Forums › General Discussion › Water Pump (ing) Issues

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    • #67612
      Anonymous

      A curious condition has arisen.  Went to the boat after 7 weeks oh non-use (work). Started the engine and only a trickle of water poured from the exhaust.  Changed the water pump impeller, primed the system and still, only a trickle. Primed everything again, same issue. Could it be growth on the hull clogging the water intake? Where is the intake located?  Maybe I could dive in and clear it.  The hull has not been scrubbed for 3 months and we get a bit of algae growth in my Marina.All suggestions welcome.
      Bill
      SV Running Tab, P424 #86
       

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    • #73302
      john stevenson
      Participant

      Bill,
      Have you checked your raw water strainer?

      On Thu, Jul 23, 2009 at 7:06 PM, Bill Emberley < ([email][/email])> wrote:

      Quote:
      A curious condition has arisen.  Went to the boat after 7 weeks oh non-use (work). Started the engine and only a trickle of water poured from the exhaust.  Changed the water pump impeller, primed the system and still, only a trickle. Primed everything again, same issue. Could it be growth on the hull clogging the water intake? Where is the intake located?  Maybe I could dive in and clear it.  The hull has not been scrubbed for 3 months and we get a bit of algae growth in my Marina. All suggestions welcome.
      Bill
      SV Running Tab, P424 #86
       

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    • #73303
      quent
      Participant

      John makes a good point. Also when you clean the water strainer, then open the seacock to see if water flows in.
      When you replaced the impeller, was it missing any parts? Sometimes pieces of rubber will lodge in the pump in or out connections.
      Quent

    • #73304
      Anonymous

      Not yet.  Is it a simple cleaning job?

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    • #73305
      john stevenson
      Participant

      Depends on what kind you have.  Normally you just have to close the seacock, unscrew the cap the strainer, remove the strainer basket and clean it out with a dock hose.

      On Thu, Jul 23, 2009 at 7:41 PM, Bill Emberley < ([email][/email])> wrote:

      Quote:
      Not yet.  Is it a simple cleaning job?

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    • #73306
      Anonymous

      Any ideas on where it is located, near the sea cock or the engine?  What the heck does it look like? I will have a look and report back. Thanks John!
      -Bill

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    • #73307
      Hull152_Patrick
      Spectator

      The strainer is the big bronze thing under the floorboard hatch by the trashcan where you can see the v-drive.
      Follow the hoses to the through hull, its on the starboard side of the boat.

      This is mine, but I just replaced it, yours will look different and likely be massively corroded if its original, mine looks sexy. 😉
      http://www.flickr.com/photos/deepplaya/3606365960/

      -p



      s/v Deep Playa | Pearson 424 #152 | http://www.DeepPlaya.com

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      Owners no more...
      Thanks Dawn and Patrick!

    • #73308
      Anonymous

      BILL

      It is probably green now, and has a line going through it from left to right, and it has wing bolt screw nuts, most likely, on top. Don’t open it till you know the thru hull is closed, the thru hull is usually way off to the right in this area and hard to get to. You close that thru hull tight, and then unscrew the wing nuts, the water comes in raw and goes thru a strainer that’s sort of like a colander looking thing, except a lot smaller. Clean that puppy out, put it all back together tightly and carefully and then open the thru hull again. Hope this helps.

      Wavemaker

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    • #73309
      madsailor
      Moderator

      Oddly enough, I had the same problem.  My strainer was clean.  I replaced the pump with a spare one I have.  Still a trickle.

      The culprit?  The zincs in the heat exchanger over a period of time had turned into zinc oxide as they're supposed to and then proceeded to clog the tubes (3/4 of them).

      Cleaned them out with a bit of wire and hey! presto! great water flow.

      Bob

      On Thu, Jul 23, 2009 at 8:46 PM, Thatcher A. Stone < ([email][/email])> wrote:

      Quote:
      BILL
       
      It is probably green now, and has a line going through it from left to right, and it has wing bolt screw nuts, most likely, on top. Don’t open it till you know the thru hull is closed, the thru hull is usually way off to the right in this area and hard to get to. You close that thru hull tight, and then unscrew the wing nuts, the water comes in raw and goes thru a strainer that’s sort of like a colander looking thing, except a lot smaller. Clean that puppy out, put it all back together tightly and carefully and then open the thru hull again. Hope this helps.
       
      Wavemaker
       
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    • #73310
      Phil Fontaine
      Participant

      Bill,
      While you have the strainer out for cleaning open the seacock to be sure you have good flow up to that point. If not, ou should be able to clean out the inlet to the seacock from inside the boat with a screwdriver. If you have an elbow at the seacock ou will have to remove that first.
      Phil Fontaine
      Aurora

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    • #73311
      Anonymous

      Great news,
      I did locate the strainer right next to the thru-hull pulled out the screen and it was a mess of gunk and debris. Hosed it off, put her back in and voila, water came a gushing. What a relief. I also agree with the thought of changing the zincs and making sure there isn’t any crud in the raw water lines. That’s next week, this weekend is for sailing!
      Thanks for all of your advise, it saved the day.

      Side note: Patrick, your Shaefer screw is in the mail and I am trying to locate the second one for Phillip

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    • #73312
      sumocean
      Participant

      Last time I had that problem I opened the strainer and almost wet my pants when the eel came slithering out.

      Linus

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    • #73313
      kalinowski
      Participant

      Another thing that can reduce water flow significantly is a plugged up v-drive. I just had mine rebuilt.

      When the top cover of the casing was removed, the salt buildup had reduced the water flow path to about the diameter of a pencil. It had to be sand blasted out!

      After reassembly and installation of the unit, I have full and healthy water flow. It’s noticeable on the temp gage as well.

      A word to the wise. If you rebuild the v-drive, be sure to bake the casing to remove all moisture from the metal. Then paint. My guy baked all except the top cover plate. The metal cracked when installing it. I’ll have to machine a new cover plate now. 30 year old cast iron is brittle!

      Dan Kalinowski
      Lady Leanne (#135)
      Honolulu

    • #73349
      RichCarter
      Participant

      Something similar happens to me every now and then. I suck some seaweed or something into the engine intake and it cloggs. I back-flush it with the shower hose and blow the obstruction back out.

      Regards
      Rich


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    • #73354
      Anonymous

      Rich,

      Clogging your engine’s raw water intake “every now and then” sounds more frequent than one might wish. I’m sure you have a raw water strainer between the thru-hull and the V-drive/engine, which should stop virtually all the debris that gets in past the thru-hull and is easily inspected and cleaned. However, it’s possible to suck some plastic up against or into the thru-hull itself. To prevent this, consider mounting an external strainer plate over the thru-hull on the outside of the hull. I’ve done this on my last couple of boats (including Silver Heels) and have never (knock on wood) had the intake clog even once.

      Tor
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      Silver Heels, P-424 #17
      http://www.SilverHeels.us
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


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    • #73355
      quent
      Participant

      In the Chesapeake summer, if you run engine or genset when the boat is not in motion, cloging the water intake with jellyfish is not uncommon. External strainers help if they are large enough.
      Quent

    • #73357
      RichCarter
      Participant

      Tor,
      Its on the list, a very long list…
      Rich

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    • #73358
      Anonymous

      Gee, you have one of those, too?

      Tor
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      Silver Heels, P-424 #17
      http://www.SilverHeels.us
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      Quote:

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    • #73360
      Anonymous

      Quent,

      Yes, the strainer plate over the engine’s raw water intake should be large, not one of those 3″ diameter round things, for exactly the reason you mention. That way there’s a better chance that even when something is covering some of the plate – jellyfish, plastic or whatever – some cooling water may still get through. Wish I had a photo of the one I put on Silver Heels. It’s around 8″ long x 4″ wide, if memory serves, and shaped like a wedge of cheese with the thick end being maybe 1½” wide. The low end of the wedge faces forward, both to reduce drag and to create a bit of a scoop effect. I suppose there’s never a 100% guarantee of it remaining at least partially clear in all conditions, but it’ll have a better chance than most other approaches.

      BTW, I did put a smaller, round strainer plate over the intake thru-hull for my seawater intake manifold, since it doesn’t create nearly the suction that the engine does. That water also passes through a separate raw water strainer inside, between the seacock and the manifold.

      Tor
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      Silver Heels, P-424 #17
      http://www.SilverHeels.us
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


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    • #73361
      john stevenson
      Participant

      Tor,
      This must be similar to what you are using.  I was tempted to put one on during last year's haul out, but never got around to it.  2008 was the worst year I can remember for sea nettles on the Chesapeake.  It may just have been a local phenomenon in our creek off the Patuxent, but I was clearing the raw water strainer nearly every day.  My refrigeration pump (small March) produces plenty of suction to pull in the jellies.  Made me really question why I went with a water cooled compressor.
      Here in New Bern, NC no jellies that I can see.
      One of my concerns about the external strainer was that I might be exchanging one clog for another.  The jellies are sticky and if sucked against a strainer when the boat is not underway they will likely stick and buildup.  Now I would have a clog, but on the outside of the boat.  The only way to clear that clog (other than going for a swim with the jellies) would be to disconnect the intake hose from the internal strainer and blow the jellies off the exernal strainer with air or water pressure, something Rich described a few posts back in this thread.
      That concern aside, I may get organized for my next haul out and put these over the two intakes.  I've never had a clog on the engine/generator intake, but those systems don't get used much while dockside.
      One thing I don't see spec'd on these strainers is their effective opening size.  That is, what size strainer provides the equivalent or greater water flow of a 1″ thru-hull.  I guess you just go with the biggest one you fit.

      On Mon, Aug 3, 2009 at 9:54 AM, Silver Heels < ([email][/email])> wrote:

      Quote:
      Quent,
       
      Yes, the strainer plate over the engine's raw water intake should be large, not one of those 3″ diameter round things, for exactly the reason you mention. That way there's a better chance that even when something is covering some of the plate – jellyfish, plastic or whatever – some cooling water may still get through. Wish I had a photo of the one I put on Silver Heels. It's around 8″ long x 4″ wide, if memory serves, and shaped like a wedge of cheese with the thick end being maybe 1½” wide. The low end of the wedge faces forward, both to reduce drag and to create a bit of a scoop effect. I suppose there's never a 100% guarantee of it remaining at least partially clear in all conditions, but it'll have a better chance than most other approaches.
       
      BTW, I did put a smaller, round strainer plate over the intake thru-hull for my seawater intake manifold, since it doesn't create nearly the suction that the engine does. That water also passes through a separate raw water strainer inside, between the seacock and the manifold.
       
      Tor
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      Silver Heels, P-424 #17
      http://www.SilverHeels.us
      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


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