How a swimming pool pump works
Importance of a Pool Pump
All swimming pools have a filtration system to keep the water clean and free of algae and bacteria. An integral part of your filtering system is the swimming pool pump. Without a swimming pool pump your filtration system will not work and your swimming pool will get too dirty to use rather quickly. Most swimming pool pumps are self priming which means that if the swimming pool pump housing is not full of water when you turn the system on, it will fill it by it’s self. This is a very helpful feature because priming a swimming pool pump can be a difficult task. Swimming pool pumps come in various horse power depending on the size of the swimming pool and how many litres of water it must pull through the filtration system each hour.
Parts of the Pump
The swimming pool pump has a motor that turns at a high speed when the swimming pool pump is on. At the other end of the swimming pool pump there is an impeller that is driven by the pump motor. The pump housing, also known as the vacuum chamber, is filled with water. This creates a vacuum which allows the swimming pool pump to pull the water out of the swimming pool. Some swimming pools have a diffuser in the pump itself and some have an external diffuser. The diffuser takes the air out of the pump, hoses or suction piping. If the air does not get out you can loose your prime. All self priming pumps have diffusers. As the impeller creates the water pressure it is measured by the gauge. When the pressure gets too low you will know that the filter is dirty and needs to be cleaned or back washed.
How the Pump Works
Now that you know how the individual parts work it is easier to understand how the whole process works. When the swimming pool pump is turned on and it is properly primed, the motor turns the impeller. This helps to pull the swimming pool water into the vacuum chamber which is the pump housing. The water goes through a filtering system which could be sand, diatomaceous earth or a cartridge. The swimming pool water is cleaned by the filtration system and pushed back into the swimming pool. All the while the diffuser is helping to get rid of any air bubbles that have made their way into the swimming pool pump. When the pressure gauge shows the low pressure you will need to back wash the system. This is done by switching valves to redirect the flow of the water and stopping water from going into the swimming pool. The water is pulled from the pool, only this time it goes into the bottom of the filter, pushing the dirt up where it is drained out. This is done until the water comes out clean. Then the valves are put back to their original position and the pump starts pulling the water through the filtration system again.