Flo Jet Pump Freezing

[John Racine]

Has anyone experienced a Flo Jet pump freezing up while delivering chemical in a express tunnel application. The equipment room is heated ( 65 to 70 ). The incoming water is about 50 degrees.
Is it possible that the pump actually would build ice on the exhaust and stop the pump from functioning?

 

[Earl Weiss]

Has anyone experienced a Flo Jet pump freezing up while delivering chemical in a express tunnel application. The equipment room is heated ( 65 to 70 ). The incoming water is about 50 degrees.
Is it possible that the pump actually would build ice on the exhaust and stop the pump from functioning?

Air cools as it expands and cmpressed air exhaust may freeze above 32 degrees but at 65-70 would be strange. Pull off the exhaust muffler to prevent moisture accumulation. Se if that helps.

 

[I.B. Washincars]

I've had them freeze over before as well. When I install a pump I always jab a hole through the muffler with a small (1/8" blade) screwdriver. Never had one freeze over again.

 

[John Racine]

Thank you for the responses. What we found was that we went and replaced the pump with a new Flo Jet, then plumbed warm water to the Hyro Minder. We then kicked on the foamer and let it run. It ran for 8 minutes then stopped. Called Flo Jet they said that a oiler must be installed prior to the pump and that will solve the issue. They said this was common if they do not have an oiler installed.
Installed the oiler will see what happens next.

 

[Washmee]

Thank you for the responses. What we found was that we went and replaced the pump with a new Flo Jet, then plumbed warm water to the Hyro Minder. We then kicked on the foamer and let it run. It ran for 8 minutes then stopped. Called Flo Jet they said that a oiler must be installed prior to the pump and that will solve the issue. They said this was common if they do not have an oiler installed.
Installed the oiler will see what happens next.

You need dry air to keep a flowjet from freezing like you are experiencing. You must have too much moisture in the air supplied by the compressor. If your equipment room is humid and you are using a large volume of air, the air doesn't cool down enough before you use it for the moisture to settle out in your tank.

 

[Earl Weiss]

Never use oilers for my flo jets. Do have water traps / filters. Are you sure it is supposed to be an oiler?

 

[Jeff_L]

I do not use oilers in my lines either, just a water separator before the pumps. My exhausts will freeze up in the humid summer months, but the pump usually just blows the exhaust muffler right off. I typically leave them off through the season, it's loud, but at least not freezing up!

 

[Ric]

Oilers were not the answer for me in my tunnel. As a matter of fact oil in the moisture laden air lines just gums up the flojet pumps and leads to problems in my experience. I installed a refrigerated air dryer system to handle the whole operation. It not only solved the flojet problem but also air operated door issues we were having during freezing weather. It was well worth the investment. At the time it was about $600 from Grainger.

 

[John Racine]

The suggestion of an oiler came directly from the manufacture. We do have a water separator in line also. We installed this yesterday, as of this morning they have not had the issue again.

 

[John Racine]

Alright, after the express tunnel was back to back cars for a couple hours the pump stopped. It will stay down for about 20 seconds and then start up again. This is now running for a few minutes then off for the 10 to 20 seconds.

 

[Washmee]

Alright, after the express tunnel was back to back cars for a couple hours the pump stopped. It will stay down for about 20 seconds and then start up again. This is now running for a few minutes then off for the 10 to 20 seconds.

I'm beginning to think your problem is downstream from the pump. What type of product and more importantly, where are you pumping to? Is there a sticky solenoid valve on the piece of equipment that it supplies? Is something restricting the flow out of the pump?

 

[MEP001]

Do you have gauges on the system? In order to diagnose this problem you'll need one on the supply as close to the pump as possible and one on the outlet. It will also help to describe how the pump sounds when it stops and starts again.

 

[Jeff_L]

This won't solve your problem, but what about piping in a second FloJet with your first one? Just put checks between them so they don't bang on each other. I did this at one of my washes on my soap delivery system. That way if a pump were to go bad, the spare is already online and running.

 

[bmattivi]

i have a new wash about 1 1/2 years old that has several g57 flo jets as well as a dual flo jet for the spot free recompression tank, i am on my third dual flo jet and it is failing as i write, ice on the muffler. i have an auto bleed on my compressor, drains everytime it cycles, we bleed the compressor manual drain every day, i have a water seperator just off the main output line of compressor drain it every day and i have a flojet seperator right befor the dual pump as well as norgren auto drain seperators on my wheel shiner system and my chemical pumping station, now i am going to add a air dryer made by champion, it is on the way. also i have two g57 pumps that flo jet told me needed to be rebuilt as these were blowing off the mufflers and not pumping so i needed a slide valve assembly pretty straight forward so i ordered three kits, rebuilt the first pump and it still blows off the muffler and now it leaks around the body? didn't do that before, called tech support at flojet that said i needed to rebuild and now he won't call me back. are these worth rebuilding?

 

[MEP001]

It's blowing off the muffler because of water in the lines. It doesn't indicate a problem with the pump.

I don't rebuild them. If it's leaking around the body after you rebuilt it, something wasn't done right.