I have a brand new walk-in tub with whirlpool and air jet. It has air switches for both features. My problem is that the air pump comes on all by itself after sitting for 20-30 minutes of non use. It does not matter if it has water in it or not. Is the swith building up pressure on it's own somehow? Please help, the contractor is not returning my calls.

the motor protection device is sensing to many amps. could be a flow restriction or the pump motor bearings are going bad.

First of all, what you have is a WOW pump that has an E-switch for a control.
There is a knob on the top lip of your tub that you turn a 1/4 turn to turn this pump on/off.
There is a small circuit board inside the box on top of the motor. This is likely the source of your problem.
Here is your biggest problem. That little circuit board is not made anymore. We have the e-switch but you will be better off changing out the pump (which you have to do anyway) with a new WOW pump with an air switch and change the switch on the top lip of the tub to an air button which will turn the pump on/off.

Rod
US Parts Center

is there voltage going to the motor?
Rod
US Parts Center

This sounds like the motor is either bad or the air switch in the motor is bad or...the air button on the top of the tub is bad.
Remove the pump and take the air switch out of the motor. Then plug the wires that went to the two terminals on the air switch to each other and plug the pump into an outlet you know has power.
If the motor comes on then you know the pump is good.
Now put the air switch back into the motor. Take a McDonalds straw and with the pump plugged into an outlet blow extremely hard into the straw placed into the opening of the air switch. If you can get the air switch to "click" and the pump comes on then you know you have a bad air switch. If the pump does NOT come on then you know you have a good air switch and a bad air button on the top lip of the tub.
Any Questions give us a call on Monday.

Rod
US Parts Center
888-521-6183

There are several things to check.
the first and most likely is that you have a Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) that is tripped.

It is required by code to have any whirlpool tub, spa, or similar equipment GFCI protected. on a whirlpool tub, a good electrician will place the GFCI device within sight of the tub, in the bathroom. it looks like the same GFCI receptacles you have on the countertop, but without holes to plug things in. a lesser electrician will place a GFCI receptacle inside the service access underneath the tub. (this can be a hatch in the side of the tub, or a cabinet door in on a wall adjoining the room) a bad electrician has been known to place it in a completely different room, or under the floor, with the power cord of the tub passed through the a hole in the floor to plug in. find this, and press the reset button. if it solves your problem, great. if not, go to step 2 (also, occasionally, the GFCI device is a GFCI breaker inside the breaker panel - check to make sure the breaker is turned on and not tripped, as well)

If you reset the GFCI and it immediately trips again, there may be a problem with the pump motor. find the access hatch (if you haven't already) and unplug the tub. try the reset again. if it holds now, it is the pump. if not, it is either a failed GFCI (have it replaced) or a ground wire in contact with a neutral wire. (fixed by moving the ground)

if the GFCI resets, or will not reset (newer GFCIs have an interlock feature that prevents them from resetting if they don't like the flavor of the incoming power) and there is still no power to the pump (use a plug tester, or plug a lamp, or radio in to test and make sure there is power to the spa tub), and you have confirmed that the breaker is on, there may be a switch that is off, (the same electrician who put the GFCI device in a walk-in closet across the hall, also had a switch that turned the whole thing off) or there may be a wiring problem somewhere. at this point, it might be worth your while to bring in an electrician to trace down the problem. - you would have to check each point in the circuit to find where there is a wire disconnected or broken.

If there is no problem with the electricity to the tub, then you have either a switch problem or a motor problem. the motor problem is unlikely, as it usually results in electrical symptoms, as well. the switch is an air switch. the button on the tub is an air plunger, that pumps air into a tube, and pushes another plunger in the switch that turns the pump on and off. the plunger can stop pushing air (unlikely, but possible) the tube can come loose, or the switch can stop working. the first two are easily user-repairable. the last may take an authorized service professional, depending on the design of the pump.


If you have acces to the pump and switch please let me know I will walk you through what to look at there to fix if the plug is good.

good luck with this - hopefully it is just a GFCI.

sounds like it may be either the air button or the air switch (on motor).
pull the pump and plug into an outlet. take a straw and blow into the air switch where the air tubing was connected. If the pump comes on then you know the button. If the pump doesn't come on then you will need to replace the air switch on the back of the motor.

First the obvious, most are electrically connected to a ground fault device, ether an outlet or a breaker. BEFORE ADDING WATER, check these out to make sure they are not tripped. Most all tubs have a minimum water level which must be reached before the jets will operate. This is usually a piece of trim located above the depth of the jets. Make sure the tub is filled to cover this part. If you cant identify the water level device fill the tub so that all the jets are covered by an inch or 2. Some tubs have push button switches or touch pads to control the motor, some have touch sensitive trim. There may be some sort of medallion from the maker on the tub, simply touching it will start the tub. Once you get it going most tubs have a built in timer that turns off the pump in 15 - 20 minutes. For more tub time just hit the switch again but keep in mind that extended exposure in a hot tub can mess with your blood pressure and cause you to loose balance or pass out, hence the 20 minute timer.

Are the jets open? The center of the jets turn to adjust the pressure of the jets. If this is not the problem, there may be a problem with the impeller in the pump assembly. If you here the pump turning and not buzzing, it could be an air bubble in the suction tube. This tube is the one coming from the front of the pump, if the pump is higher than the tube coming from the tub, or if there is a high spot in the tube, an air bubble is a real possibility. If the tube is level with the pump, there should be no problem with air bubbles and the problem lies in the top part of this paragraph.

Most Kohler tubs have a water sensor or water level sensor. Is this an air bath tub (holes in the floor)? or a jetted tub? If it is an air bath, the tub will purge after using it 15 to 30 minutes ater it is drained. If it is programable it will come on every 24 hours if it has been programmed. If it is a jetted tub, there may have been water on the sensor and caused it to start up. If it is a single on/off button the switch could have gotten water and caused it to start up, or there is a problem with the control box. It usually will not start a fire if it comes on, most of the newer pumps have run dry seals. If you leave the house for vacation or weekends, I would advise unplugging the tub or turning off the breaker.

This is a problem common to all whirlpool/air jet style tubs. The pumps become air locked due to the water evaporating from lack of use. All tubs need, and have, SOME means of priming the pump, this is most likely what the problem was, originally, for you. This time in particular you found it to be electrical in nature but for future reference, for you and all who have these style of tubs, I am putting this out there. Some where on the tub, usually along the top edge of the tub is a vent knob that controls the amount of air that the pump is allowed to mix with the water for the jets, usually by closing this valve all the way (tub needs to be full of water of course) and running the pump for a minute or 2, you should be able to get the pump pumping water again, if not you may need to do something else with your particular set-up to get it purged of air, the pumps in jacuzzi tubs are designed to pump water, not air, so if the motor is running but you get no jet action, your most likely air locked and need to prime pump/purge air.