chametzoo
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Post by chametzoo on Jan 8, 2016 16:08:30 GMT -8
Hey All… Happy new year.
I went to winterize my water system today… Detached the the line to the input side of the pump and replaced with same fitting, but with a tube going into an RV anti-freeze jug. When I run the pump, it hums… but will not draw fluid from the jug. I know this because the tube from the jug to the input of the pump is clear. None of the pink fluid is moving at all. Is this a case of a bad pump diaphragm, therefore no pressurizing within the pump?
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turbodaddy
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Post by turbodaddy on Jan 8, 2016 18:47:35 GMT -8
This is going to sound stupid, but... you may have to suck on the tube (or faucet) to get the fluid into the pump. Then let it run for a few seconds. Sounds nasty, but all you have to do is spit it out after. It might be better to just completely drain the system, then there is no problem.
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chametzoo
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Post by chametzoo on Jan 8, 2016 18:55:39 GMT -8
Not at all stupid… siphoning fluid into the pump to get it started. Though… I may do that with some fresh water to start, so I don't get a mouthful of anti-freeze ;-) ! Before the trailer restoration, the pump was working fine, so I'm surprised that it's not working now. I'll give it a try. Thanks.
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chametzoo
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Post by chametzoo on Jan 8, 2016 19:37:49 GMT -8
BTW… the system is completely drained.
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Ten
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Post by Ten on Jan 8, 2016 20:30:53 GMT -8
BTW… the system is completely drained. One should never really assume that this is the case. Most of the original plumbing jobs in the trailers were run just to get the water where it needed to be. In doing so there usually were several sags and dips in the piping that will hold water, sometimes enough to freeze and break lines. Pushing antifreeze through the system is a good idea. It only needs enough to show up pink at all the inlets. Remember that the hot side (if so equipped) will feed through the water heater, so blowing in will first hit the heater before the fixtures. None of this comment applies if you have completely replaced the trailer's plumbing and have made sure that all will drain back. I am curious to know...with the pump in your system hooked to the holding tank, does the water run from the tank to the pump, and feed by gravity? If the pump is not self-priming then it will not be able to pick up from the jug (or tank for that matter) if the liquid level is below the pump. |
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chametzoo
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Post by chametzoo on Jan 8, 2016 21:10:40 GMT -8
BTW… the system is completely drained. One should never really assume that this is the case. Most of the original plumbing jobs in the trailers were run just to get the water where it needed to be. In doing so there usually were several sags and dips in the piping that will hold water, sometimes enough to freeze and break lines. Pushing antifreeze through the system is a good idea. It only needs enough to show up pink at all the inlets. Remember that the hot side (if so equipped) will feed through the water heater, so blowing in will first hit the heater before the fixtures. None of this comment applies if you have completely replaced the trailer's plumbing and have made sure that all will drain back. I am curious to know...with the pump in your system hooked to the holding tank, does the water run from the tank to the pump, and feed by gravity? If the pump is not self-priming then it will not be able to pick up from the jug (or tank for that matter) if the liquid level is below the pump. Good point Ten… the system is as drained as I could make it. I am not aware if the pump is self priming. It was an older pump that was re-used even as the piping system was created anew in the trailer. As I found the trailer, before restoration, the pump worked by drawing water out of the fresh tank and not by gravity feed. It is possible, via Turbodaddy's comment about priming, that the pump needs to be primed somehow in order to get the anti-freeze flowing out of the jug. I would say that the drawing level of the tube in the anti-freeze jug may be slightly above the typical liquid level of the normal supply tank. I will look at all of this tomorrow and report back. The pump may just need to be helped a little to get started; either by syphoning via Turbo's suggestion or by changing the liquid level of the jug. Good thinking all… if all else fails, a more modern pump may be in order… We'll see tomorrow ;-) |
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chametzoo
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Post by chametzoo on Jan 9, 2016 10:55:23 GMT -8
At this point I'm pretty sure that I need to siphon start fluid into the tube coming out of the anti-freeze jug and poise the jug above the pump so that the flow will reach the pump and get it primed. The pump simply will not pull liquid out of the jug without liquid being present in the pump. When the pump is connected to the fresh water tank… that's always the case: The feed line of the tank is of course at the bottom, at the floor, where the pump inlet is, so fluid is always present at the pump inlet under those circumstances. Looks like I'm getting a lesson in physics today… ;-)
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mobiltec
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Post by mobiltec on Jan 9, 2016 16:15:51 GMT -8
A new pump is $100 and the new Shurflos are self priming. But do yourself a favor and buy one at an RV parts place. That way if it doesn't work right out of the box you can take it back and get a new one. Ask me how I know this....
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chametzoo
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Post by chametzoo on Jan 9, 2016 22:00:45 GMT -8
A new pump is $100 and the new Shurflos are self priming. But do yourself a favor and buy one at an RV parts place. That way if it doesn't work right out of the box you can take it back and get a new one. Ask me how I know this.... VTS has the Shurflo "revolution" model at a good price. That one is very quiet and self priming. 55 PSI… 3 Gal/minute. Is there another model you like? I may swap pumps even though this one is working… but old and somewhat noisy… and not self priming... |
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Post by vikx on Jan 9, 2016 22:16:41 GMT -8
Remember when you turn the pump on after inserting the tube into antifreeze to OPEN a faucet. I learned that the hard way....
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kirkadie
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Post by kirkadie on Jan 10, 2016 7:06:39 GMT -8
The great thing about this forum is letting others 'learn the hard way'. I get to learn the easy way from the comforts of my desk. Carry on pioneers...
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mobiltec
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Post by mobiltec on Jan 10, 2016 8:43:16 GMT -8
A new pump is $100 and the new Shurflos are self priming. But do yourself a favor and buy one at an RV parts place. That way if it doesn't work right out of the box you can take it back and get a new one. Ask me how I know this.... VTS has the Shurflo "revolution" model at a good price. That one is very quiet and self priming. 55 PSI… 3 Gal/minute. Is there another model you like? I may swap pumps even though this one is working… but old and somewhat noisy… and not self priming... Yes the 4008 "Revolution" is what I buy. Self priming and can run dry without damage. Make sure you get the strainer too. It will keep any chunks from going through the pump.  |
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chametzoo
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Post by chametzoo on Jan 10, 2016 11:01:21 GMT -8
I think I'm going to go with the 4800 as advised. It will be nice to have a quieter pump with a little more umph! Found a great price, $58 shipped from PPL Motorhomes in Texas.
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mobiltec
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Post by mobiltec on Jan 10, 2016 11:18:43 GMT -8
I think I'm going to go with the 4800 as advised. It will be nice to have a quieter pump with a little more umph! Found a great price, $58 shipped from PPL Motorhomes in Texas. That's 4008... I don't do business with PPL any longer. I do use Etrailer. PPL screwed the holy you know what outta me. I will give them a bad rap every time I hear their name now. They sold me an $800 toilet that is no longer in production and the main reason I wanted this particular toilet was because I could hook water directly to it. I even asked them about that on the phone. Well unfortunately the $150 OPTIONAL ACCESSORY that you must buy to make that work is no longer made. They told me to just fill it with buckets of water. I made my own ACCESSORY to do the job and it works but PPL is on my black list now. |
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chametzoo
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Post by chametzoo on Jan 10, 2016 11:21:25 GMT -8
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