Whale Smartflo UV0814 water pump failure

[JonP]

I was wondering if any forum members have had problems with their Whale water pumps ? Whilst using the caravan last year, i noticed that the pump would start at random times without any of the taps being on.. it would run for a few seconds before switching itself off again, and seemed to be losing pressure, although there were no obvious signs of leaks... i filled the system a few weeks ago, and all seemed fine until a couple of hours later i noticed a small puddle creeping out from under the edge of the seatbox. Upon investigation, the area surrounding the pump was very wet, and when the pump was dried with a towel, after a couple of minutes a weep started to appear from the pump body. I drained the system and disconnected the pump, and upon removal, it looked to me like the problem had been going on for some time, completely unnoticed, as there were rust marks on the body.

/sites/practicalcaravan.com/files/images/medium_DSC_0061%20%282%29.jpg

I have tried to attach an image showing what i mean, but its not particularly clear. I contacted Oxford Caravans whom i bought the caravan from, and who service the van every year for me. They advised that because the van is manufactured in 2008, the pump is now out of warranty, so i'll have to pay for the replacement pump myself.. They didnt have one in stock, but could get one for £113... After checking on the internet, i got one for £88 inc vat and delivery, which is a bit better, but still a cost and a lot of hassle that i could do without...
However, i am a little worried that my pump has failed after only 4 years of use ( 5 or 6 weeks each year) and wondered whether there is a common fault with them, and perhaps i should be looking at a different brand of pump instead..
Any advice welcome

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Jon,

with a pump at four years old it will almost certainly been through a few storage cycles when the weather has been cold enough to freeze.

Now I am not familiar with the detail of the whale pumps, but I assume from your picture it will be a displacement or diaphragm pump.

If water remains inside the pump and it freezes, when the ice forms it expands in volume and can and will damage diaphragm and also the casings. (It will also damage impeller/submersible type pumps)

Do be certain to get all the water out of heaters, pipes taps and pumps before the winter lay up.

 

[colin-yorkshire1]

hi jon P,
I would echo the post from the prof it does seem to be a freezing problem, obviously you have a inboard pump and some water is left in the pump after draining, I doubt if it is the age of the pump, as I have exactly the same pump fitted to the recirculating system of a fishtank that runs 24/7 and has done so for the last 3years. with no sign of rust or leakage the price has gone up a bit since I bought mine off fleabay though then it was £37.50 post free, incidentally there was a thread running that dealt with flushing air through the system http://www.practicalcaravan.com/forum/equipment-accessories/using-air-obtain-fresh-water while it may not do what it says regarding fresh water something similar could get all the water out of the pump during lay up so it does not happen again.
regarding the pump switching on and off during use, this may well have been due to a leaking gland losing pressure, but actually is quite normal as the pressure sensor detects changes in the system, ie water temprature and air space in the hot water heater and allows the pump to top up the tank, some even turn off the pump at night as it can be quite annoying,

 

[DeliDave_]

Mine froze a few years ago and I had to replace it.When I lay the van up for winter I blow the water out of the pipes and then remove the pump which as you probably know is a five minute job and drain it in the sink as ther is still a small amount of water in ther.On the Bailey setup the wires are different colours from the caravan wiring to the pump wiring so I have marked them to save mistakes.

 

[JTQ]

You can run these pumps dry for quite long enough to make sure you full empty it prior to a cold snap. I had an early version which lasted throughout the 11 years I owned the van and we were very regular caravans so it had a lot of use.

 

[ProfJohnL]

I would like to add a proviso to JTQ's comment.
Diapgragm pumps are les ssuceptable to damage by running dry, as the motor does not rely on the passage of water to cool it.

Unfortunately all current designs of submersible pumps enclose the motor in a plastic housing which is designed to utilise water around it to help keep the motor cool. If a sub pump is run for more than about a minute, the absence of water around the motor housing leads to increasing motor temperature which can soften and allow the plastic housings to distort or thermally damaging the main shaft seal.

 

[Gafferbill]

Prof.....the pump in question is not a submersible pump.

Jon P ..........it might be wortwhile contacting Whale customer service (which is first class) to see if their replacement Pump head spare part would be a cheaper option that might cure any leaks and frost damage.

Contact numbers on their website or..........
Whale Care and Support

For Water systems advice call +44 (0)28 9127 0531

 

[ProfJohnL]

Thank you Gaffer, I am fully aware that Jon's pump was not submersible, I only added the information following JQTs commenst which could have led some one to assume it was safe to let a sub pump run dry.

 

[SEMPTIE]

I too have just had to replace one of these pumps due to leaving a small amount of water in it over winter and it froze.
Switched it on and it pumped water all over the floor, never new so little fluid can get into so many spaces.
Anyhow, you can buy replacement heads, if the motor is ok, off Ebay at around £44.00
Part Number AK1318 Whale Smartflo Head.
Regards
Simon
UPDATE: Went and removed pump yesterday (11/3) due to icy weather, I`m not going to take any chances on it freezing again.

 

[JTQ]

Thank you
Gaffer, I am fully aware that Jon's pump was not submersible, I only added the
information following JQTs commenst which could have led some one to assume it
was safe to let a sub pump run dry.

Hopefully
nobody would be daft enough to assume from my comments under the thread heading

“Whale Smartflo UV0814 water pump
failure”, that I was talking about
other pumps or even pumps of a totally differing technology?.

 

[joeby]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2293022/Were-losing-1bn-refunds-Shoppers-ignorant-return-rights-items-SIX-YEARS-purchase.html
i found this article in the paper today about returning goods up to 6 years after purchase ,

 

[Tarapoochy]

Hi everyone,

After having the same problem with this pump, and finding that the pump would not prime without holding the water container above the pump! (there are no leaks or dripping taps!) I decided to take the pump apart and see if I could fix it. I succeeded and here is a great tip for those with an on board whale pump:

First having removed the pump undo the 4 screws in the base (remove the rubber feet to get at them - they just pull out sideways) and pull the pump base off the motor. Best to keep the motor down and pump body up as there are a couple of plastic bits that operate the pressure micro switch and they can fall out, but it's pretty obvious how they go back in if they do fall out! Then there is a screw down the centre of the metal cam that holds the whole pump body together. Once that is removed the pump body comes apart. Now you have the body apart you will find 5 small screws that holds the base on. Remove these. In the base you will find 4 large and 4 small grey rubbery one way valves set in the black plastic base. Mine were filthy and had bits of lime scale on them. I think one set are "in" valves and one set "out" valves. I managed to gently ease them out, clean them, smear them with a VERY little Vaseline and push them back in. You need to make sure they go completely back in place and sit nice and flush!

Reassembly is the opposite of dismantling, but make sure the 2 bits of plastic for the pressure switch are in the right place as you put it all together.

The pump then primes perfectly and can be left on overnight without randomly running for a few seconds!

Although this is a long description, the whole process only takes half an hour or so and saves loads of hassle or a new pump! This is the second time I have done this on a 6 year old van and pump so it seems to fix it for 2-3 years.

Hope this helps anyone with this problem...