Plumbing question

[Lainey]

I am going to attempt installation of a replacement water pump.

For winterizing purposes, I thought installing a valve with tubing between the fresh water tank and the pump would be a convenient add on. After the valve I am planning to use about 1' of coiled flexible braided tubing between the valve and the pump.

Having read a variety of the other posts on techniques to reduce noise, I am wondering if this will make the pump louder? and maybe the convenience factor won't be worth the noise?

[Kurt & Ann K.]

Lainey,
Sorry, but I'm afraid I don't have an answer to your plumbing question. Just a recollection from some time ago. Someone had suggested mounting the pump on a foam rubber gardening kneeling pad. The added insulation was claimed to have made a significant improvement in the noise factor.
Please keep us posted on your success (or lack thereof, & subsequent cures)!

The pump in our TT appears to be getting noisier as time goes on. The thought of trying to wrestle the multiple mattresses to take the bed apart and thus gain access to the pump has been daunting to say the least. Therefore, I'm adhering to the old adage "if it ain't broke don't fix it!

Your query comes at a convenient time to further my education,
In appreciation,
Kurt & Ann K.

[Frederick L. Simson]

For winterizing purposes, I thought installing a valve with tubing between the fresh water tank and the pump would be a convenient add on.

Is that what it's for? My system has always had a valve between the fresh water tank and pump.

Having read a variety of the other posts on techniques to reduce noise, [b]I am wondering if this will make the pump louder? and maybe the convenience factor won't be worth the noise?

My experience says that the coils of flexible tubing will make it quieter, especially if they are on both the inlet and outlet of the pump. Link to My pump replacement.
In my original installation, the output of the pump was connected to hard plastic plumbing tube that was also connected to the "City Water" fitting on the side of the trailer. The input to the pump had a valve in a "flex" line that was so short, it was rigid for all practical purposes. The 30 year old pump was mounted on rubber grommets which had fossilized with age and were no longer flexible, either. When the pump vibrated, EVERYTHING vibrated.

Because my old pump had such poor water pressure output, I decided to replace it. I decided to follow the new pump's installation directions exactly. At first this looked to be problematic, for there wasn't enough room to configure the new pump the same way as the old one. Re-orienting the pump and taking advantage of the long flexible hoses on both input and output did the trick!

The new pump had new flexible rubber mounting grommets for the screws into the floor. The pumps vibrations do not transmit to the floor. The reinforced hose on the input and output prevent the pump vibrations from transmitting to the tank, hard plastic tube, "City Water" connection, or the wall of the trailer. The hoses do not touch any other part of the trailer, and do not lay on the floor; they are suspended between their end connection points.

My pump is now silent!
When I turn on the kitchen faucet, all I hear is the water in the sink, as if I were using the "City Water" connection.

[ERIC B.]

Lainey,
Your plan sounds like a good one. It should work great. I used the flexible line on mine as well. Frederick always has good advice too. Any way you choose, at least you'll have water when boondocking again. And I'd probably replace those worm clamps on the lines that I tightened with new ones, or add a second clamp just for added assurance. Those worm drive clamps don't like the torque required when clamping the hard lines.


Eric

[Lainey]

Thanks all for the advice. Frederick, your pictures really helped and Eric, I made sure to replace all the connectors with new (properly tightened...) ones.

My replacement is finished today and all is ship shape - no leaks, the pump is not very noisy, and I'm hoping this will be a good long term installation.
I used about 6' of the flexible braided tubing from the tank to the winterizing bypass valve, which is installed right onto the intake port on the water pump. The previous pump was installed on the back wall, directly to the hard plumbing line. The full rubber base on the new pump seems like a good improvement over the old style which just had rubber feet on a metal base, so I installed the pump directly to the floor. Following Frederick's lead, I also installed an accumulator which mounted nicely to the wall near where the water pump had been originally. I used some velcro tape to make a hanger and wrap for the coiled tubing to keep it away from everything.
The only thing I'm not that sure about is the effectiveness of the accumulator. The pump still seems to come on even with just a toilet flush so I'll have to try to tweak the pressure on the accumulator some to slow down the pump cycling...

Before:


After:



Yay Water!!

[Frederick L. Simson]

The only thing I'm not that sure about is the effectiveness of the accumulator. The pump still seems to come on even [b]with just a toilet flush so I'll have to try to tweak the pressure on the accumulator some to slow down the pump cycling...

My old pump used to come on for no reason at all if I left the switch on. It got to the point, just before I replaced it, that it would cycle all by itself every 20 minutes. I had to shut the switch off when we went to bed, and then I would invariably forget it was off for my middle of the night bathroom trip.

I can now leave the pump switch on all of the time, and the pump will not activate until I place a demand on it; like flushing, or using the faucet or shower.

[ERIC B.]

Great job Lainey! You definitely have the DIY skills!
Regarding the accumulator...how much pressure are you using and what's your pump on/off pressure?

[Steve L.]

Some time ago I installed the small accumulator tank that Lainey shows. I'd say it only stores about 8-12 oz of water before the pump comes on. In other words, the pump is set up to come on at about 30 psi and go off at about 40-45 psi. So, about 8-12 oz of water out of the system drops the pressure from, say, 45 psi back to 30 psi. But that 8-12 oz doesn't empty the accumulator.

If the accumulator is fully charged and I turn the water pump off, then I get a couple quick rinses of the toilet bowl during the night before pressure is completely gone (down to zero psi). It saves the water pump from cycling in the middle of the night which would be a consideration for anyone still sleeping.

But in normal water usage (showers, filling cooking pots, etc), with the pump switched on, the accumulator pretty much only smooths out the flow (no pulsing) and it reduces the number of cycles the pump has to work.

The new (more expensive) pumps will smooth out the flow so an accumulator doesn't do as much for them. But, now that I have the accumulator in the system, if my pump ever dies I'll just go for the relatively cheap replacement pump.

I reviewed the paperwork on the tank and they recommend the pressure in the tank bladder be set to the lower pressure (pump on) of the water pump. Makes intuitive sense I suppose. That means that the most water would be stored in the tank. If the tank were pressurized to the max pressure of the pump, then very little water would be able to force its way into the tank.

[Lainey]

Great job Lainey! You definitely have the DIY skills!

Wow, what a compliment, coming from the king of all things mechanical!

Regarding the accumulator...how much pressure are you using and what's your pump on/off pressure?

The accumulator says it is factory preset to 30psi, but tests at 34psi. I think I could bring this down some. The pump on/off pressure from the label is 45psi - is that what you mean?

Thanks