Air jets will not shut off: which pump and button do I check?

When the air jets will not shut off, switch the tub off at its dedicated breaker first, then trace the small tube from the stuck button to see where it ends, because that tells you which pump is involved and where the air lock is released. A tube that ends at a nipple on the blue control box is relieved at the box, and a tube that ends at a white nut on a pump is relieved at that pump. The symptom and why the breaker was the right move are covered in Why Won't the Air or Pump Shut Off, and Is Flipping the Breaker Okay?; this page adds the fork that guide leaves out, which matters on tubs with more than one hydro pump.

Rule Out the Purge and the Press Sequence First

Two normal behaviors look like an air system that will not shut off. The first is the Auto Purge: about 20 minutes after the air pump is turned off, the blower starts on its own and runs for 120 seconds to blow residual water out of the air lines. It is fully automatic, cannot be stopped, and is normal even if it starts while you are still in the tub. A blower that keeps running past that, or a purge that repeats when the air massage has not been used again, is a real fault. The second is the push sequence on the air button: the first press is high speed, the second is medium, the third is low, and the fourth press turns the system off, so a single press from high does not stop it. On a digital touchpad the air is turned off by holding the air icon for two seconds. Both are covered in How Do I Turn the Jets Off in an Emergency?. If the air keeps running after the fourth press or the two second hold, go on to the fork below.

Which Pump Is It? Trace the Tube

Remove the large access panel in front of the seat, magnetic on many models, and find the blue control box on the bottom frame. Each deck button has a small tube, and where it ends is the whole question. Ella builds each massage system with its own pump, and on an Independent Foot package the foot and calf jets run on a second hydro pump with its own button, its own intensity dial and its own circuit, so the seat jets and the foot jets are separate systems. The table lists where each button's tube normally ends and where the air lock is released.

What the differences mean: the stuck button is the same on every tub, a bellows held down by air trapped in its tube, but the trapped air can only escape at the far end of that tube. If you pull the air button's tube at the blue box when the runaway pump is a hydro pump fed through a white nut, nothing changes and you will think the box has failed. Trace first, then release. Hoses on the wrong nipples are a separate fault with a similar feel, covered in Why Won't the Air and Water Jets Run at the Same Time?.

Releasing the Lock at the Blue Control Box

1. Leave the breaker off. A pump that runs with no water above the jets is permanently damaged, and that damage is not covered.
2. Find the tube from the stuck button at the box. A button that stays down on the deck is an air lock.
3. Pull the tube off its nipple. The button should pop up on the deck.
4. Push the tube back onto the nipple with a twist, and check that the lock nut at the button end is tight.
5. Fill with water above the highest jets, restore power, and press the button once. You should hear a click inside the box as the relay closes.
6. Step the air down through its presses, or press the water button a second time, and confirm the pump stops.

The first video on this page shows this exact routine on a bench: a button stuck in the down position, the red tube pulled off the control box so the button pops up, the tube reconnected, and the audible click inside the box when the button is pressed.

Releasing the Lock at the Pump

On a hydro button whose hose enters a white nut on the pump, the air escapes there instead. Find the white nut where the red hose meets the pump, next to the pump's power cable. Loosen the nut, pull the hose off for a second, then reseat it and retighten the nut. Fill above the highest jets before power goes back on, press the button once for the click, and press again to stop. On tubs with separate seat and foot hydro pumps each pump has its own button and intensity dial, so make sure you are at the pump that was running. The foot pump also has its own GFCI or breaker to check, which Why Did My Foot Jets Stop Working? covers.

If the Pump Still Starts on Its Own

Check where the air pump is plugged in. The second video on this page shows the air massage control box with its three prong power inlet, the connector for the air pump and the nipple for the push button, and a pump plugged into the wall outlet rather than that connector runs continuously. If the plug is right and the button pops up but the pump still runs, run the control box reset, reconnect each labeled line and test every function. A few configurations need the box set to blink three times rather than four, so note the blink count you set, and check that the air and water hoses are not swapped on the box. If you suspect moisture inside the air line, the team can confirm the next step with your model and serial number.

If the button releases but the pump keeps running, or the air lock keeps coming back, open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support or call your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850 with your serial number, which function was running, whether the GFCI tripped, a photo of the blue control box with its cords and tubes, and a short video of the press.

Related Guides

• My walk-in tub turned on by itself: the air massage Auto-Purge is normal
• Why Does My Air Massage Stay on One Speed?
• Blue Control Box Has No Power Light, or the Air Pump Runs Constantly: Diagnosis, Replacement and Returning the Old Box

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