From: John De Armond
Newsgroups: rec.outdoors.rv-travel
Subject: Re: Fresh water pump issue
Date: Sat, 12 Aug 2006 03:45:27 -0400
Message-ID: <qf1rd2p82h6q16459ip8q2f3g7o0hfp95m@4ax.com>

On Sat, 12 Aug 2006 05:16:59 GMT, Richard Ferguson
<fergusonOMITsculpture@omitthisatt.net> wrote:

>On our last trip we were annoyed to have our fresh water pump cycle on
>every 15 minutes or so.  It took some persuading to get my wife to stop
>tightening up the faucets that were not dripping.  I took the time to
>look everywhere I could for evidence of a water leak, and came up dry
>(bad joke).  So that points to the pump check valve.
>
>We have a Surflow pump, I think the model 2088, although I need to
>verify it.  Is it worth ordering and installing a check valve, or just
>throw it away and replace it?  Has anyone ever rebuilt a Surflow pump?
>Did it work out?

The first thing I'd do is disassemble the pump assembly and clean out
the valves.  Undoubtedly, there is some crud or a grain of sand
holding one valve open.

Sureflo pumps rarely wear out.  I've had mine run dry for over a month
with no damage.  I HAVE had to do the above procedure more than once
when the thing started cycling too much.

>
>I know that I could get a better, nicer pump, but am reluctant to spend
>the money, the shower seems pretty reasonable to us.  However, a quieter
>pump might be nice.  The only downside of a quieter pump is that you
>might not hear it run, it might just run continuously, especially if the
>water tank is empty.

Yeah, that can be a problem.  That is sorta how mine ran for a month.
You can make your existing pump a LOT quieter if you connect it to the
system with flexible tubing instead of that rigid PEX or equiv that
most RV mfrs use.  On mine I removed the fittings, installed PEX to
hose barb fittings and then ran lengths of that fabric reinforced
clear PVC tubing that you can buy at the big box stores.  That and
suspending the pump by a couple of stubby bungee cords made it almost
completely quiet.

John

From: John De Armond
Newsgroups: rec.outdoors.rv-travel
Subject: Re: Accumulator for my Prowler?
Date: Sun, 19 Mar 2006 22:34:00 -0500
Message-ID: <038s12lnhncsf97o43vktgqtk5hrmc8d8d@4ax.com>

On Sun, 19 Mar 2006 02:56:52 GMT, RichA <richatpa*nospam*@epix.net>
wrote:


>  Look at trying this for quieting it down, especially if your pump is
>easy to get at.  First make sure the pump is mounted on rubber supports,
>if not go to a hardware store and see if you can find some rubber
>grommets or something to mount it on.  Then look at what kind of water
>line leaves the pump.  If it is the hard plastic type, try taking about
>a 2 foot length or so of drinking quality hose in the correct size.
>Hook that to the output of the pump form a loop and hook the other end
>to the hard plastic pipe.  Make sure the loop can't bang on anything.
>The hose and the loop will absorb any pulses and help keep the plastic
>pipe from banging.  Also if you see any loose plastic pipe try either
>attaching it to the floor or use spray foam to keep it from rattling
>around.

Yes, good advice.  Both my and my mom's MHs had the pumps hard-plumbed
into the system.  Both rattled like an engine on kerosene!  I used the
braid-reinforced clear tygon tubing available at the big box stores,
as my flex media.  Almost total silence now.

One other important thing to do is look around the rig and find any
places where the plastic piping can rattle against surrounding
materials.  Another source of noise.

> Those small accumulators help a little bit.  I put one on my last MH to
>try and cut back on the cycling.  You would really need a larger
>accumulator to stop most of the on/off cycles when taking a shower.  I
>wouldn't bother with that small one.  They do make a bigger one but it's
>a lot more bucks.  Instead of going that route you would be better off
>to just get one of the new electronic sensor pumps.  Just stopping the
>noise might make your present pump a lot more acceptable.   It's a
>pretty cheap fix, just takes a few bucks and some time.  If it doesn't
>work then your next best bet is a new electronic pump..

I was able to solve the pressure fluctuation problems in the shower
with only the small accumulator and some fiddling with the pressure
switch.  The key to making the pressure accumulator work is to get the
air pressure correct in it.  It takes some fiddling.  When the
pressure is correct, the accumulator is just about empty when the pump
kicks ON.

The way to figure this out is to connect an ohmmeter across the
pressure switch, let the system pump up and then slowly bleed off
water with the pump OFF.  The water should quit flowing shortly after
the pressure switch turns ON.  If it quits flowing vigorously before
the switch turns on, remove some air pressure.  If it runs for some
time after the switch turns on, add some pressure.

I never did figure out a methodical method of setting the pressure
switch for minimum dead-band (the span between turn on and turn off).
Ideally it should be in the 5 psi range.  This causes minimal flow
variation during a shower.  I just twiddled with the screw(s) on the
switch while I had a pressure gauge attached to the system with a
little water bleeding off.

My last new pump came with a switch that only had one adjustment (turn
off, I believe) so I disconnected it and hooked up a conventional
well-pump pressure switch.

John