F44 Cruisair not pumping water

[WayWeGo]

Sounds like you are having the same problem I was last year. Our boat is still not in the water, so I don't know what will happen this year.

If I figure it out before you do, I will be sure to post here. Otherwise, I am eagerly awaiting your solution.

[captainmaniac]

Finally made it back for the next round of testing. My back and my chest hate me (bending in weird ways and laying on top of exhaust systems hurts a bit). Was also fun to do this in 35C temperatures (95F). Think I am ordering a new pump tomorrow... In short:

• Inductive AC tester indicates pump is getting power, and I can her the pump hum.
• I have a strainer between thru-hull and wet side of pump. Pulling bowl off of strainer and opening seacock I get good water flow (so thru-hull is fine and line / strainer is not plugged).
• Putting strainer bowl back on but disconnecting pump wet side cover and opening seacock, good water flow through pump cover -- water is getting to the pump and impeller (again, no blockage).
• Reassemble pump but don't fully tighten cover down. Open seacock. Good flow of water from loose cover, so pump impeller is not airlocked.
• Turn Pump on while cover is still not tightened down - no change in leakage pattern or pressure. Even though pump is humming and water is present, impeller does not appear to be turning or building pressure.
• Tightened screws holding pump cover to pump to seal leak... know for sure that there is no air lock... still nothing, so impeller is definitely not turning.

Think I am down to 4 options at this point : magnetic drive system is not working, something stupid is going on and jamming things (even though I can spin impeller easily by hand), getting power but not really 120V, or not getting enough current through. If the problem is either of the first 2, a new pump fixes that. If I disconnect wiring and find the problem is one of the last 2, great (once I fix it). If it is not one of the last 2, I need a new pump, so may as well have one on hand! Add it to my spares if not needed (but I don't keep spare Diesels, like Paul...)

Guess I can't really complain if a 37 year old pump finally gives up the ghost... would just prefer it tell me that in September so I can get it dealt with before the next season... And really hope a new pump does resolve the problem! Papa wants to spend some time aboard this summer, and they are calling for it to be crazy hot this year.

Just have to figure out who I am calling tomorrow for pricing and availability... Hoping to have a new pump in hand to install before or over the July 1 long weekend. Norsupco (Northland Supply) as Canadian Cruisair suppliers are on the list. Not sure yet who else should be.

[WayWeGo]

On our pump that is acting the same way, I can remove the cover, turn on the A/C to "Start" to power the pump, and start the impeller by hand. Once I have done this, I shut off the A/C, put on the cover loosely and run the pump again. While it is running, I tighten the screws and open the seacock. This seems to get the pump running until we shut off the A/C for more than an hour or two.

The next time I have this problem, I am going to put in my spare pump. Since it came with the boat, I have no idea what shape it is in, but at least it will be more info to troubleshoot the problem. I am guessing that the bushing in the pump or the impeller are worn to the point that the magnetic field is unable to start the impeller rotating.

Please keep updating the thread!

[captainmaniac]

GBWM! (God Bless West Marine)... Even though they are going out of business and shutting down in Canada, they have now performed magic for me twice! I still need to do a bench test before the weekend, but picked up a new Dometic LC-3CP-MD pump today.

This morning I called one of the only remaining West Marine's in Canada (30 minutes from my office [they are all being shut down when their leases expire, and WM is holding back on shipping them any stock]). Saw the pump on the West Marine web site, and thought I would give it a shot to check on pricing and how long it would take to order one in. Gave them the West Marine number, and guy in the store said it is not a pump they normally stock but computer says they have 1. 99% of the time that means computer error and they don't have diddly, but he said he would go see if he could find it in the back somewhere.

An hour later I was out running an errand over lunch when my phone rang. YES they did have it. Brand new, box never opened. With where I had to go for my errand, I was only 5 minutes away from the store, so was a piece of cake to pop over and grab it! Price : < $400CDN. When I called the Canadian distributor for Cruisair and Dometic, their price for the same pump was $475 + shipping. Another retailer : $505. So not only did I get it same day, I got it for about $100 less than the distributor would get it to me for!

Hopefully I can test it over the next couple of nights to make sure impeller spins and get it installed this weekend, and have it work properly on the boat too!

For those that care - the other time WM performed magic was when one of my Autohelm / Raymarine ST60 TriData display heads quit. Discontinued product, no longer available. Replacement product won't work with the old transducers, so have to redo the entire system (speed and depth transducers, 2 heads, plus all the wiring). Thought maybe I could find a 'mom and pop' marine parts place that might have an old ST60 TriData display gathering dust in the back room. Found one at West Marine! A Toronto location had it collecting dust, so the Oakville store had it shipped to them for me to pick up!

With how the day has gone, gotta get a lottery ticket for tomorrow's draw!

[captainmaniac]

Ok... took way longer than it should have, but it feels good to see the boat finally being able to take a pee again!

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I ended up doing a half and half solution - reusing the pump cover and housing from the old pump so I didn't have to disturb any plumbing connections, but the motor and all other guts are new.

The operation of the new pump definitely has a different 'feel' than the old one. With the new one I can easily spin the impeller - you can tell there is something magnetic going on because you feel a bit of resistance, but not much resistance to spinning it and it can spin for a couple of times bit before finally stopping again. The old one felt very chunky - as if the magnetic forces would only let the impeller sit in one of 8-10 positions and it took more force to move it from position to position (if that makes any sense) - trying to spin it you would get at most a half turn out of it...

[El L Sea]

At least you are not dealing with the accelerated growth from our nutrient laden Lake Okeechobee discharges here in Florida. It’s hot and the air is running nonstop, so this is about 2 weeks growth.

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