Water Pump Cycling Every 90 sec

[DaveAlb]

Hey-

My water pump just started cycling for a second every 90 seconds. No apparent leaks. I don’t think the pump froze. It had been in storage for a month. Would you suggest putting in a check valve to stop pump leakage back to tank or replacement of water pump? It does this on tank mode, and pump pumps fine. Thanks.

BTW, how touchy are those check valves in the pumps? I have a standard Shurflo pump.

Dave

[Javi]

Originally Posted by DaveAlb

Hey-

My water pump just started cycling for a second every 90 seconds. No apparent leaks. I don’t think the pump froze. It had been in storage for a month. Would you suggest putting in a check valve to stop pump leakage back to tank or replacement of water pump? It does this on tank mode, and pump pumps fine. Thanks.

BTW, how touchy are those check valves in the pumps? I have a standard Shurflo pump.

Dave

If it sounds half-hearted about the pumping... check your battery

[DaveAlb]

Pumps water just fine. Slide works fine too. Great thought though.

[JRTJH]

The "burps" from the water pump are sometimes caused by a piece of trash caught in the rollers/diaphragm in the pump head. Taking it apart to clean that trash out will usually stop the "burping". If you don't already have one, I'd suggest a strainer assembly mounted between the pump inlet and the supply hose from the fresh water tank. Keystone (and all other manufacturers) typically drill the access holes for the fittings in the tank. The drill shards fall into the tank and often get drawn up into the pump head and cause the problems you have.... You can buy a Shure Flow strainer from Amazon for around $15 https://www.amazon.com/SHURFLO-1202-...s%2C106&sr=8-7 There are cheaper versions, but this one attaches to the half inch supply hose and with a single nipple, screws into the pump head inlet fitting.

That said, very often, an occasional "burp" is an indicator of a minor leak in the trailer plumbing runs. This time of year, when trailers are being de-winterized for summer, those "freeze damaged cone fitting O-rings" tend to reveal themselves. It doesn't take much of a leak to trigger the pump to run to pressurize the lost volume. I always leave my pump turned on when I sanitize the trailer systems and listen for that "burp"... If I hear it, I start looking for a leak.... Sometimes, it's the first night sleeping in the trailer, halfway through the night that I hear the "burp"... Next day, it's find the leak.... You may have a bad cone washer, a loose clamp on a hose, or even a split plastic PEX fitting.

That leak, if not from backflow through the pumphead, is probably an overlooked loose fitting, leaking cone washer or freeze damaged "cheap plastic plumbing parts".....

If the pump is running, there's water going somewhere it's not supposed to be going.....

As a final thought: If your fresh water tank is not filling and overflowing while connected to city water, chances are fairly slim that there's water "leaking back through the pump head. If it was backflowing from pressure created by the pump, it would also be backflowing from pressure created by being connected to city water and the tank would be "unintentionally filling from that same backflow leak".....

[NH_Bulldog]

I would check for a leak first, and then possible debris from the tank having been sucked up into the pump. I chased a debris issue for months before I picked up an inline screen filter. Even now entering our 4th season with the camper, I still find plastic bits caught in the filter.

Once I installed the filter, I opened the kitchen sink, bathroom sink and tub faucets and let the pump run full bore to flush out the debris in the pump (it caught quite a bit that first time). After that, I never had a pump cycling issue until late last year when It cycled a few times in the night and the next day I found a slow drip from the bathtub faucet water line connection on the cold water side in the wall cavity. Pulled the faucet out, tightened it all up, resealed and reinstalled and no more issues.

[dutchmensport]

Please check to make sure you do not have your winterizing valve on. Also, check to make sure you have flipped the valve from "Fill" to "Norman Flow". If either one of these valves are flipped the wrong way, your pump will cycle exactly as you are describing. But, usually, not that fast. So, I think you might have the winterizing valve flipped on. Check them both. It's an easy overlook for sure.

[chuckster57]

Bleed all the air out of every fixture including any outside shower/sink. If it still cycles, clean it. After that you can adjust the pressure switch.

[DaveAlb]

Thanks everyone… I appreciate the responses!!
😀

[DaveAlb]

Flushed out system thoroughly with high volume and got rid of air. Pump is cycling every 30 seconds now

[DaveAlb]

Crisis averted. Someone I pretend to know, the undersigned, did a very poor job of putting on his low point drain caps 6 weeks ago. 2 new washers and putting the caps on properly and I’m ready to go.

My thanks to the A TEAM for all of their troubleshooting assistance and moral support!

Dave

[Gegrad]

Originally Posted by DaveAlb

Crisis averted. Someone I pretend to know, the undersigned, did a very poor job of putting on his low point drain caps 6 weeks ago. 2 new washers and putting the caps on properly and I’m ready to go.

My thanks to the A TEAM for all of their troubleshooting assistance and moral support!

Dave

Been there and done that before! Glad you got it figured out!

[DaveAlb]

Thanks! I can find something else to do today’