Pumps

[thetone]

Hello,
I am having trouble with all of my plumbing pimps. They just don't turn on. This includes the electric toilet pump, the macerator pump, the shower sump and water pressure. My next course of action is to see if they are getting power and then replace them all. The electric toilet pump is getting power. It was full and I emptied it out and still not pumping. The level indicator is still showing full. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. it's a 1983 C&C 32.

Thanks in advance!
thetone

 

[CrispyCringle]

Yes, first check for power. Did this happen all at once, or did they all quit over a period of time? If it happened all at once its got to be a power source problem. Were you away from the boat for a long time? If it happened one by one over time- pumps are limited life items. But you still need to check for power at each one.

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

Hello,
I am having trouble with all of my plumbing pimps. They just don't turn on.

lets dissect this for clarity.

do any/all have power to them? Is there a common power feed source at or after the panel?

. My next course of action is to see if they are getting power and then replace them all.

Why would you replace them if the only problem is no power?

The electric toilet pump is getting power. It was full and I emptied it out and still not pumping.

For clarity, how did you empty it? Manually?

The level indicator is still showing full.

what? Are you referring here to the toilet or than tank macerator pump?

 

[thetone]

I just bought the boat and none of the pumps worked except the toilet. I pumped out the head at a pumpout station. The lights that show the tank level are still red. I wonder if the red light stops the pump and how it can be reset.
If the other pumps are just not getting power I would fix that, if they are getting power I would test them and replace if broken.

 

[CrispyCringle]

Okay, if its an unfamiliar boat you need to break out the Volt meter and see what you've got. Just a guess, but Id say the previous owner didnt feel like replacing the pumps. Your looking at over $1k in pumps if you replace. Easy to diagnose, but probably harder on the wallet than a wiring problem. I dont think the tank light has anything to do with any of this, but I dont know how its set up.

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

This includes the electric toilet pump, the macerator pump, the shower sump and water pressure.

The very, very first thing to do, even before you take that very first leak of the day is to disconnect the wiring from each and every pump you have mentioned and chech for voltage with a voltmeter.

 

[thinwater]

Actually, the first thing to do is to read a book on 12V wiring. Cover to cover. Calder wrote a good one, but there are many. Boat electrical systems have their own rules and logic.

 

[Project_Mayhem]

I am having trouble with all of my plumbing pimps. They just don't turn on.

Pimps need to be paid. Bad things happen when you dont pay your pimps

Do these share a common breaker, bus bar, ground, etc?

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

Do these share a common breaker, bus bar, ground, etc?

Good point. Every time I’ve seen a systemic failure, it was a failure of the only thing “common” (Pun intended) connection(s).

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

Hello,
I am having trouble with all of my plumbing pimps.

I didn't know they did plumbing as well. Is this an included service or a completely separate service ?

 

[jssailem]

Congrats on the New C&C 32. Is this a replacement or an additon to your fleet?

I like the idea of examining the electrical connections. Since all quit then the common ground would be a good place to start.

The value of reading Calder’s book on marine electrical systems can not be stressed enough. It is a lot less expensive than buying all new pumps. Especially if the issue is connections not pump motors.

 

[Project_Mayhem]

Congrats on the New C&C 32. Is this a replacement or an additon to your fleet?

I like the idea of examining the electrical connections. Since all quit then the common ground would be a good place to start.

The value of reading Calder’s book on marine electrical systems can not be stressed enough. It is a lot less expensive than buying all new pumps. Especially if the issue is connections not pump motors.

If pumps are replaced and the issue isn't the pumps, then they still wont work

 

[dLj]

The level indicator is still showing full.

These are notorious for not working well. I've never seen one that does anything to affect your pumps.

I wouldn't worry about this part until you've sorted out why your pumps aren't working.

dj

 

[capta]

Several of the pumps you mentioned should have automatic switches in the lines. The only way ALL your pumps could be non-functional, if they have a common ground wire, which is no longer making contact. Get an auto voltage tester, not a meter. Attach one end to a convenient ground and push the probe into the positive wire. If it lights, there is power there. Repeat at each pump. If no light on any of the pumps, it isn't the pumps, but in the wiring.
Good luck.

 

[Deparlocean]

As for checking power to ALL kind of accessories. the voltmeter is not enough. That is you can read 12volts at the wires, but the wires may not be able to transport the amperage necessary to bring life to whatever is connected to them, because it might have to much resistance in the wires!
When I was checking circuits on cars in my previous life, I would connect a halogen light to the wires I was checking and see if it was lighting up bright and strong. If not I would search for the elusive over resistance in the wires between the power supply and the accessory itself. Great and easy way to diagnose faulty wires and/or connections as long as you do not overload the wires with a too big light!

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

As for checking power to ALL kind of accessories. the voltmeter is not enough. That is you can read 12volts at the wires, but the wires may not be able to transport the amperage necessary to bring life to whatever is connected to them, because it might have to much resistance in the wires!
When I was checking circuits on cars in my previous life, I would connect a halogen light to the wires I was checking and see if it was lighting up bright and strong. If not I would search for the elusive over resistance in the wires between the power supply and the accessory itself. Great and easy way to diagnose faulty wires and/or connections as long as you do not overload the wires with a too big light!

That seems like a complicated way to verify continuity (zero resistance) but whatever works.

 

[CrispyCringle]

That seems like a complicated way to verify continuity (zero resistance) but whatever works.

Maybe, but it does have merit, as I found out a few weeks ago diagnosing a grey water pump. I checked voltage going to the pump and it was good. So I replaced the motor with a spare. Still didnt work. Turns out the float switch controlling the pump would show proper voltage, but it had so much resistance (bad contacts) that it couldnt run the pump.

 

[LLoyd B]

Check the voltage getting to the pump because the voltage being sent to the pump may not be getting there. Red indicator lights can be turned on for a variety of reasons can you turn it off? Auto ranging meters available today that you can buy for $20 are a wonderful tool to be available but you still need to make sure you're measuring what's working. The frequency of DC current is 1. Be glad other frequencies are much more complicated. It's a sailboat not a car.