Water pump runs but no water comes out

goswick · 06-28-2009, 01:47 PM

Hi all,

Brand new to the Airstream world and this may have been answered before but please forgive me for asking again.

I have a 1968 Overlander 26' that I just brought home this week. So far everything has checked out fairly well. Today I hooked up a water hose to the intake and had water from all the places that water is supposed to come from. I then filled the fresh water tank to capacity, turned off the water hose from the house, turned on the water pump but am not getting any water flow. The pump is running and "seems" to be doing its part but no water. I don't know the water pump make/model but can get that info if it is important to know.

I now have fresh water tank full of water and I'd like to empty it until I get the pump problem figured out....don't want to tow that extra weight if it isn't doing me any good.

Any thoughts on 1) the pump issue and 2) how to empth the fresh water tank.

Thanks,

Pete

HowieE · 06-28-2009, 03:45 PM

The pump has most likely lost it's prime. Remove the input hose from the pump. Take another piece of hose about 2 ft long and put it in a bottle of water that is at or above the pump height. Turn the pump on. If this does not pick up the prime try to pour water directly into the hose while it is above the pump height and then drop the hose into the bottle while someone turns the pump on. Once you have a prime at the pump you should be able to hook up the tank and lift water from it.

If this all fails your pump diaphragm may have a hole in it and require replacement.

TWaugh · 06-28-2009, 06:56 PM

If the hose clamps aren't tight you could be drawing air in around the connections causing cavation and the pump won't self prime.

dnrtheil · 06-28-2009, 08:31 PM

When we brought our A/S home and tried the water pump, it also made noise but did not pump water. Replaced it with a new identical unit and had the same results. Turns out the PO hooked the pump up to 110 volts ac and not 12 volts dc. I am surprised the pump still works after that much power was run to it.

Derek

goswick · 07-03-2009, 10:57 AM

Ok, I finally got the time to look deeper into my water pump problem. I disconnected the intake hose and placed my finger over the intake part of the pump and it is sucking in air. I then attached a piece of hose to the input on the pump and the other end into a jug of water and the pump immediately drew the water from the jug. From that I surmise that the pump is working properly.

When I hook up shore water everything works as it should. I then turn off the shore water and turn on the water pump. It runs but I don't get any water out of the faucets. What am I missing???

Thank for all you help.

Pete

FLYNCLD · 07-03-2009, 11:07 AM

There may be an inline valve somewhere that needs to be flipped?

wkerfoot · 07-03-2009, 11:11 AM

Can you suck water out of the tank with your mouth? If you blow into the line to the tank, does the tank bubble? Check the lines from the tank to the pump.

Bill

Inland RV Center, In · 07-03-2009, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by goswick

Ok, I finally got the time to look deeper into my water pump problem. I disconnected the intake hose and placed my finger over the intake part of the pump and it is sucking in air. I then attached a piece of hose to the input on the pump and the other end into a jug of water and the pump immediately drew the water from the jug. From that I surmise that the pump is working properly.

When I hook up shore water everything works as it should. I then turn off the shore water and turn on the water pump. It runs but I don't get any water out of the faucets. What am I missing???

Thank for all you help.

Pete

Your water pump, if original is over 40 years old.

Internally, there are two round valves that the water must pass thru .

Those valves, in time, stiffen and then don't work correctly.

There are rebuild kits available, for that pump.

If you rebuild it, it most likely will fail again, after another 40 plus years.

Andy

pageclot · 07-03-2009, 11:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by goswick

2) how to empth the fresh water tank.

Pete, there may be a drain plug underneath your trailer, at the bottom of the fresh water tank (which, on my unit, sticks below the belly wrap). You can open that and drain the tank that way.

goswick · 07-03-2009, 01:00 PM

Thanks all...I finally got water to flow using the water pump. The pressure ain't noting to write home about but I guess it would be adequate for an emergency situation. I plan to camp at places with full hook-up whenever possible but wante to get the water pump working in case I need it.

Pete

tallytwo1994 · 07-03-2009, 02:14 PM

Pete,

You can't end a story this way, what was the solution?

Carol

goswick · 07-03-2009, 02:24 PM

Not totally sure what made it work except there is a filter between the pump and the water tank. Inside the plastic housing is a piece of fine screening. It was totally clogged with debris and junk. I cleaned it and put it back in place. That's about all I did to get the water flow. Like I said, the water flow is very weak but it is there. Not sure if the problem is completely fixed but that is where it stands now.

Pete

memgrove2000 · 07-03-2009, 02:36 PM

Yup that filter will do it! You may need to flush the tank a few times to get the sediment out before it will stop clogging it. I removed my tank and did it in the driveway. (easy to pressure spray and drain) also on ours the hose from the tank to the pump was falling apart and the rubber parts were in the filter too. If you replace the hose be sure to get one with a spring in it to prevent collapsing. Mike

ls99 · 07-03-2009, 06:11 PM

To put in my 2 cents. My last camping trip, 10 minutes after setting up camp my PAR pump stopped pumping, the motor ran at higher than normal speed, sounded unloaded.

Based on discussions in several threads, I decided to rebuild it.

Day before yesterday my rebuild kit arrived. The kit was for a full rebuild. Pulling pump out, rebuilding at a leisurely pace, re-install took about 3 hours. With some side activities included.

After installation pressure came up within about 30 seconds. Good for another 30 years or so.

One of the deciding factors was the integral pressure switch. If switching to newer type pumps, additional plumbing to connect pressure switch would have been required.