Globe Impeller Update

[Maine Sail]

A few weeks ago someone asked about my Globe impeller I had installed. Well, I finally checked on it today.

In April 2011 I installed a new Globe "run dry" impeller in our Westerbeke 44B. We used it last season and I removed it for winterization and it looked ok but with some minor abrasion looking wear at the blade roots. I re-installed it in the spring to see how long it would go.

Well we are getting ready to cruise so I thought I would check on it....

This is about the same as my last experience with the Globe Run Dry. The Johnson 09-810-B1, which is the factory impeller Westerbeke uses, actually lasts quite a bit longer longer than the Globe does, on our boat. It also costs me less than half the price or $18.00 vs. $48.54.

Despite what I consider to be a rather short life, I am going to throw in another Globe, hoping this one is just a fluke. On our previous boat two Globes in a row spun the hubs so I gave up on them for that boat. On this one the hub is fine but the vanes are done in less than 1.5 seasons worth of use?

Five out of the six blades are physically cracked and two are nearly ready to fall off. The sixth blade is well on its way to a crack..

Specifics:

Installed April 2011
Oversized raw water intake (plenty of raw water)
Never, ever run dry or even close (but they claim 15 minutes is OK)
Strainer cleaned/checked weekly
Removed for storage & showed minor wear reinstalled in spring to see longevity
Inspected at 141.2 hours of engine use (we have engine driven refrigeration)
Impeller was toast
Engine can fill or suck dry a five gallon bucket in roughly 45 seconds

These are the results:

141.2 hours:

Update Second Globe: The second Globe was dead when I inspected it at 78.4 hours use. This was about half the time it took the first one to fail. Three of the six blades were cracked at the blade root, similar to above.. I have gone back to the factory Johnson impeller.

Update Factory Impeller: Just to see how long the factory impeller would last I did not change it annually (I did remove for winter though). At 312.3 hours use it is still in good shape with no cracking or visible defects. I replaced it anyway... because I already had the pump open..

 

[SEMPERAVANTI41]

I have also had bad luck with Globe impellers. It seams to me that the material that they are made out of is soft & wears out quickly. I now use only Yanmar replacement parts, including impellers. I also paid around half as much, $17.19 from Niemiec Marine for the genuine Yanmar impeller.

 

[Maine Sail]

I have also had bad luck with Globe impellers. It seams to me that the material that they are made out of is soft & wears out quickly. I now use only Yanmar replacement parts, including impellers. I also paid around half as much, $17.19 from Niemiec Marine for the genuine Yanmar impeller.

I'll be curious to hear others experiences? I suspect they are engineered to run dry but they don't make any claims about the longevity in terms of hours or years.

In speaking with them they advised replacing it annually. If I had done so I would have been fine, unless I went 140 hours in a season... I normally do replace annually but wanted to see just how many hours it would go...

I suspect that impeller longevity is pretty pump specific..

 

[onecoolair]

I'll be curious to hear others experiences? I suspect they are engineered to run dry but they don't make any claims about the longevity in terms of hours or years.

In speaking with them they advised replacing it annually. If I had done so I would have been fine, unless I went 140 hours in a season... I normally do replace annually but wanted to see just how many hours it would go...

Mainsail...Glad you brought this up. I switched to globe about 3-4 years ago. I did so on my 20 minute panda because the pump sits just above water line. So if I did not fire it up at least once a week the impeller would go dry. If I let sit more then I a few weeks I had to follow proceedure climbing down into cocpit locker remove hose and squirt soap into pump before starting otherwise the impeller would implode. The globe has helped give me more leeway. In fact the first globe is still being used from say 3 years ago on generator. Thanks for the reminder to check. Next on to the yanmar last sometime last summer just as I cleared the marina I all of a sudden heard that familiar Huey helicopter sound from the yanmar exhaust. Did an about face back to slip and coasted in no engine. Dock box suffered a bit. Just could not get a hold of that :cussing:spring line in time. Opened the engine cover and and oil pan was almost full as water was pouring from the back of pump. Luckily I keep that area very clean. On closer inspection I found the rubber bushing seal on back of pump shaft had failed along with the screws that hold the back plate on had stripped off. Impeller looked fine. Will check it again soon. And will Let you know what I find. But I can tell you for sure the original impeller's on both engines were way less forgiving.

 

[DeniseO30]

I have 2 new ones that I bought 3-4 years ago. They just won't prime in the oberdorfer pump on my Universal 5416, the OEM impeller works perfectly and primes right away. My pump is only about 1.5 ft above the water line.

 

[Richard Bryer]

I just replaced my 8 year old OEM Yanmar impeller on my 3GMF after about 500 hours in that time. I check it annually and this year it had a crack in two of the vanes.

 

[Stu Jackson]

I use a Universal black impeller on our Oberdorfer 202M-15. I get more than two years out of them and I use the boat once a week and for three day and week long trips every year.

I would even bother to try a Globe.

And this was before Maine Sail's valuable report.

 

[SEMIJim]

This is about the same as my last experience with the Globe Run Dry. The Johnson 810-B1 which is the factory impeller actually lasts longer than the Globe does, on our boat.. It also costs me less, about half the price.

Despite what I consider to be a rather short life I am going to throw in another Globe, hoping this is a fluke.

Twice? Seems unlikely--esp. with the comments I've seen from others.

I'll stick with factory impellers.

Jim

 

[kloudie1]

Had problems with these on a friend's Catalina 34 .. Globe impeller was not as wide as the original Oberdorfer by about 3/64" .. it would not prime.. I called the Globe folks and asked to speak to someone about their quality control. I explained that I had a model # --- and it was not the same size as the impeller they say it will replace.. The woman took my number and told me that someone would call.. No one called..

 

[John T1594]

Globe

I installed a new blue Globe impeller in my Yanmar 3GM30F a few years ago - when they first came out - and it lasted all of two weeks before it lost two blades. Never again!

 

[Bristol27.7]

Several years ago I bought into the Globe advertising. It lasted about 4 hours in my Yanmar 2QM-15. Never again!

 

[Chris Patterson]

I use the Johnson 810-B1 as well. Kind of scared to stray. I keep seeing ads though of nitriles, genuine rubber, etc, etc. The Globe caught my radar, but after this, it's dwindling to a blip. The Johnson is about 25 bucks at Atlantic Marine, with gasket. It's not really the price, nor the installation that bothers me, it's that I want one that will survive.
Shoot, I'd pay a hundred dollars for one I knew would last. The idea of a weak 25 dollar part, in front of a ten thousand dollar engine is disturbing.

(Oh yeah, it's not on a 22', different boat)