Interested In Advertising? | Contact Us Here
Warning!

 

Welcome to Clean It Up; the UK`s largest cleaning forum with over 34,000 members

 

Please login or register to post and reply to topics.      

 

Forgot your password? Click here

lozsing

  • Posts: 406
pump problem any ideas
« on: September 29, 2012, 09:05:04 am »
i have a surflo pump and digital varistream controller , all workd well 99% of the time but last week twice i turned tap on and no water . went back to van had a fiddle about dicconnected from hose heel etc and evenually pump slowly kicked in but did sound slow to start , but then worked ok again . any ideas please .

roundbuilder

Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #1 on: September 29, 2012, 10:01:31 am »
Pressure switch is on its way out mate.

lozsing

  • Posts: 406
Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #2 on: September 29, 2012, 11:22:21 am »
but i thought the pressure switch isnt used on pump when you are using a varistream its by passed

LWC

  • Posts: 6824
Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #3 on: September 29, 2012, 11:30:07 am »
Where is the pump positioned in relation to the outlet on tank?

Dave Willis

Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #4 on: September 29, 2012, 01:25:23 pm »
Controller shut down? Battery voltage too low to fire it up?

NJWindowCleaning

  • Posts: 521
Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #5 on: September 29, 2012, 02:31:43 pm »
Ditch the variflow you don't need that as like mine went down and the pressure switch works great and it was fitted when i brought the system in 2006 and never had a problem with the pressure switch but you might have air getting into the system this could be the result when you go back and fiddle around when you say that you disconnect items and it works fine.

Hope somewhere there is help from what i have put :-)

lozsing

  • Posts: 406
Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #6 on: September 29, 2012, 02:49:33 pm »
Pumps about half way down tank been like that 2 .5 years no problem

lozsing

  • Posts: 406
Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #7 on: September 29, 2012, 02:50:33 pm »
When it starts again its ok so i dont think its a voltage problem

Mike #1

  • Posts: 4668
Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #8 on: September 29, 2012, 03:47:55 pm »
If you have driven from one location to the other , this can cause probs , as my water gets down in the tank throughout the day,   I  run the pump before connecting to hose reel to make sure its running at full pressure , Mike

Spruce

  • Posts: 8462
Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #9 on: September 29, 2012, 05:24:43 pm »
As is the situation with all problems, you need to go to the beginning and work forward to your pump.

If you use a seperate battery, is that fully charged? Is there a good connection between the battery and your cable - crocodile clips make for easy connection but they don't always make good connections. Check the cable for damage and then check the fuse and the fuse holder very carefully.

Can you boost you current battery by coupling it to another battery via jumper cables? Whilst its all connected up, does the pump run ok?

The Varistream is designed to replace the pressure switch on the bottom of the pump but some don't know this. Corroded contacts in the pressure switch can create all sorts of problems as my mate found out.

You say the system has worked perfectly so has anything changed at a similar time to when the problem started?

We found that the MK1 digital Varistreams were great. The current ones that also incorporate a battery condition feature drain the battery even when switched off. A new 85 amp battery fully charged was only 75% charged after a week of lying idle. Since we have installed an isolator switch, the van's alternator keeps that leisure battery fairly fully charged now, which it didn't before.

The earlier analogue Varistreams with the dial on the front did produce similar problems you describe. We found that the pressure adjustment on the blue pressure adjuster pot needs resetting from time to time. We unscrew the 4 screws and take off the front cover. On the back of this cover is a blue coloured adjuster. Remember where it is set, and then carefully with a small flat screwdriver turn that screw clockwise and then anticlockwise about 20 times. This is an old electronic trick that helps to reseat any connector tracks that have become corroded. Return the adjuster to its original setting, test and assemble.

If you have a split charge relay, is this working? With the engine running a volt meter across the terminals should read between 13.5 and 14.2 volts. If not, suspect fuse.

If your system is connected to the van's battery, does the pump run fine when the engine's running?

Sorry, but fault identification is a methodical process of elimination. Most likely either battery or poor connection somewhere IMHO.
Success is 1% inspiration, 98% perspiration and 2% attention to detail!

The older I get, the better I was ;)

SPE

Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #10 on: September 29, 2012, 06:26:13 pm »
sounds to me like air is getting in somewhere also.

rosskesava

  • Posts: 17015
Re: pump problem any ideas
« Reply #11 on: September 29, 2012, 06:29:31 pm »
sounds to me like air is getting in somewhere also.

+1
Just chant..... Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. It's beats chanting Tory Tory or Labour Labour.