On Wednesday, June 12, 2013 11:57:58 AM UTC-6, Danny D wrote:
On Wed, 12 Jun 2013 07:54:40 -0700, wrote:



My way of looking at this is

if you called a pool company ... you might wind up with a new pump

but since I'm doing it myself, the cost will be just $10 -$15

for the O-ring from a pool store.



If the goal were to simply *fix* the pool pump, your method is

perfect and it's what most people do (99.99% anyway).



I'm not most people.

For one thing, I like to *learn* and for another, I like to

*teach*. I am famous (in my profession) for writing tutorials

for how to do things so that everyone else might benefit from

the effort. It's how I'm wired.



Most people are decidedly *not* wired that way!



They do it; they get it done; they learn almost nothing; and

they teach absolutely nothing. But it's done; and it's done

fast (and overall, the cost is the lowest, but so is the

benefit).



I have a friend who knows nothing about cars; yet he fixes

them simply by throwing parts at them. If he gets an OBD

code indicating a misfire, he replaces the plugs. If that

doesn't work, he replaces the wires. If that doesn't work,

he replaces the coils. If that doesn't work, he replaces

the intake pcv valve. If that doesn't work, he replaces the

visible vacuum hoses. If that doesn't work he replaces

the intake boots. etc.



Assuming there are, say, 5 likely culprits, if he guesses

right on the first one, he considers himself an absolute

genius. Even if he guesses wrong until the fifth one, he

not only solves the problem, but he gets all new parts

in the process.



A *lot* of people work that way. They learn almost nothing;

but they get the job done. Fast. It's efficient, I agree.



It's not how *I* do things! I try to understand what I'm

dealing with; I ask questions; I clarify; I summarize; and,

I attempt (yes, attempt) to teach.



In summary, if I use your suggested method for my four

pool pumps, at, say, $5 per o-ring at the pool store, I'd

walk out the door with an outlay of $30 per pump, or, only

$120 for o-rings to refurbish the entire set.



In two hours I'd be done.

I wouldn't learn anything.

I wouldn't teach anyone.

But I'd be done. No doubt about this.

$120 solves my problem (at DIY prices).



On the other hand ...



My method takes WEEKS! (yes, weeks elapsed time).

Yet, I *learned* a lot! Education never stops.



Anyone willing to learn from my experience will learn also.

That's one reason why I go to the effort to include screen shots

and annotated photos in many of my posts. So others learn.



My actual cost outlay is trivial. Assume I pay, on average,

about 50¢ per o-ring (includes shipping), my outlay in cash

is $12 for those four pumps.



In summary:

- ~2 hours, $120, near zero learning, zero teaching

- ~20 hours, $12, lifelong learning, others benefit



Pick the method for how *your* brain is wired.

18 hours of NO SWIMMING in the pool using your method. Summer could be over
before the pool got fixed.