Overflow drain setup, Currently Bad IMO

[mknmike]

I’m a new owner as of the end of June. No pool inspection, not even the cover off. The fact that the pool is up and running has me excited and pleased. I know the coping and tile all needs to be redone. We had a leak about an inch below the tile because the level would fall and settle there. My awesome pool guy patched it. We are able to hold the water level above half way up the 4x4” tile on this ~1950’s pool. We can enjoy it this season, but we have issues.

The skimmer sucked in too much air because the flapper door would get stuck. Unaware of this, I decided to plug the overflow which is centered on the 4x4 tile with approximately a 1.25-1.5” drain hole. I’m 99% sure it was plugged when I opened the pool. Since the skimmer was sucking in air, the plug went back in.

We had a deluge of rain, and I got water in the basement. Then I left the fill water on top long (8-9 hours) on a dry day, and we got water in the basement. So clearly water from the pool overflows to the basement due to cracks. The pool level had gone to the top of the tile with the water on. So it leaked slower than it filled. In short order it went back to our max fill level which is the top of the plugged overflow drain.

Perhaps one would say a simple solution to my problem is to fix the flapper door and pull the plug in the overflow drain. Yes, I’d like to do that (and also fix the higher leaks too).

However, I’ve got another plumbing issue I need to resolve. The well into which the overflow drains has no proper drain in it, and it also operates as a driveway drain. In a deluge, driveway water will fill the well, and very possibly fill the pool with driveway water of the overflow is not plugged. Furthermore, the only drain in the well is a small missing piece of pipe approximately 3/4-1”, smaller than a quarter, maybe the size of a nickel. It also lets out sewer gas between the pool and back door, just a few feet from each. Also, since the well is deeper than the drain level, it is a mosquito breeding ground.

Here are a few videos. I’d like to get this problem resolved correctly ASAP and have contacted my plumber already about it.

https://youtu.be/jeU_tupXyi8

https://youtu.be/JaaDclkKyCo

https://youtu.be/fO9gbgGQWUE

[Denniswiseman]

If that connection is connected to the sewer, then I would excavate and make two separate connections to the sewer
One for the pool overflow (trapped of course) and a separate one for the driveway drain (trapped of course)
The trapping prevents sewer gases coming back

[mknmike]

If that connection is connected to the sewer, then I would excavate and make two separate connections to the sewer
One for the pool overflow (trapped of course) and a separate one for the driveway drain (trapped of course)
The trapping prevents sewer gases coming back

Thanks again Dennis!

Yeah. I’m in the middle of contacting a plumber that my plumber referred me to. I will see if he says we must excavate. So many thing to spend money on right now. I was hoping there’d be a way to install a low driveway drain with a trap that the pool could also dump into, but yes, perhaps a direct connection for the pool would be best. Then again, it’s nice to be able to look into that drain and see the levels of things and the amount of water from the pool that’s being lost during kids playing in the pool.