Grumpy water pump

[Forger]

So, my water pump runs and shuts off as expected, but now, pretty frequently will not restart. The water pressure / flow goes to zero and the pump doesn't restart. When I turn the switch off and back on eventually, the pump starts and runs again. There's no pattern in playing with the switch and the pump responding. The pump itself feels pretty hot to me, but I never felt it when it had been running normally. Has anybody got any ideas regarding this, or should I just bite the bullet and replace the pump?

[Farmer Dan]

The pump in my '02 Classic did a similar thing. It would shut off in the middle of a shower and usually in a minute or two would restart. Checking fuses and breakers didn't reveal a problem. I replaced the pump and the problem has not shown up again. I suspect the 12V pump motor would get hot and shut itself off. After cooling it would work again. A new pump was about $100.

Dan

[handn]

A thermal overload switch will shut the pump off when it gets hot allowing it to restart in about a half an hour. If the pump gets hot in ordinary use, the motor is shot.
I agree replace the pump. $100 for a new pump is a cheap price to avoid aggravation. The pumps are easy to replace.

[KJRitchie]

I hope yours is easy to swap out. If I ever have to replace mine I'll need it to be the same make and model. Mine is buried under the refrigerator in a tangle of plumbing, heat ducting and wires. No room to refit the plumbing with new PEX fittings if I decided to replace with a different brand than my Aquajet that has the push in/locking connectors.

Kelvin

[Forger]

I swapped out the pump for the replacement model because the original model is obsolete. The replacement is 1 1/2 inches longer and just fit after drilling 2 new mounting holes. The new pump works like a dream and sounds very business-like.

[NavyCorpsman]

I love a story that doesn't need a hammer and has a happy ending.