Hartford loop - or no hartford loop

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Sk8Surfr

Bronze Supporter
May 28, 2016
109
South Florida
So my new pool build is almost complete (here is a pic of the spa just because).

My equipment is roughly 50 feet from the spa - the plumbing for the air blower line is probably 70 feet.

I bought a 2hp blower - my deck goes down this week - I'd rather NOT install a hartford loop if I don't have to (1. I'd have to dig the pipes back up, but main reason is I don't really have a place to 'hide' it)

Will I run into issues if I don't have one? Will a 2hp air blower not be able to push the water back out (should the air line fill with water)?

IMG_7363.jpg
 
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One reason you need a Hartford loop is if you ever want to run the spa venturis without a blower. Blowers can be loud and annoying.

However, the other reason is the pad is below water level so the air line would be running downhill. That can also cause problems even with a blower.

Normally, they are installed in the spa wall. Are you sure the PB did not install one?
 
Yes, there is a short Hartford loop on the air line (close to the middle of the pic). That should help some as long as the water level stays below the height of the loop. If they can also run the air line at a slight incline from the spa to the pad, that would help as well.
 
The plumbing (since it’s a long run) runs lower than the spa. The trench pitched down a hair - and then leveled off to the pad.

also - since the spa is champagne spa the water level I think will be higher.

Guess we can just finish the pool and see how it functions and add later if need be.
 
Thanks for the replies - one more question about the blower itself - it came with mounting brackets to mount against the house - I wasn't planing that in the install - I was just going to put it ontop the air pipe and it would 'sit' with the rest of the plumbing. Does it really need to be mounted against the house?
 
RDspaguy said:
As long as the hartford loop is an inch or so higher (on the bottom of the pipe) than the spillover it will be fine. I am sure your builder planned it that way, so I suspect it will be ok.
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How can it be? It is in the spa wall and water flows above it. In this case, I don't think it will have much effect. With that design, the HL needs to be outside the spa but somewhere close.
 

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The blower should clear the line, since the jets use a venturi they will help as well.

You can't have a Hartford loop on a perimeter overflow spa wall because the water level is higher than all of the plumbing. If you want a HL you could hide it in a nearby planter but that will only marginally help since there's still a good deal of water clear in the airline.

70' is a long run. What size is the airline?
 
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bdavis466 said:
The blower should clear the line, since the jets use a venturi they will help as well.

You can't have a Hartford loop on a perimeter overflow spa wall because the water level is higher than all of the plumbing. If you want a HL you could hide it in a nearby planter but that will only marginally help since there's still a good deal of water clear in the airline.

70' is a long run. What size is the airline?
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That makes sense - the blower would have to clear the water up to the HL anyway. The pipe is 2" all the way.
 
Sk8Surfr said:
That makes sense - the blower would have to clear the water up to the HL anyway. The pipe is 2" all the way.
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It looks like your plumber attempted to put in a loop but it's kind of pointless in your situation and adds a little extra restriction. It would have been better to have the airline make as direct of a route as possible.

I've done a couple Spas like yours and I added an automated valve close to the spa on the airline that would open when the Jets were activated and close the remainder of the time. I really do not like blowers and will do whatever it takes to not have to use one. They are ridiculously loud...an open airline is bad enough
 
bdavis466 said:
It looks like your plumber attempted to put in a loop but it's kind of pointless in your situation and adds a little extra restriction. It would have been better to have the airline make as direct of a route as possible.

I've done a couple Spas like yours and I added an automated valve close to the spa on the airline that would open when the Jets were activated and close the remainder of the time. I really do not like blowers and will do whatever it takes to not have to use one. They are ridiculously loud...an open airline is bad enough
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I agree - I'm not a fan of blowers... This is my first pool build (did owner-builder - didn't hire a company). I remember growing up we NEVER used the blower on the family pool for that reason.

Theoretically - I could probably run the blower for a brief period - it would force all the air out while the spa is on - and the extra loop in the spa wall 'should' keep water from backing up into the line, right - while the jets are on and I get the nice spa effect I was hoping for.

Just thinking.... maybe that won't work. I dont know
 
The water won't get into the air line once its cleared as long as the jets are working properly and there is enough flow.

The blower is probably too restrictive when it's not running to allow enough air into the line. You might want to add a tee below the blower that you can open when the blower is off for less obstruction.
 
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