How To Make A Noisy Pool Pump Quieter
All of us enjoy a swim in the pool on a hot summer day. However, this can often not be as pleasant as many of us may want, with there being a variety of things that could prove to be distracting.
One of the most noticeable of these is the pool pump, which could make a lot more noise than we’re comfortable with.
This problem is much more common than you might have thought, with quite a large number of people being irritated by it.
However, this doesn’t mean that you’ll have to put up with it for long. Instead, there is a variety of things that you’ll be able to do to reduce the sound that it makes.
While many of the noises that might come from your pool pump may be a sign of a larger issue, this isn’t always the case. Instead, many of us might just be distracted by the typical noise that a pool pump generates. If this is the case, then there are a few things that you’ll be able to do to address the sound.
If you find that there are mechanical issues with the pool pump or its motor, then you might need to hire a professional to repair it. In some cases, you might also have to replace the pool pump entirely.
However, this isn’t the first thing that you should do, as there can often be some minor faults with the motor or pump that you could fix yourself. As such, there are a few steps that you’ll be able to take to repair your pool pump and reduce the noise that it generates.
What You’ll Need
The first step you’ll need to take is to get each of the materials that are needed. Typically, there are a few of them that will be needed, including:
How To Quiet A Noisy Pool Pump
Pool pumps are an essential aspect of the pool itself, as it’s what helps to keep the water clean. As such, there’s a slim chance that you’ll be able to go without the pump for long, so you might not be able to switch it off for long periods. However, this still leaves the noise issue that you’ll have.
While you might assume that making your pool pump quieter will be a difficult process, it shouldn’t be as tricky as you might think. Instead, there are a few simple steps that you’ll be able to take to do so, although you’ll need to spend a significant amount of effort on it.
You might also need to buy a few things to do so, depending on which steps you decide to take when making your sound pump quieter. However, the majority of materials and tools that you’ll need should be quite affordable, so they should prove to be a cost-effective way of fixing the issue.
With that, there are a few specific steps that you’ll need to take.
1. Reduce The Vibrations Coming Out Of The Motor
What you might not have realized is that its vibrations could drive a lot of the noise that your pool pump’s motor makes. Typically, this will be because it’s been placed on a hard surface and is vibrating against it constantly. This will then make the sound level much higher than you may like.
However, you’ll be able to overcome this quite easily. In the majority of cases, acoustic tiles can be well recommended for this. While you’ll need to remove the bolts that keep the motor in place, you’ll be able to put these back once you’ve put down the acoustic tiles or a similar product.
When you’re doing so, you should be quite careful. This is mainly because you’ll need to make sure that the material you use is durable and heat-resistant. You should also make sure that it’s relatively soft, which should mean that it can absorb the vibrations and reduce the sound that the motor generates.
In some cases, you might just need to tighten the bolts that hold the motor in place. Despite being a relatively simple way of addressing the issue, it could be much more effective than you might have thought. This should make it one of the first steps you take, as it can be one of the main ways of sorting out the problem.
If this doesn’t help, then you should place an acoustic material under the motor, which should provide a significant amount of noise reduction. Should these not work as much as you might want, there are a few other steps that you’ll need to take.
Naturally, you’ll need to make sure that your pump is off and that the motor has cooled down before you do any work on it.
2. Clean The Skimmer Basket
One thing that many of us may forget is that a pool pump will collect a variety of objects when it’s being used. After all, the main function of a pool pump is to clean your pool’s water, which often means that there will be a significant number of things building up in your skimmer basket.
This is where the majority of leaves and other dirt will be stored once they’ve been filtered out of your water. Since these are easily forgotten, it can quickly build up more dirt than it could handle, which will result in the pump not receiving as much water as it may need.
Subsequently, this will mean that it will start generating a significant amount of noise. As such, you should clean out your skimmer basket as often as possible. This will prevent any clogs from occurring, which could be one of the main reasons that your pool pump is making much more noise than it used to.
While how often you’ll need to empty and clean your skimmer basket will depend on your pump, it’s recommended that you do so at least every two weeks. However, you might be able to determine how often you should clean it based on how quickly it fills up. This should help you avoid any noise as a result of built up dirt, among other things.
3. Raise The Pool’s Water Level
Raising your pool’s water level could be a more effective way of reducing the level of noise you hear from your pool pump. The main reason for this is that there might not be enough water in your swimming pool, which could have quite a significant impact on the noise level.
This is mainly because your pump will need to take in a certain amount of water while it’s being used. If it doesn’t get enough, then there’s a large chance that its motor will start to overheat. Naturally, this will lead to a significant amount of noise, as well as a few other potential problems in the long-term.
Typically, you should make sure that the water level reaches the top of the basket openings. This should make sure that there aren’t any problems in either the short- or long-term. While you’ll see a significant reduction in sound levels, you should also be able to protect your water pump’s motor when doing so.
4. Keep Your Pump Basket Clean
- Height 7 3/4"
- Top Diameter 5 3/4"
However, the first cleaning session could be the most difficult, given how much debris can often build up inside the pump basket. However, this should be relatively easy to do and should take less effort over time. To do this, you’ll first need to turn off the pump before removing the basket.
You should then give it as thorough a clean as possible. If this is the cause of the problem, then you should hear a noticeable difference in sound levels once you’ve cleaned the skimmer basket.
With how easy this is to do, it’s highly recommended that you try this step, especially if you’re not already in the habit of cleaning it.
5. Clean Your Impeller
However, it’s worth noting that this should be done regularly. If not, more debris will build-up, which could cause the noise of your pool pump to start increasing again. Alongside this, it could cause issues in the mechanical parts of your pump.
6. Replace The Bearings On The Pool Pump Motor
- ✅ APPLICATION - Replacement for Pentair Whisperflo Pool Pump.
- ✅ BEARINGS - ABEC-3 Manufacturing Grade Rotate Quiet High Speed and Durable.
Despite how easy it might be, you’ll need to make sure that you have the right bearings for your pool pump. There is quite a significant number of options available for this, so you might need to spend a large amount of time determining which one will be the right ones for your pool pump.
For this step, it can often be recommended that you hire a professional, as they’ll be able to make sure that no mistakes are made. They’ll also be able to identify any other problems that may be there.
7. Replace The Pool Pump
If you’ve tried each of the above steps and your pool pump is still making quite a large amount of noise, then you may need to replace it. This is especially true if you have an older pump, as it will often have to put up with a significant amount of wear and tear over time. As a result, they might not operate at optimal levels any more.
If this is the case, then buying a new pool pump may be the only route that you can take. There is quite a large number of options that you can choose from, which can often be overwhelming. However, some of the better-recommended options include:
Which new pool pump you choose can vary depending on your circumstances, with some replacement pumps not being suitable for certain pools. As such, you should spend a significant amount of time comparing different options to make sure that you choose the right one for your needs.
There will be some models that generate much less sound than others without this compromising on performance. This should mean that it can be worth spending money on quitter options. As a result, replacing an old pool pump can be highly recommended.
If you’ve got a relatively new pool pump, however, you might not want to replace it. Should none of the above steps be effective, then you might need to hire a professional to repair the pool pump. While this is something that you might not want to do, it can often be unavoidable.
Conclusion
Despite as simple as each of the above will seem, they should prove to have a significant impact on how much noise your pool pump makes. However, it should be noted that some of these steps might not have as much of an impact as you might have wanted. Instead, you may need to use a few of them together to see the most benefits.
With how quick and easy the majority of them are, there shouldn’t be much difficulty in implementing a variety of steps. As such, it can be well worth taking a few of the steps to see the benefits. When you first start doing this, you should first check the pool pump’s mechanics.
This will help you identify any potential issues that may be causing any sound. While this could mean that there’ll be a simple fix, you should make sure that you know what you’re doing before you start trying to repair it. In many cases, you might have to hire a professional to do this for you.
The main reason for this is that you’ll need to make sure that your pool pump and its motor are working properly. For many of us, we might not know how to adequately repair it, although a professional will. This could help reduce the noise level significantly while also making sure that there aren’t any other issues.
There may be a few cases where the noise that a pool pump and its motor is because of a much larger problem. In this case, you’ll need to either replace the pool pump or have it repaired, as we mentioned above.
Outside of this, you should be able to make your pool pump quieter by using each of the steps above. While you might need to spend a significant amount of time on this, it can be well worth the effort.