fresh water pump / breaker

[Richard19068]

When I turn on the the circuit breaker for my fresh water pressure pump it occasionally bumps back and doesn't stay on. Usually after two or three tries it stays on. When it is on there seems to be no problem. It doesn't blow when you turn on the tap and the pump is continually running or when the tap is off. All seems fine except for that initial problem.

A cursory inspection of the wiring doesn't reveal anything that looks bad.

My question is, is this likely to be just a bad breaker that i should replace or is it more likely indicative of the pump going bad?

Of course, changing out the breaker to see if that is the problem is not a big deal but I thought I'd check and see if anyone has an experience with this.

Thanks

 

[DArcy]

Sounds like a bad breaker to me. They don't last forever.

 

[Ron20324]

Take the load wire off and see if it still does that tripping. Or swap it with a breaker in use on the panel?

 

[Richard19068]

Thanks for both responses.

I never had a breaker go bad that way before but it is the most frequently switched breaker on the boat so maybe that's just it.

Ron's suggestions sound good for testing.

 

[Scott T-Bird]

Do you always have pressure in the lines when you first switch it on or does the pump have to kick on at first to pressurize the lines? I don't know if that makes a difference or not. Perhaps the initial start-up of the pump has something to do with it, but either way it still seems like a problem with the breaker.

 

[Claude L.-Auger]

Take the load wire off and see if it still does that tripping. Or swap it with a breaker in use on the panel?

You did say it is the most used breaker on the panel so it could very well have gone weaker. Ron's idea to swap with another one is good and easy to do. Just make sure you pick one with the same amperage.

 

[Richard19068]

Do you always have pressure in the lines when you first switch it on or does the pump have to kick on at first to pressurize the lines? I don't know if that makes a difference or not. Perhaps the initial start-up of the pump has something to do with it, but either way it still seems like a problem with the breaker.

Thanks for asking. Usually there is no pressure in the line so the pump has to kick on. So maybe that is related. But, when there is pressure in the line, like when the tap is being turned off and on at relatively frequent intervals, the breaker doesn't trip even when the pump has to kick on to keep up with demand.

 

[jngotasail]

I've had breakers go bad both on the boat and at home. Like the other guy said they dont last forever.

 

[Jan11]

Just make sure you pick one with the same amperage.

Just make sure you pick one with the CORRECT amperage.

 

[Richard19068]

Just make sure you pick one with the CORRECT amperage.

In this case that would be the same.

Thanks

 

[Scott T-Bird]

I had to change a breaker on my new Blue Seas panel & it was not really an easy project if I recall. There seemed to be a rather complicated process. It wasn't nearly as straight-forward as changing a breaker in my house panel. I'm forgetting exactly what I had to do, but it seemed like I had to jump thru some hoops to remove all the stuff that gets in the way of the screws that secure it in place. It's not like it was impossible, but I'm thinking it was not a simple 5 minute process. Everything in a boat takes much longer!

 

[Richard19068]

Everything in a boat takes much longer!

Oh yes. Just ask my wife.

I should be able to change that breaker in 15 minutes. So I'll tell her an hour. And it will be an hour and a half by the time I put the tools away. And that's if I don't decide to do something else in there while I have the panel open!

 

[jngotasail]

Oh yes. Just ask my wife.

I should be able to change that breaker in 15 minutes. So I'll tell her an hour. And it will be an hour and a half by the time I put the tools away. And that's if I don't decide to do something else in there while I have the panel open!

Just put a lock on the beer fridge, give the wife the key. It'll be done in 45 minutes.

 

[Justin_NSA]

You did say it is the most used breaker on the panel so it could very well have gone weaker. Ron's idea to swap with another one is good and easy to do. Just make sure you pick one with the same amperage.

That's the first thing I would try too. It's a free test.