Newbie needs help - Sundance Cameo lacks force/power/output from jets

[Sophieian]

Hello all,

We are hoping you can help us. We have a one week old Sundance Cameo that lacks force/pressure/output from the jets.

We used it twice and it was very powerful. If it was on maximum it would push you and you certainly could not put your feet on the foot jets when they were on maximum.

Now, the force coming from the jets is little more than a running tap.

I removed the filter and that did not solve the problem.

I remove the jet directional toggle (like the technician showed me) and put the jets on. The water went about 2 to 3 foot in the air which the technician says indicates the jets are functionning properly.

I put it back together and tried all the pumps in all settings and none of them are working like before.

Can someone shed any light on the issue?

Many thanks

[Jacuzzi Jim]

 Did you open the divertor on the top of the spa and the water shot out?  Or did the water shoot out the jets 2 ta 3 feet?   If you opened the divertor area there is a chance you didn't put the gate part back in right.    the cut out section of the diverter gate needs to be facing in towards the center of the spa.   

[Sophieian]

Thanks for the reply.

Yes I opened the diverter, took out the parts inside and started the pumps to check that the pumps were working. As I said, the water came out vertically about 2 or 3 foot. I then checked that they were correctly positioned before replacing them as they are meant to be.

It really is a problem with the power coming out of the jets.

When placing the diverter to the foot jets and turning the pump on, what usually happens is that the water bubbles and almost fountains in the middle of the pool because they are so strong.

But at the moment, what is actually happening is that the water just moves slight in the bottom of the spa.

This indicates that I have a problems somewhere else.

I wonder if the pumps are working at full power? But they are electrical so they really should only be on FULL or off.

I don't understand.....

[TwinCitiesHotSpring]

Thanks for the reply.

Yes I opened the diverter, took out the parts inside and started the pumps to check that the pumps were working. As I said, the water came out vertically about 2 or 3 foot. I then checked that they were correctly positioned before replacing them as they are meant to be.

It really is a problem with the power coming out of the jets.

When placing the diverter to the foot jets and turning the pump on, what usually happens is that the water bubbles and almost fountains in the middle of the pool because they are so strong.

But at the moment, what is actually happening is that the water just moves slight in the bottom of the spa.

This indicates that I have a problems somewhere else.

I wonder if the pumps are working at full power? But they are electrical so they really should only be on FULL or off.

I don't understand.....

is their gate valves in that spa? one may have vibrated loose or been faulty from day 1 and closed/partially closed?

[Sophieian]

The only valves I know of are the diverters that you use to switch the power between different seats.

I have no confidence in the dealer as they have just sent a second technician who yet again said there was no faults.

The problem is, the first hot tub was replaced because of this same issue.

And having spent hours trying to work this out I can not believe that it is something so obvious as a valve being wrongly positioned. 2 hot tubs with the same problem.

Any other ideas?

[TwinCitiesHotSpring]

The only valves I know of are the diverters that you use to switch the power between different seats.

I have no confidence in the dealer as they have just sent a second technician who yet again said there was no faults.

The problem is, the first hot tub was replaced because of this same issue.

And having spent hours trying to work this out I can not believe that it is something so obvious as a valve being wrongly positioned. 2 hot tubs with the same problem.

Any other ideas?

the gate valves would be located in the equipment compartment directly in front of the suction and discharges of your jet pump(s)....if you read my post it has nothing to do with valves being positioned in the wrong manner, it has to do with valves failing or vibrating loose.  Now that you bring up the fact that this has happened on 2 spas obviously that will change my thinking a bit but it is something I would still check.

option #2 is to return it once again and seek out a higher quality product/dealer

[Sophieian]

I will look for the valves you mentioned.

The spa (as far as I am aware) is a high quality product. It is a Sundance Cameo  which we purchased from Club Piscine which is the largest dealer here in Québec.

Changing the spa would be a more lengthy option than just resolving the problem.

Any other input would be greatly welcomed.

[Jacuzzi Jim]

 Sundance and Jacuzzi do not use gate valves.   My guess is you put the divertor gate back in wrong or your jets are closed.   Not much else it can be unless it's an airlock in your pump?   Also if they replaced a spa already because of the same issues makes no sense what so ever..

[goose973]

We have a Sundance Certa, and most of the jets are adjustable. I'm not sure if you mentioned thi, yet, but are you sure the jets themselves are open. Any jet with an adjustable nozzle will open and close individually by turning the trim ring around the jet. They're really easy to bump with your feet or turn when sliding from one seat to another.

[clover]

You removed the diverter cap and the pump "pushed water 2' to 3' into the air.  That tells me the pump is pushing water.  IF it is not coming out the jets (??) the jets could be rotated in the closed position.

2nd spa with the same problem (??), same owner, same dealer, 2 technicians look at it, try taking your filter out being sure nothing can be sucked into the pump like leaves or toys (??) could that have happened before (??).  Run the jets without the filter restricting suction and flow.

[SerjicalStrike]

The pumps on a new Cameo do not pull through any filter. 

Have you tried adjusting the air controls?  The flow seems much stronger with the air controls open. 
Also, the foot jets in the Cameo are adjustable and may be positioned straight ahead instead of pointing up.

[Sophieian]

Sundance and Jacuzzi do not use gate valves.   My guess is you put the divertor gate back in wrong or your jets are closed.   Not much else it can be unless it's an airlock in your pump?   Also if they replaced a spa already because of the same issues makes no sense what so ever..

I completely agree but the diverters are correctly installed and it worked fine twice and now is just pushing water out like a tap on full, not like a pressure washer as it was before.

Still not clearer...

[Sophieian]

We have a Sundance Certa, and most of the jets are adjustable. I'm not sure if you mentioned thi, yet, but are you sure the jets themselves are open. Any jet with an adjustable nozzle will open and close individually by turning the trim ring around the jet. They're really easy to bump with your feet or turn when sliding from one seat to another.

Thank you. The jets dont really turn and the power is controlled with the diverter switch. So no luck there.

[Sophieian]

You removed the diverter cap and the pump "pushed water 2' to 3' into the air.  That tells me the pump is pushing water.  IF it is not coming out the jets (??) the jets could be rotated in the closed position.

2nd spa with the same problem (??), same owner, same dealer, 2 technicians look at it, try taking your filter out being sure nothing can be sucked into the pump like leaves or toys (??) could that have happened before (??).  Run the jets without the filter restricting suction and flow.

Thank you, I know why you say this and you must think we are as mad as the dealer thinks we are.

The only thing I can think of is that maybe they came out of the factory on the same Friday afternoon and someone actually left something inside them to jam the water pipes.

No leaves go into the spa, I tried everything with the filter removed and not I am getting a red error light on the front with a FLO error message on the control display.

This tells me something IS wrong with the flow even though water pumps 3 ft into the air out of the diverter and the pumps sound as if the are working.

I had thought about maybe faulty impellers on all the pumps but I can here the water flowing out of the pumps.

[Sophieian]

The pumps on a new Cameo do not pull through any filter. 

Have you tried adjusting the air controls?  The flow seems much stronger with the air controls open. 
Also, the foot jets in the Cameo are adjustable and may be positioned straight ahead instead of pointing up.

The first thing we did was adjust ALL the controls in ALL the positions. We are VERY familiar with how the Cameo operates.

No matter what position the foot jets are positioned in, there is very little flow from them.