Installing Water Pump and Faucet with Switch

[Patrick M.]

A nice update to a standard Scamp 13' or similar basic trailer is to add an electric water pump for the sink, and get rid of that functional but limited manual pump/faucet. I did this and it is a fairly easy modification.

I bought a Shurflo kit which included the pump and faucet with integral switch. It was not cheap when I bought from Boaters World for $77, but provides a nice, neat solution. There are less expensive alternatives available, including pump/faucet combos at JC Whitney, and separate pump and faucet/switch parts from various boat and RV suppliers. eBay is also your friend and I see today the package I got with a starting bid at $25 and a buy-it-now listing for $90.

Here's a picture of the package:

(I posted this two years ago but think it disappeared as a result of the vandalism in late 2005. If the original is still around in spite of my empty search, the powers that be are welcome to delete, edit or combine as they see fit.)

[Patrick M.]

The pump installs in the water line inside the electrical cable storage area in my Scamp. The water line is cut and the pump installed and bolted in place. I screwed brackets to the floor, then added additional vertical brackets to match up with the pump.

I did not install a strainer upstream from the pump and paid the price on one trip when the impeller jammed. Removing the pump and opening it up revealed a small piece of plastic similar to what the water tank is made of! A strainer is recommended, although not required.

[Patrick M.]

The faucet with integral switch looks like this. The wires connect to a safety toogle switch, an in-line fuse, and the wires from the pump. These are all then connected to hot and ground wire-nut connections found in the electrical compartment.

[Patrick M.]

This is the finished installation. Note the optional toggle switch I added in-series to the +12v line coming from the faucet to prevent the faucet switch from inadvertently being turned on at inappropriate times!

[Gerry]

This is the finished installation. Note the optional toggle switch I added in-series to the +12v line coming from the faucet to prevent the faucet switch from inadvertently being turned on at inappropriate times!

Patrick: This is going to be my first project before the camping season starts if ever the snow goes away from where I park Lady-Bug, my 13ft Boler and I can get her up front. I have purchased a shur-flo pump and was wondering .
I have the standard hand-pump/city water type faucet now in my trailer.
Will I be able to just use this faucet with the pump?
I would put the pump on the portable tank side of 2 way check valve so as to not interfere with city hook-ups.
I am sure the existing faucet has nothing to do with the working of this check valve but was just wondering.
The pump has a pressure switch built in but I will also put in a switch so pump will only have power to it when we are boon-docking.
Wife said it was a waste of money as she's not into this boon-docking type of camping but I am sure we will go to a few this season with no water hook-ups and then she will be happy
Gerry the canoebuilder

[Alf S.]

Hi: I don't know if we were lucky or not but "The Silver Billet" had a pair of plastic Bathroom taps rather than the hand pump tap...and already had a sur-flo pump and switch installed but no 12v. power!!! I found this I replaced the plastic taps with a Bar Sink set and the cold side is hooked to the "City" water hose connection then the hot side to the pump. This way we have running water albeit COLD and COLDER
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[Patrick M.]

Gerry, sometimes it takes awhile for Spousal Units to see the big picture, or is it little picture, with these mods!

Your hand pump might work with the electric pump. The simple internal ball-pump will probably not block the flow of water from the pump. Certainly worth a try.

The electric pump is certainly nice when washing hands or dishes.

[Gina D.]

I had both in my 13.

I simply added the hand pump, which was higher and more user friendly, put an inline valve between the pump and electric faucet, and used a "T" to run to the hand pump, after the electric pump. Another inline valve came in the line leading to the hand pump, always left open.

I also had a toggle. Turn the toggle on, and water would come from the hand pumped faucet.

Without the inline valve, water would come from BOTH faucets. If you wante to use the electric pump faucet, reverse the valve openings.. BUT.. I never used the thing. I only left it there to keep from having a big hole where it was.

If the new owner did not want the hand pump, this also gives him the option of removing it without major plumbing issues. The valves were 3-4 bucks each.. whoopie.

I have city water only in the new one, and will be installing the same hand pump @ the pre made soap dispenser opening at the sink.

For those non electric times (Which are very rare with solar) I can brush my teeth in the kitchen and use my Coleman shower in the bathroom.

[Curtis F.]

Gina, where did you mount the inline valves?

Can you give me a better description of you plumbed the two facuets from the same feed line? I"m considering putting an inline (flow thru) pump on the feedline to the hand pump faucet since I don't want a repeat of lost prime and no water available.

Where did you put the valve to select the faucet to feed water to? Or, where these check valves? I'm visualizing a "T" connector in the feed line with a on/off valve going to one faucet: and the feed line with a on/off valve, after the "T", to the second faucet. Is this correct?

Reason to keep the pump faucet is for city water connection.

Anyone know if the hand pump faucets will allow water to flow thru the pump side when pressurized water is applied?

Thanks
Curt

[Gerry]

I had both in my 13.

I simply added the hand pump, which was higher and more user friendly, put an inline valve between the pump and electric faucet, and used a "T" to run to the hand pump, after the electric pump. Another inline valve came in the line leading to the hand pump, always left open.

Gina, I have seen these set up and I personaly didn't care for the look it left on the already too small counter space and to Patrick if the simple ball valve on the pump faucet holds back the city presure why will it not hold back the presure from the shur-flo?
As you said it is worth a try and other then labor I will not be out a thing.
Gerry the canoebuilder

[Patrick M.]

to Patrick if the simple ball valve on the pump faucet holds back the city presure why will it not hold back the presure from the shur-flo?

The pump-faucet I had was not a check valve, contolling flow from the tankd or city line. My Scamp has an extra faucet for the city line. I said I didn't think the faucet-pump mechanism would hold back the pressure from the pump.

[Gerry]

The pump-faucet I had was not a check valve, contolling flow from the tankd or city line. My Scamp has an extra faucet for the city line. I said I didn't think the faucet-pump mechanism would hold back the pressure from the pump.

My 1980 Boler 13 has just one faucet ( don't know if it's original but looks it) anyway, under the rear bench seat there is a directiona flow check that on the leg side of the TEE is where the city water conections goes. One leg of tee is where portable tank goes and the other goes to faucet

City water
!
!
pump !
Faucet ---------------------- Portable tank

This is the check valve

The Faucet is the type that when hooked up to city water you just turn handle like a regular faucet and water comes out but to work as a pump you have to turn handle counter clock-wize to unscrew and then you can pump.
Is this how yours works?
Anyway the faucet doesn't recognize where the water will be comeing from prior the check valve above so if the pressure from the Portable tank or city water line puts the pressure to the Pump faucet line then I can use the unknowing fuacet just as I was useing city water, even though it is comeing in on the portable tank line.
Gerry the canoebuilder /plumber

[Gina D.]

Curtis,

I only had a tank in the 13, no city water, so it was much simpler.

I had a valve AFTER the "T" for each line. The faucet that had the hand pump remained open all the time. The electric pump faucet was always closed, I just used the switch for it. (I also had a fail safe toggle like Patricks)

It was behind the sink, so no counter space was lost.

No, the ball valve in the hand pump is not enough to keep the pressure out. If I, for some strange reason, wanted to use the Electric side only, I would have to turn the hand pump side valve off.

I never did that tho.

[Gerry]

I only had a tank in the 13, no city water, so it was much simpler.

I had a valve AFTER the "T" for each line. The faucet that had the hand pump remained open all the time. The electric pump faucet was always closed, I just used the switch for it. (I also had a fail safe toggle like Patricks)

If you only had to deal with the tank and no city water connection, why have the "T".
Right now Lady-Bug is still un-atainalbe with 13 inches of snow all around it but as soon as this goes I plan to get right on this project and I will post it so people will know if it works or not.
Thanks for the imput about the pump faucet not holding the pressure when in "hand pump" position but I am sure it will work if kept in the city water operational mode. I will too have a toggle switch and not depend on the interior pressure switch in pump.
Gerry

[Gina D.]

If you only had to deal with the tank and no city water connection, why have the "T".

Two faucets. If you didn't have a place to put the valves for each one, water would flow out of BOTH, regardless of the pump used.

[MyronL]

I have a question on this subject of potable water pumps. My trailer came with a Shurflo pump made in 1980.

When I gutted the interior I pulled the 11 gal tank and the pump, because they were not installed in the right place. Now I'm finally getting around to making it work again but am not sure of how the wiring goes. When I wired it up it ran but wouldn't prime. That might have been due to the way I set up the hoses, or maybe because the many rubber seals are no good. If its just a gravity thing I can deal with that.

I took the pump apart when it wouldn't hold prime and found bits of white plastic scattered throughout, plus a little screen that was out of place, so I cleaned that up. Shurflo's site claims to have a rebuild kit but so far I have not found a dealer who knows anything about it so I'm hoping the seals are really ok and my problem is elsewhere.

Below is how I think the wiring should go. Would appreciate a confirmation on that since I have forgotten how it was originally set up. Red and black wires come out the motor. But there is a switch in front which has two spade connections. That green switch is only connected to the blue spring and is a puzzle to me.

I am also assuming the red and black wires that come out of the back (motor) end get wired as I show in drawing, but is black positive or negative?

[Donna D.]

Will this help?

Shurflo Waterpump Troubleshooting from the Document Center

[MyronL]

Donna, you done it again! Thanks, that's exactly what I needed. Why I couldn't find it myself.........?

[Greg A]

Hooked my new tank and Shurflo pump up today and it is running like a dream. If it passes the 'leak test" I can start installing the new flooring.

Thanks Donna the shurflo brochure helped immensely.

[MyronL]

Well, that's it. My old Burro pump is ready for the Smithstonian.

After re-installation and filling tank with warm water laced with clorox I turned on the pump switch to fire it up, turned on the faucet and waited. And waited. No water came into the pump so after trying all my tricks, like trying to induce a vacuum by holding my palm up against the spiggot, (?what do I know?) turning it rapidly on and off, kicking tires, etc, still no go.

The pump is in a position higher than the tank and the hose so had then to check if this was simply a gravity problem and therefore it couldn't prime. I thought Surflo pumps are self-priming so I wasn't expecting that to be the problem.

But it was. With hoses re-arranged for a test to draw water from a pot that was held above the pump.... everything worked. Water cascaded into my sink. Birds soon came to frolic and splash about.

But alas, the joy was short lived.

Problem number one was the realization that since this was not a self priming pump there was really no practical place for it to be installed that was below the tank. Certainly its current location, though beautiful, was out. I could still deal with that, though it means major work, which I don't mind, unless I got to do it twice.

But then problem number two showed up. This pump was leaking big time from some hidden seams and or seals. It's not looking like I can get a seal/repair/replacement kit for a pump made in 1981.

Rats. Of course, leaky pumps are ok for use outdoors.