XLD Posted February 15, 2022 Report Share Posted February 15, 2022 My Whale water pump has started to fire up every 10 minutes. I can't find any leaks in the system. My calorifier is above the pump. Could the water in the calorifier be draining back down and making the pressure drop? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Mack Posted February 15, 2022 Report Share Posted February 15, 2022 Well if you have a leak, water will be coming out somewhere - e.g. dripping tap, weeping joint, pressure relief valve on calorifier dribbling. If there are no such leaks then the problem may be some debris in the non return valves in the pump allowing water to leak back from the pressurised pipework towards the water tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEngo Posted February 15, 2022 Report Share Posted February 15, 2022 Does your calorifier have a PRV (it should).? This may be leaking. Try twiddling the knob on the PRV. Look at the outlet from the PRV to see if it is weeping. Or could be pump valves as David above says. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulJ Posted February 15, 2022 Report Share Posted February 15, 2022 May or may not apply to you but a leaky valve on a loo is a good hidden way of losing water- especially if its a dump through where the bowl seal isnt brilliant. I can get at least half a kettle full before my pump kicks in- Ive seen other boats where three drips from the tap seems to do it - so would be much easier on my own boat to find that leak! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen-in-Wellies Posted February 15, 2022 Report Share Posted February 15, 2022 59 minutes ago, PaulJ said: can get at least half a kettle full before my pump kicks in- Ive seen other boats where three drips from the tap seems to do it - so would be much easier on my own boat to find that leak! Temporarily depressurising any accumulator in the cold water side could decrease the pump cycling time and increase the drip rate, making any leak easier to find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swift1894 Posted February 16, 2022 Report Share Posted February 16, 2022 (edited) 20 hours ago, BEngo said: Does your calorifier have a PRV (it should).? This may be leaking. Try twiddling the knob on the PRV. Look at the outlet from the PRV to see if it is weeping. Or could be pump valves as David above says. No drips from the PRV would indicate a problem with the pump if no leaks are apparent. Edited February 16, 2022 by swift1894 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MtB Posted February 16, 2022 Report Share Posted February 16, 2022 Water passing back up the pipe through the pump and back into the water tank will produce pump cycling like this too, without water escaping ANYWHERE! What type and model of Whale pump is it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slim Posted February 16, 2022 Report Share Posted February 16, 2022 1 minute ago, MtB said: Water passing back up the pipe through the pump and back into the water tank will produce pump cycling like this too, without water escaping ANYWHERE! What type and model of Whale pump is it? Simply turn off the valve from the water tank and see what happens. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen-in-Wellies Posted February 16, 2022 Report Share Posted February 16, 2022 To expand on what @Slim said. Does your water tank have a stop valve on the pipe to the pump? Most do. Is the water pump relatively close to the water tank? Immediately after the pump has run to pressurise the system, turn the tank stop valve off. See if the pump tries cycling again. This will tell if the pump is leaking backwards, or not. Obviously, don't open any taps while you are doing this test. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Brooks Posted February 16, 2022 Report Share Posted February 16, 2022 and if it does stop/largely reduce the cycling the fit a plumbers flap type NRV between tank and pump. make sure you orientate it correctly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen-in-Wellies Posted February 16, 2022 Report Share Posted February 16, 2022 9 minutes ago, Tony Brooks said: and if it does stop/largely reduce the cycling the fit a plumbers flap type NRV between tank and pump. make sure you orientate it correctly. Technically, installing the NRV backwards would also stop the pump from cycling. 😀 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Brooks Posted February 16, 2022 Report Share Posted February 16, 2022 Just now, Jen-in-Wellies said: Technically, installing the NRV backwards would also stop the pump from cycling. 😀 Yes, but upside down would allow the pump to run but achieve nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XLD Posted February 20, 2022 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2022 Thanks everyone for your help. I’m going to change the pump and see what happens. It will be in a few weeks but I’ll let you know the outcome👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XLD Posted April 11, 2022 Author Report Share Posted April 11, 2022 On 20/02/2022 at 23:39, XLD said: Thanks everyone for your help. I’m going to change the pump and see what happens. It will be in a few weeks but I’ll let you know the outcome👍 Renewed pump, end of problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackrose Posted April 11, 2022 Report Share Posted April 11, 2022 On 15/02/2022 at 14:04, Jen-in-Wellies said: Temporarily depressurising any accumulator in the cold water side could decrease the pump cycling time and increase the drip rate, making any leak easier to find. Which is why I installed my accumulator with an isolator valve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackrose Posted April 11, 2022 Report Share Posted April 11, 2022 As others have said, it was probably water seeping back from the pressurised side of the system to the low pressure side through the pump's own NRV - assuming it has one. I'd keep the old pump as a spare and see if you can replace the NRV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Brooks Posted April 11, 2022 Report Share Posted April 11, 2022 14 minutes ago, blackrose said: I'd keep the old pump as a spare and see if you can replace the NRV. I think there is no actual non-return valve, just a inlet and delivery valve per pumping chamber of which there may be three. The valves are made from a plastic film so if the OP can get the pump apart he may find he can clean the valve seat. There are overhaul kits for some pumps but for the priced and effort myself and others have concluded it is best all round just to fit a new pump. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Featured Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now