Pump Motor Smoking and Causing Breaker to Pop

[leifolson]

Hey everyone, first-time listener, first-time poster.

I just bought a house with a pool in East Mesa, AZ. Other than a broken water-fill valve that flooded the backyard, but was, otherwise, simple to replace, I've had little to no problems with the pool.....until the last couple of days.

Yesterday, I had an algae bloom, but it looks like that is under control. Then I was back washing the pool and when I went to close the valve by turning it and pulling it up into the closed position, it pulled right out in my hand and started spraying water everywhere. That too, was surprisingly simple to replace.

However, today, while the back was valve was closed, my wife went to turn the filter on so she could vacuum the pool out and the filter immediately began to back wash. No remember, it was in the closed position. She finally pushed the back was valve down into the open position but it wouldn't let her lock it. She then shut the filter off and was able to turn the valve into the locked position. She intended to leave it until I got home.

Then, unfortunately, the timer somehow got changed and turned the filter back on while my wife was in the house. She heard the filter turn on and heard it start to shoot out water from the back wash hose. She heard a loud pop as the hose exploded. Maybe it was twisted or something? Anyway, that is still not the crappy part, although buying a new back wash hose is not exactly something I was looking forward to this summer. The breaker popped and the filter shut down.

Needless to say, she decided not to touch anything else until I got home. When I looked at it, I flipped the breaker back on and the pump motor started up and the filter immediately began back washing. I ran into the backyard and unlocked and pulled the valve up into the closed position. It stopped back washing. Everything seemed to be working just fine, but then I noticed a horrid smell and saw that the pump motor had begun to smoke. Everything seemed to be working fine: the waterfall was waterfalling; the skimmer was skimming, etc...; but, the motor was still smoking. After a few moments, the breaker popped again and the motor shut off. I have since left it as is.

The pool store guy who has been exceptionally helpful with all of my pool needs up to this point thinks that possibly the bearings are going on the motor, or the thermal switch was going bad. Any thoughts? Obviously, without looking at the machinery it is difficult to tell what might be happening, but has anyone encountered something similar?

Below are some specs for the pool and equipment:

(1) roughly 20,000 gallons by my rudimentary calculations (it is lagoon-style, which makes measuring a bit awkward);
(2) Hayward Pro Series Plus Sand Filter (looks older--house is 12 years, but pool and equipment looks a bit newer than that;
(3) Hayward Pump (brand is not immediately apparent, although there is a tag on the side with a code: SP3015EECP, which seems to indicate a Hayward Super II SP-3000 Series from some preliminary Internetting);
(4) A.O Smith Motor, it is called The Californian Pump Series, Self Priming: Model# K48M2N123; SER 7100; 1.5 HP; 230 Volts; 3450 RPMS; 9.7 Max Load AMPS; 1.33 SF

I would post some pictures as well, but I don't seem to have permission to do so at this point.

Worst case scenario, I suppose, is that I have to replace the Pump. If that is the case, what would be my best "cost-effective" options? Next scenario is that I need to replace just the motor. Same Question? Best Scenario is that nothing is wrong and in a few days everything will go back to normal.

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

--Leif Olson

[aylad]

Wow--how scary!

I think Pooldoc or one of the other equipment gurus should take this one, but I just wanted to ask--when you moved the handle to close the pump off from the backwash position, did you turn the pump off first? If you have a multiport, you need to always turn the pump off before moving the handle to a different position. It's possible that when you moved it, the spider gasket under the handle scrunched up, and when they do that, they often direct the water in different ways than it's supposed to go. Once you get the pump/motor situation dealt with, I would check (and replace, if necessary) that gasket.

You can post pictures via photobucket, picasa, etc....or email them to poolforum@gmail.com along with a reference to this thread so Ben knows where to put them (it would probably be faster to post them up yourself, though--we're pretty swamped with new posts right now).

Welcome to the forum!!

[leifolson]

Yes. We had turned off the pump first.

[PoolDoc]

pictures

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[PoolDoc]

That's an OLD pump. It's still in production, so the simplest replacement would be a new version of the old pump. Here's the Hayward Super II page. They are available at A1PoolParts for what seems like a good price. (1 speed Super II; 2 speed Super II)

In Arizona, you've got a year-round pool season, so a newer pump with a 2 speed motor could save you a fair amount. And, given your piping and what looks like a 24" sand filter, you could probably get excellent performance with a 1 HP or even 3/4 HP WhisperFlo 2 speed (A1PoolParts again: Whisperflo 2 speed). I'll ask Mas985 to take a look, and maybe offer you some idea of the savings electrically.

If you go with a 2 speed, you'll need either a timer OR a toggle switch like these:

Intermatic T10604R Pool/Spa Control Center T106M and T104M @ Amazon
Southwire 55189301 3/4-Inch 6-Feet ULTRA Whip-Pre-Assembled with Wires and Connectors @ Amazon
Leviton 1282 15 Amp, 120/277 Volt, Toggle Double Throw @ Amazon

If you do these things, you may also want to redo your piping and valves.

BUT, it's also an option simply to buy a new motor and rebuild kit. You can get those from A1 as well. (You might get them from Amazon, but it would be tricky. You'd be much better off calling someone like A1 and ordering PARTS over the phone, from someone who actually knows what you're working on!)

(Note: PoolForum does get a commission on what you buy through Amazon, using our links; we do NOT get a commission from A1, so all things being equal we prefer it if you buy through Amazon . . . but only when it's an equal price for the right product!)

[mas985]

Sounds like the windings are burning up. It could be due to the bearings or just short but you will probably need a new motor or pump.

If you replace the motor, I would go with another A.O.Smith motor and preferably a two speed.


As for a new pump, I would need a little bit more information.

Form the picture it looks like you might have a spa? If so, I would go with the same size pump you have now to maintain jet strength. So the WFDS-6 or 28 would be a good choice.

Also, what is the size of your filter?