Power Washing and Roof Cleaning Forum

Trent Blanchard · Veteran Member

Pump problems

Bryan P · Approved Exterior Cleaner

Is it just a fatboy pumping direct out of a mix tank? You have an accumulator? Do you prime the pump before spraying? You're supposed to prime every time, but I don't always...I notice what you're saying when I've run out of chemical and have air in the line.

Trent Blanchard · Veteran Member

Bryan P wrote:
Is it just a fatboy pumping direct out of a mix tank? You have an accumulator? Do you prime the pump before spraying? You're supposed to prime every time, but I don't always...I notice what you're saying when I've run out of chemical and have air in the line.

No I don't have an accumulator. And I'm setup with pvc pipe and ball valves. When I ran out of chemical it stopped making the sound. It seems like it is shutting off and on repeatedly when I pull the trigger

-- Edited by Trent Blanchard on Monday 5th of September 2016 12:14:37 PM

Jeff Wible · Approved Exterior Cleaner

I'm not a 12V guy but,..you may want to try adjusting the pressure screw by turning it in. Sounds like it could be out of adjustment on the low side,.. which in turn triggers the pump to shut off to soon.

Jeff

Trent Blanchard · Veteran Member

Jeff Wible wrote:
I'm not a 12V guy but,..you may want to try adjusting the pressure screw by turning it in. Sounds like it could be out of adjustment on the low side,.. which in turn triggers the pump to shut off to soon.

Jeff

Thanks I will give it a try

Maverick Contracting · Approved Exterior Cleaner

I occasionally have that problem and one thing I found is when low on solution the high volume sometime's suck in suds and causes a vapor lock issue.
Had my guy spray on a job 2 weeks ago while I watched the solution tank that had about a foot or 10 inches in it and when he opened trigger I saw the suds on top by the pick up tube get suckered down and it began to stall.
Try less soap or keep solution levels high enough at all times and see if that helps.

The pump needs solid liquid to pull, if it's aerated or foamy it cant cannot draw well

-- Edited by Maverick Contracting on Monday 5th of September 2016 01:51:30 PM

Maverick Contracting · Approved Exterior Cleaner

When the problem happened to me I can hear the motor cycling but not pulling.
I poured the garden hose right over the pickup inlet and it began to prime to a stop again so I am assuming this is the problem.
I also use to agitate by spraying into the tank but learned it causes too many suds or aeration in solution so now I add surfactant to a 5 gallon can, dilute, shake, let settle then just pour in tank and fill with low pressure from garden hose as to keep as little air bubbles out of solution.
Seems to work better.
HTH.

Trent Blanchard · Veteran Member

Thanks for the help guys much appreciated

BlueRidge · Approved Exterior Cleaner

Jeff Wible wrote:
I'm not a 12V guy but,..you may want to try adjusting the pressure screw by turning it in. Sounds like it could be out of adjustment on the low side,.. which in turn triggers the pump to shut off to soon.

Jeff

This is a good solution and one that I used to use before I started getting rid of the relay and using a solenoid. I seldom need to prime the Fat Boy, usually it will need some help if I empty every hose in the truck. Accumulators are a way for some to try and fix the cycling problem. There are many issues with an accumulator I won't get into here but after I installed one once, I will never waste my money again. There are no replacement parts, the rubber diaphragm was rotten when I took it apart. I have no clue how long I was using it with a rotten diaphragm. So, adjusting the pressure switch as Jeff suggests usually will solve cycling problems.

Zach Maynard · Approved Exterior Cleaner

I just recently hooked up a 6 gpm pump on my system. It was pulsing with every tip I tried on it. One way to test if you have the wrong tips is to spray with no tips hooked up which obviously increases the flow. If it stops pulsing then it's a tip orifice issue. At that point it's either get diff tips or an accumulator (I personally have had success with them).
My solution was to hook up a Delavan 5950 since I prefer that size pump and the pulsing instantly stopped. I also did not lose any spray distance.
Now I'm not saying just buy a different pump.
Although if this isn't common on your rig, I would either think that maybe your battery was low or your pump is on it's way out. (or it's that time of the month for your pump)

Trent Blanchard · Veteran Member

Zach Maynard wrote:
I just recently hooked up a 6 gpm pump on my system. It was pulsing with every tip I tried on it. One way to test if you have the wrong tips is to spray with no tips hooked up which obviously increases the flow. If it stops pulsing then it's a tip orifice issue. At that point it's either get diff tips or an accumulator (I personally have had success with them).
My solution was to hook up a Delavan 5950 since I prefer that size pump and the pulsing instantly stopped. I also did not lose any spray distance.
Now I'm not saying just buy a different pump.
Although if this isn't common on your rig, I would either think that maybe your battery was low or your pump is on it's way out. (or it's that time of the month for your pump)

Thank you for the help. My pump is only 1 month old

Liberty SoftWash · PWS Vender

I have found that I need to check the fill tube filter to make sure it was not clogged.