We are just starting our second season with a new van and have just bought out third Whale submersible pump. The first was replaced under warranty - it was running continuously, while the second just did gave up pumping ( the motor still runs and it sounds OK). I had it tested by a dealer and they said that it was not strong enough - hence new pump.
We don't make excessive use of the water system, having only used the internal shower once. The pump is used in connection with cooking, washing dishes and hands only. It is switched off most of the time.
Are these pumps pretty unreliable or have we just been unlucky?
Something funny going on if you have went through so many pumps.ive had the same one for years and have used it in the van ive got just now.it gave up after about 10years of use a fortnight ago.
how bizarre, never heard of pumps failing that quick. Only advice would be make sure the Aquaroll is rinsed out thoroughly before filling it up and make sure you dont let it empty before re-filling also I always drop the filter into the water before connecting it to the van.
Make sure taps are fully OFF after use. It is easy sometimes to miss that last bit of lever closing on the tap. Do you get a good flow of water through the taps or is it a dribble?
Check the tap end filters which you can unscrew.
The pump should only run when a tap is turned ON - it should NEVER run continuously.
Thanks for the responses. There does not appear to be a reliability issue then.
The pump running continuously thing was solved with a new pump - I guess that the pressure switch was not working properly.
We do get a good flow of water through the taps, and it stops when they are closed. I always carefully fill the hot water system with both taps open until there is a steady flow.
I guess that I may have let the water level get too low in the Aquaroll on occasion, but if I hear the pump running I always investigate.
I would tend to agree that it sounds like you are letting the remaining water in the barrel get too low and as previously stated by Jeff that the pressure drops causing the the pump to run continuous. The pump needs to be submerged at all times because what happens is the sensor in the pump is calling for water when there's not enough there so make sure that you replenish the water barrel when it gets to just under about a quarter full. I use two water barrels so I always have one ready to put on when it needs changing which also helps if it's raining as you need to do it as quickly as possible. I have been using my existing pump for the last 5 years without any problem and only changed mine recently because I needed one with a higher flow rate mainly for feeding the height of the shower head. The other one I keep just as a spare now just in case the newer one fails at any time as there's nothing worse than a pump failing when all the camping outlets are closed out of hours.
first one sounds like the pressure switch needed sorting out.second one could have run out of water and got an air lock when refilled.had our pump 6 years.
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Topic: Whale pump - not lasting
