Water pump issues

[bigben7728]

So I went to winterize my water lines today, and my pump won't pull the solution into the lines. I checked all the obvious stuff (power, lines properly attached, no kinks, valves properly opened/closed, etc), but it wouldn't pull. I have a Shurflo 2088-404-144 pump that has worked fine since we got the trailer two years ago. The pump seemed quieter than normal at first, and then it just stopped making any noise. Checked fuses- no issues there. Have I burned out the pump? I plan on replacing it, but if anyone thinks there might be another solution, I'm all ears! Perhaps a fix or something else I can try to get it to work. This is my third time winterizing, and the two times before, all has gone just fine. Thanks for reading, and look forward to hearing any thoughts!

[chaps2018]

Just checking...Did you orient the valves so that it would suck from the tube/jug?

[BFlinn181]

The water pump often can't self prime, but it will move water when it's present. When you put the hose in the jug of antifreeze, did you open a faucet to allow movement of water in the line? You may also have to pour antifreeze into the hose to get the flow started.

[wingnut60]

Not making any noise? Is it not running at all? Will it pull from the tank?
Can you get to it easily--to see if there is water in the sediment trap?
There is probably an inline fuse--is that the one you checked?
May be just time for new pump...

[mrt_1111]

Use a volt meter and check the voltage going into the water pump. Should be at least 12 volts.

[bigben7728]

I did check the orientation of the valves (good question though- I've been known to do some bonehead things from time to time! )- actually double checked that because I was so stumped as to what was going on.

I was also wondering if the pump needed a bit of help priming, so I did pour some water into the hose, but that didn't work. In fact, I thought it was going to work- I heard it take some water, but it was shortly after that it went silent on me. ??

I did not check an inline fuse- I'll check for that. Nor am I sure about water in the sediment trap (nor am I sure how to check that, to be honest!).

I haven't yet checked with my multimeter- I was going to do that today. I guess when I said I ensured power was going to the pump, I meant that I had two fully charged batteries hooked up and all other electricity was working fine. But could be a loose wire somewhere... we did travel on a bunch of washboard on our last trip out, which I suppose could've jarred some wires loose...

Thanks all for the great ideas!

[six82]

Just asking, did you dump the anti-freeze into the freshwater tank or were you drawing it directly from a jug. If you poured it into the freshwater tank, I am wondering if there was enough to hit the pickup line in the tank.

If so, you may need to drop the front of the trailer (or side to side to get the solution to the pump feed line) if you put it in the freshwater tank.

Just a thought.

Brett

[silverado07]

Do u have a spigot open? U need someplace for antifreeze to pump to. If all spigots are closed the lines might be full of air. Pump will only turn on when there is a demand

[BFlinn181]

According to how long the water pump was running without pumping water, the rubber impeller could have gotten hot and melted to the plastic walls of the pump chamber. If hooking up directly to 12v doesn't get it running, you might try tapping with a rubber mallet or try to turn motor or impeller with a little push. If that doesn't work, search for a rebuild kit or, if none available, a new pump.

[bigben7728]

Well, BFlinn181, your suggestion was the winner! Turns out that once I got some fluid to the pump (which is when it went silent), I failed to open a faucet. Duh! I had opened up faucets earlier, but that was before it was sufficiently primed. I think my freshwater tank was bone dry after our last trip, so the pump wasn't primed (unlike the last two seasons when I winterized).
So, went over today to the trailer, turned on a faucet (after realizing that I hadn't), and voila- started pulling antifreeze like a champ! Sometimes it's the simple things that we forget!
So, I've got a winterized camper that will be ready to go next spring! It seems so far away!
Thanks for everyone's input... I'm going to go sit in the corner for a while with my dunce cap on!

-Ben

[BFlinn181]

Glad you solved the problem and reported back to help others!!

Happy camping!!

[miniceptor86]

Originally Posted by bigben7728

Well, BFlinn181, your suggestion was the winner! Turns out that once I got some fluid to the pump (which is when it went silent), I failed to open a faucet. Duh! I had opened up faucets earlier, but that was before it was sufficiently primed. I think my freshwater tank was bone dry after our last trip, so the pump wasn't primed (unlike the last two seasons when I winterized).
So, went over today to the trailer, turned on a faucet (after realizing that I hadn't), and voila- started pulling antifreeze like a champ! Sometimes it's the simple things that we forget!
So, I've got a winterized camper that will be ready to go next spring! It seems so far away!
Thanks for everyone's input... I'm going to go sit in the corner for a while with my dunce cap on!

-Ben

You should have a lot of company in the corner! We've all done so boneheaded things, my last was turning on the water heater's electric side and wondering why I wasn't getting any water. That was after replacing a verified bad pump and being really PO'd because it wouldn't pump. DUH,

[powderman]

Originally Posted by bigben7728

Well, BFlinn181, your suggestion was the winner! Turns out that once I got some fluid to the pump (which is when it went silent), I failed to open a faucet. Duh! I had opened up faucets earlier, but that was before it was sufficiently primed. I think my freshwater tank was bone dry after our last trip, so the pump wasn't primed (unlike the last two seasons when I winterized).
So, went over today to the trailer, turned on a faucet (after realizing that I hadn't), and voila- started pulling antifreeze like a champ! Sometimes it's the simple things that we forget!
So, I've got a winterized camper that will be ready to go next spring! It seems so far away!
Thanks for everyone's input... I'm going to go sit in the corner for a while with my dunce cap on!

-Ben

Did I get caught in a time warp?? I thought it was silverado07 that gave the solution. No matter as long as its fixed.

[Barlow46]

Originally Posted by powderman

Did I get caught in a time warp?? I thought it was silverado07 that gave the solution. No matter as long as its fixed.

yep. time warp I think. Bflinn181 answered in second post after OP.