Pool Pump Basket Cracked or Collapsing? How to Replace a Pentair 355667 Large Pump Basket
The pump basket is the cheapest part in your equipment pad and one of the easiest to ignore. It sits under the clear lid, catches leaves and hair, and gets pulled out and knocked around every week. After a few seasons of sun and chlorine, the plastic gets brittle and starts to give up.
If yours has a crack in the side, a broken handle, or a rim that no longer sits flat, the Pentair 355667 large pump basket is the replacement most people end up needing. Here is how to tell if that is your problem and what to do about it.
What does the pump basket actually do?
It protects the impeller. That is the whole job. Everything the skimmer misses gets pulled toward the pump, and the basket catches it before it reaches the moving parts inside.
When the basket is intact, leaves, acorns, small rocks, and hair stay in the basket where you can dump them. When it is cracked, all of that goes straight past it. A clogged impeller means weak flow, and a rock through an impeller means a new wet end.
How do I know my pump basket is bad?
Pull the lid and lift the basket out. If any of the following are true, replace it:
- There is a crack, split, or hole anywhere in the side wall or bottom
- The rim is warped and no longer sits level in the housing
- The handle is broken off or snaps when you lift it
- The plastic has gone chalky and flexes or crunches when you squeeze it
- You keep finding debris in the pump housing below the basket
That last one is the giveaway. Debris under the basket means water is bypassing it, and a bypassing basket is the same as no basket at all.
Why is my pump losing prime or making noise?
Check the basket and the lid o-ring before you chase anything else. A basket that does not seat properly can let the lid sit crooked, and a crooked lid pulls air. Air in the housing shows up as a pump that will not hold prime, a gurgling sound, or a big air bubble under the lid.
Noise is the other symptom. A loose or collapsed basket can shift while the pump runs and rattle against the housing. People often think that sound is the motor going bad. Sometimes it is just a twenty dollar basket.
How to replace a Pentair 355667 pump basket
This takes about ten minutes and needs no tools beyond your hands.
- Turn the pump off at the breaker. Do not skip this.
- Close the valves on the suction and return lines so water does not drain back at you.
- Twist off the clear lid. If it is stuck, a little pool lube on the o-ring after you get it open will save you next time.
- Lift the old basket straight out and dump it.
- Look down into the empty housing and clear out anything sitting in the bottom.
- Drop the new 355667 basket in and press down until it seats flat. It should not rock.
- Wipe the lid o-ring, add a thin coat of silicone pool lube, and hand tighten the lid. No tools.
- Open your valves, turn the breaker back on, and watch the housing fill.
If it takes longer than a couple of minutes to prime, the lid is probably not sealing. Take it back off and reseat the o-ring.
Which pumps use the 355667 large basket?
The 355667 is the large capacity basket used in a number of Pentair pool and spa pump housings. Pentair has used more than one basket size over the years, so the safest move is to check the part number molded into your old basket or measure the height and rim diameter before you order.
If the number has worn off, take a photo of the basket sitting in the housing and send it over. That is usually enough for us to tell you whether the 355667 is the right one or whether you need a different size.
How much does a replacement pump basket cost?
A genuine Pentair 355667 large pump basket runs around twenty three dollars. Compare that to an impeller, a seal plate, or a full wet end kit and the math is not close. This is the cheapest insurance on the whole equipment pad.
Buy the real one. Aftermarket baskets are often a hair off on the rim diameter, and a basket that does not seat right is worse than the cracked one you just pulled out.
What if a new basket does not fix it?
If flow is still weak after you put a fresh 355667 in and the basket is clean, the problem is further down the line. Common causes are a clogged impeller, a bad lid o-ring, a leak on the suction side, or a dirty filter that needs cleaning or backwashing.
Work through it in that order. Start with the cheap stuff, confirm the lid seals, then move on to the impeller. Replacing the basket first is still worth doing, because a broken one guarantees the impeller clogs again.
Not sure this is the right part for your problem? Reach out and we will help you figure out exactly what you need before you spend money on the wrong thing.