Need Cat Pump Help!

[Tpoppa]

This is my first winter with my 4bay ss. I followed the cold weather instructions from the previous owner (he owned it for 17 years). THis is my first attempt to work on the CAT pumps...

With the boiler and heater on, my equipment room froze during this cold snap. I had some broken fittings and hoses to deal with...no big deal. But the thing that concerns me is that I the CAT pumps were frozen. I have (2) CAT 310's and (2) CAT 620's.

Has anyne dealt with a frozen pump before? What damage can I expect?

After thawing...
310 #1. I ran it for about 30 seconds and shut it off. It started slowly leaking water. I took the head off and found one of the retaining rings and seal was not full seated. I reseated it. Ran it again for 60 seconds. It seems to be fine, good pressure with no leaks.

310 #2 I ran it for about 30 second...didn't sound quite right and pulsed hard several times. I took the head off and there was a peice of rubber seal in the middle plunger. It wasn't obvious where it came from. I removed the seal piece and tried it again...same thing. Any ideas?

I haven't tried the 620's yet...That's tomorrow's project.

 

[MEP001]

You might as well rebuild the one with the piece of rubber in the middle plunger and familiarize yourself with the parts and service.

http://www.catpumps.com/pump-data-sheets-service-manuals-model-search-pdf.cfm

 

[wardaddy]

You need a couple of gas hanger wall heaters sounds like.....cheap fairly economical.

you can buy the 5CP 2120 Cat for replacement and save a little and have almost same function

 

[Wally]

If you need a spare 620 let me know. Pm me.

 

[Randy]

It sounds like you got lucky. I?ve seen pumps freeze that have the valve caps pushed out or the pump head cracked. Get a couple of seal kits and replace the seals, it?s always good to have at least one on hand. It?s also not a bad idea to keep a spare pump on hand. Take a good look at the ceramic plungers for cracks. Also take a look at your chemicals, when they freeze or get real cold they?ll separate. What kind of heater do you have in your equipment room? Why did it freeze? When it gets real cold I turn my heater up and let it run. In the winter I try to keep my equipment room at about 45-50 degrees.

 

[Tpoppa]

Thanks for the replies.

The boiler and the ceiling mounted furnace were running the entire time. Unfortunately they weren't putting out enough BTU's to handle 3+ days of subzero temps.

After many hours and usng an old 310 for spare parts, I have 3 of 4 bays operational. I am still having problems with 1 of the 310 pumps...

...When I turn on the motor the pump sounds normal and puts out normal pressure for about 15 seconds, then it gets relatively quiet and the pressure drops for about 30 seconds. This cycle seems to repeat although I have only let it run for a total of about 4 minutes. I took the head apart didn't see anything obvious (I am ordering a rebuild kit tomorrow). Any ideas why the pump would run quiet as the pressure drops? Could something be engaging/disengaging?

 

[Greg]

As long as you have the head apart, I would recommend pulling the 6 valves and inspecting the valve seat orings. Especially the inlet valves-these are the 3 facing out the front of the head. This could account for both the piece of rubber that you found and the intermintent pulsing and noise level you are experiencing.

If all looks ok, the pump may be fine. Check inlet conditions, filters, and water suppley to insure cleanliness and properly tightened connections on the feed lines to the pump.

Greg Thoennes
Sales & Tech.Support
Arimitsu Pumps

 

[MEP001]

The pump probably isn't getting water.

 

[Tpoppa]

The pump probably isn't getting water.

That is an interesting thought. Would a lack of water cause the pump to run quieter? I can switch lines from another pump to see if that changes anything.

I am also wonder if my pressure regulator could have been damaged by freezing...

http://www.kleen-ritecorp.com/p-1961-giant-adjustable-unloaders-1400psi-13-gpm-yellow-springs.aspx

When the pressure cycles up and down the yellow spring contracts/expands. Is that normal operation of the prssure regulator, or could that indicate a problem?

 

[MEP001]

Yes, if there's no water to pump there's less noise.

The spring does move when the regulator works, but I had another thought. Your tip may be plugged, and someone put an unloader on instead of a bypass regulator. An unloader relieves all the pressure from the pump when there is no water flow on the outlet, at which point the pump runs quieter. If the gauge still shows pressure, there's your problem.

You should be using a bypass regulator with weep guns, plus they're cheaper and simpler.

http://www.kleen-ritecorp.com/p-177...ssure-regulator-38-npt-7-gpm-200-2000psi.aspx

 

[Tpoppa]

Now we're getting somewhere. I ordered the seal kit. I am going to work backwards from the tip to the pump to see if there are any blockages in the output line.

 

[I.B. Washincars]

Just hook the hose from a working bay to the problem pump and see if the issue goes away.

 

[Tpoppa]

Greg and MEP,
Your comments about the the water supply line might be correct.

To test the output...I juat ran about 3 feet of hose from the output on the pump into a 5 gallon bucket, and ran the pump. Same result as before, it ran fine for about 15 seconds (1/2 gallon or so) then lost pressure. This test eliminates the tip, unloader, check valve, and everything on the output line.

To test the inlet...I disconnected the inlet & put line in a 5 gallon bucket full of water and ran the pump. It emptied the bucket in about 90 seconds. So this tells me that my problem is somewhere in the water supply line. Isolating the problem in the supply line is going to be tricky without shutting down the whole wash.

My water reservior is elevated and feeds a manifold. Between the manifold and the pump is a series of valves, joints, meters, and a solenoid. Maybe I'll get lucky and it'll be the solenoid. Otherwise I'll have a full day of testing fittings...any advice?

 

[car washing systems inc]

I just had a customer freeze his equipment room, his hp rinse worked fine but hi hp soap and wax no pressure, found that both his check valves from his hot water holding tank where locked shut must have been from the ice, replaced check valves problem gone, Do you have a cold water feed and hot water feed or are they both from a holding tank

 

[Tpoppa]

I just had a customer freeze his equipment room, his hp rinse worked fine but hi hp soap and wax no pressure, found that both his check valves from his hot water holding tank where locked shut must have been from the ice, replaced check valves problem gone, Do you have a cold water feed and hot water feed or are they both from a holding tank

They are both from the holding tank. I am having this issue with rinse, soap, and wax. I can't recall if there is a check valve between the manifold and the pump, but I'll see if that could be the issue this evening.

 

[MEP001]

Check to see if the pump is supplied with city pressure via a solenoid for rinse. That will eliminate supply as your problem.