Clogged pipe
4. The autofill mechanism is not working.

Unfortunately, none of these fixes are easy. And unless you are skilled with your hands and have appropriate plumbing equipment, it is recommended that you consult a professional.

Flaking stone

Flagstone is bound to flake overtime as it gets saturated with water and pool chemicals. As a preventative measure, you can reduce the amount of flaking to stone by sealing it with a deep penetration sealer. Make sure the stone has dried for at least a week prior to putting on the sealer.

Concrete is lifting

It is common in California that decking will lift due to expansive soil. Expansive soil acts like a sponge. When it gets wet, it expands. When it is dry, it contracts. Often times, decks that are near highly hydrated vegetation will lift. Consider planting dry climate vegetation in those areas that require less watering. While it is rare that your decks will go back down, it should prevent additional lifting.

Loss of pressure on spa jets

There is one reason why there is a loss of pressure or even suction on a jet fitting. It's that there is something slowing down the natural flow of pressure through the lines. These are the most commonly found things that slow down that flow and how to fix them:

A dirty filter - Clean your filter
A full hair and lint basket in the pump - Empty out the basket
Something is clogging the lines - Call a professional to blow out the lines
The jet eyeball fittings are turned inward - Turn it outwards
The pump is getting old or is not turning as much water - Get a new pump
The venturi portion of the jet is clogged with calcium - Take out fitting and clean it.
The blower is not working - Take it to get repaired
Pump not priming - See "pump not priming" issues
Valves are configured wrong - Speak to your serviceman about correct configuration

Spotty, roungh, discolored, plaster

There are tale-tale signs of why plaster is discolored, spotty, or rough. Typically it is not because the plaster mix is bad. The reasons are usually because there is something not balanced in the water and therefore, the water is trying to balance itself. If there is not enough mineral in the water, it will actually take the mineral needed out of your plaster causing pits, discoloration, and checking. If there is too much mineral in your water, it will deposit those minerals onto your plaster finish.

A good pool professional will know "all" the tests to take to see how balanced the water is.

If the pool has gotten to a point where the plaster looks ruined, sometimes a light acid wash or acid bath can be done to prevent replastering. Multiple acid washes will eat the plaster away. Plaster older than 15 years should be replastered as a bath or wash maybe unproductive.

Changing out a light fixture

This procedure should be done by a certified professional.



Turn off all electriciy going to your pool and landscape








Find the Junction Box and unscrew the top. Test the wires with a volt meter to make sure no current is going through them.



Take a picture off the wiring so you can refer to it when rewire it.



Pull apart all wires that pertain to the lights you are working on. (This picture shows that we were working on all three lights)



Tie a strong string to the end of the pool light wires and tape it very well so they don't separate when you are pulling the light cord through the conduit. (Remember to get string long that the light is from the equipment.)



When you pull the cord all the way out, untie the string, tie the new light wire onto the same string (Use Tape Again) and pull the cord back through the conduit to the J Box.



Screw in the light to the niche and rewire.
Turn the breakers back on.

Things to remember:
If you are doing this for multiple lights, change out the string with each light, as the string may get weak with each pull.
If you are changing out the spa light, it is easiest to drain the spa first.
Make sure the light you are replacing has the same amount of wires as the old light.

Changing out a light bulb

To change out a pool/spa light, you should advise a service professional.

1. Lights are ussually equiped with a breaker that trips within the light and also one at the equipment. However, it is best to turn off the main breaker at the equipment before taking the light out of the niche.


2. Unscrew the light from the niche using a screw driver. If the light is in a spa it is easier to drain the spa first. You may have to pry the light from the niche with a flat head.





3. Unwind the cord from around the light and place the light in a dry place so you can work on it.


4. Take off the lense so that the bulb is open.











5. Take out bulb. There is a spring loaded plate that sits against the bulb. Pry it back while you're taking the bulb out and putting the new bulb in. Then gently set the plate back onto the bulb.













6. Put the lense back on. Make sure there is a good seal around the lense.





7. Wrap the cord back around the light and put it back into the niche. This can sometimes be tricky. But it should fit in there just as it was before.

Automatic Vacuum Problems

Sometimes an automatic vacuum cleaner will stop moving. If this happens, follow these steps.

1. Check the suction of the vacuum by putting your hand over the vacuum hole (keep your hand 1"-2" away from the port). If there is no suction, there is either something clogged in the vacuum hose/suction line or the the vacuum valve is not turned to vacuum suction. Remedying a clogged line may require blowing the lines out by a certified pool technitian.

2. If you have a pebble surface pool, sometimes the pebbles get caught in the feet or in the inside of the vacuum. Try getting those pebbles out if possible. You may need to take it into a service technitian to be serviced.

3. If the vacuum lines aren't clogged, check the components of the vacuum to see if there are any loose wheels, pods, or fixtures. Most components are usually tight fitting. If there are loose parts, take it into be serviced.

Most vacuums have a one year warrantee from the time you received it.