Water pump not coming on help

[garyhall]

I'm on the road and my casita water pump does not turn on when I turn the switch on. I checked all the fuses. Water is in the tank. Battery has a full charge (didn't work on electricity either). Its only a year old. Any suggestions as to what else to check ?

[Raspy]

I'm assuming it's a Sureflow.

Is it frozen? That will do exactly what you describe.

If not that, look for power at the wires at the pump. If none, start working your way backward to find the problem. If there is power there, look at the pressure switch. If none of these it must be the motor and it's time for a new pump.

[AC0GV]

Originally Posted by garyhall

I'm on the road and my casita water pump does not turn on when I turn the switch on. I checked all the fuses. Water is in the tank. Battery has a full charge (didn't work on electricity either). Its only a year old. Any suggestions as to what else to check ?

You need to do some trouble shooting. Divide and conquer. Use a voltmeter or test light to check for power to the pump. If you have power at the pump it is a pump problem (frozen?) if not it is an electrical problem. Plugged in or not, it runs on 12 VDC from the battery or converter and they are hooked together. Was it working and no changes were made? No valves shut off? Please let us know what you find.

[Iowa Dave]

Make sure one of the wires did not get knocked off the switch too. If they are exposed inside a cupboard this can happen.
Iowa Dave

[jennykatz]

We have an Escape 21 and our water pump quit working before you check wiring and water tank check the water filter Unscrew it and clean it out and hopefully pump will work if not get out voltmeter and check you have 12 volt to pump

[Raspy]

Originally Posted by jennykatz

We have an Escape 21 and our water pump quit working before you check wiring and water tank check the water filter Unscrew it and clean it out and hopefully pump will work if not get out voltmeter and check you have 12 volt to pump

The filter will not stop the pump from running, but it will stop water flow. The OP said his pump won't run.

[jennykatz]

My pump wouldn’t come on cleaned out filter started working again I did the same I checked water tank and wiring I just check step by step hopefully it’s a simple fix Good luck Jim

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by Raspy

The filter will not stop the pump from running, but it will stop water flow. The OP said his pump won't run.

Often the words members use to describe a problem that they don’t understand leads to confusion for others .
After many years of doing electrical service calls , I have come to the conclusion that the problem the homeowner describes has nothing to do with the actual problem that’s occurring
In this case is the pump actually not running or are they not getting water at the faucets and assuming that the pump is not running ?

I’ve gone to homes where I found 8 to 10 blown fuses laying in front of the service panel . When I ask the homeowner about the blown fuses , he proceeds to tell me that he tried changing the fuses but they kept blowing
His reasoning was he got 2 boxes of defective / weak fuses and then asks me if I have any better fuses ?

[Iowa Dave]

Hi Steve
Excellent post. We provided a pavilion for a Cross country track event to a school activity Director at no cost one time. He plugged in his Nacho cheese warmer and the breaker on the service counter tripped. There were 8 Circuits, all new wiring. He tripped all 8 breakers one at a time. He called us and was mad as his event was starting soon. We went up there and told him he had a bad nacho warmer. Nope, couldn’t be. We reset the breakers in the panel. He tripped 5 more. His custodian showed up with a Different warmer. Problem solved, no apology. Guy was an idiot.
Iowa Dave

[Glenn Baglo]

If the aerator on the faucet is somewhat plugged, it will cause a back pressure ( like a gas pump does when filling your tank ). That will cause the pump to not run ( as it is supposed to shut down when it senses back pressure ).
First thing I would do is clean the aerator and see if that works.

[LarryB.]

A lot of good stories and a lot of excellent advice.

Turning on the switch for the pump does not necessarily activate the pump. Glenn is correct in that back pressure might be the problem. After turning the switch on, the next step to check that out is to turn the water on at the faucet at the kitchen sink, bath sink, shower, toilet or (if you have one) the outside shower.

[Jann Todd]

Originally Posted by garyhall

I'm on the road and my casita water pump does not turn on when I turn the switch on. I checked all the fuses. Water is in the tank. Battery has a full charge (didn't work on electricity either). Its only a year old. Any suggestions as to what else to check ?

Was the hot water heater by-passed for winterization? Are the valves in the correct position? I had the same problem once and changed out the pump and it still didn't work. Finally figured out the valves on the hot water heater bypass were in the wrong position.

[Raspy]

Originally Posted by Jann Todd

Was the hot water heater by-passed for winterization? Are the valves in the correct position? I had the same problem once and changed out the pump and it still didn't work. Finally figured out the valves on the hot water heater bypass were in the wrong position.

Even if the valves are in the wrong position on the (hot?) water heater, the water will still flow normally on the cold side. And if the faucet aerator is clogged, you can simply turn on another faucet to check it, or fill the toilet bowl, or remove the aerator. The pump filter is on the suction side and will not stop the pump from running.

As Steve mentioned, the pump might be running, but not actually pumping. Decide for sure if the pump is running or not. This is easy by touching it or listening carefully. If it is running, but no water is coming out at the faucet, the pump is either full of air, or the filter is clogged.

The OP said it will not turn on, so let's assume that is true. This means it is already up to pressure, or not getting power, or there is an electrical problem.

The OP also said it would not work on electricity either. These pumps only run on electricity. They run on 12 volts. This comes from the battery. The battery is charged by shore power through the converter/charger or other sources. So, the most basic problem would be a dead battery, or a disconnected battery, or not plugged in and a dead battery. All the previous trouble shooting items assume there is power in the battery, and that the battery is connected to the trailer. Of course, older trailers that do not have smart chargers, can run on the converter only.

[garyhall]

Thankks all. Pump was getting power so replaced. All is well now. Would like to fix less than one year old pump for backup. Any way to tell if pressure switch or pump motor is bad?

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by garyhall

Thankks all. Pump was getting power so replaced. All is well now. Would like to fix less than one year old pump for backup. Any way to tell if pressure switch or pump motor is bad?

You can test the motor windings and PS for continuity with a ohm meter
The pump diaphragm is easy to replace . I’ve cut up old inner tubes and made my own diaphragms when I couldn’t find OEM replacements

[AC0GV]

Originally Posted by garyhall

Thankks all. Pump was getting power so replaced. All is well now. Would like to fix less than one year old pump for backup. Any way to tell if pressure switch or pump motor is bad?

I’ve not done it, but I think if you run the 12 VDC to the red and black wires that go into the back of the motor directly it should run (or if you jumper over the pressure switch while in service). Photo is my modified pump for quick changes.

[Jann Todd]

Originally Posted by Raspy

Even if the valves are in the wrong position on the (hot?) water heater, the water will still flow normally on the cold side. And if the faucet aerator is clogged, you can simply turn on another faucet to check it, or fill the toilet bowl, or remove the aerator. The pump filter is on the suction side and will not stop the pump from running.

As Steve mentioned, the pump might be running, but not actually pumping. Decide for sure if the pump is running or not. This is easy by touching it or listening carefully. If it is running, but no water is coming out at the faucet, the pump is either full of air, or the filter is clogged.

The OP said it will not turn on, so let's assume that is true. This means it is already up to pressure, or not getting power, or there is an electrical problem.

The OP also said it would not work on electricity either. These pumps only run on electricity. They run on 12 volts. This comes from the battery. The battery is charged by shore power through the converter/charger or other sources. So, the most basic problem would be a dead battery, or a disconnected battery, or not plugged in and a dead battery. All the previous trouble shooting items assume there is power in the battery, and that the battery is connected to the trailer. Of course, older trailers that do not have smart chargers, can run on the converter only.

Yes the valves in the wrong position should mean the cold will run but the valves were in such a position that it did not let water through. Weird but true. Trust me after 5 hours of frustration and a new water pump and still the same no water problem it was the valves. The pump would not run. One valve was blocking it from going into the hot water tank and the other from letting it bypass. So it is a possibility the valves can cause this problem. The newer kits only have one valve I believe but ours had 2 valves.

[Raspy]

Originally Posted by Jann Todd

Yes the valves in the wrong position should mean the cold will run but the valves were in such a position that it did not let water through. Weird but true. Trust me after 5 hours of frustration and a new water pump and still the same no water problem it was the valves. The pump would not run. One valve was blocking it from going into the hot water tank and the other from letting it bypass. So it is a possibility the valves can cause this problem. The newer kits only have one valve I believe but ours had 2 valves.

Interesting. But normally, the water heater winterizing valves only bypass the water through, or around the water heater and have no effect on the cold system, even if they are all closed. The Tee that makes the difference is the one immediately downstream of the pump. That Tee directs water to either the cold faucets and toilet, OR to the water heater. So, no matter how you position the water heater winterizing valves, it has no effect on the cold at the sink or toilet. And if the sink aerator is clogged, the toilet and the outside shower will still flow.

[Jann Todd]

Originally Posted by Raspy

Interesting. But normally, the water heater winterizing valves only bypass the water through, or around the water heater and have no effect on the cold system, even if they are all closed. The Tee that makes the difference is the one immediately downstream of the pump. That Tee directs water to either the cold faucets and toilet, OR to the water heater. So, no matter how you position the water heater winterizing valves, it has no effect on the cold at the sink or toilet. And if the sink aerator is clogged, the toilet and the outside shower will still flow.

I agree normally that is how it works. But in our case that is not what happened. Our cold water valve must have been in the wrong location by the heater to stop the water from going anywhere. If it had been only cold water then I wouldn't have had the problem of no water. Once I figured out it was the valves then I had water. In one RV I had 3 valves that had to be changed for the bypass. I have no idea why there were 3 but that is what it had. There are different situations in a lot of RV's.

[Joe MacDonald]

I have a 3rd valve to allow me to pull antifreeze into the system instead of water, and two at the hot water tank (inlet and outlet).
Joe