Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

New Pump leaking

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • New Pump leaking

    So we ordered a new pump from our brewhouse manufacture back in August and they shipped it promptly in November. It had leaked from day one. We reached out to them and let them know that it was leaking; they told us they test every pump. By test I think they mean they plug it in and make sure it turns on. There is no way they ran any kind of liquid through it.

    Anyway, I have rebuilt the pump twice to no avail. Not my first time. Every pump on the brewhouse(40bbl) has been rebuilt in the last 6 months.

    The motor is a Baldor Reliance 3hp and the pump head is an Ampco AC+216MD.

    The leak appears to be coming from around the shaft, behind the carbon seal. When the pump is running it is a small leak but when the pump is turned off with liquid in the CIP arm it’s a gusher.

    What say the collective?

  • #2
    Setup

    You either have a defect or the unit is not setup correctly.
    OEM seal kits are preferred on the units I run and they are better.
    There is generally an o-ring on the back of the carbon seal which must be in place.
    The DOCs are not very well done, but generally you have to look at the drive collar position as this is what sets the tension on the backplate.
    Warren Turner
    Industrial Engineering Technician
    HVACR-Electrical Systems Specialist
    Moab Brewery
    The Thought Police are Attempting to Suppress Free Speech and Sugar coat everything. This is both Cowardice and Treason given to their own kind.

    Comment


    • #3
      Is this a hot-side wort pump?

      We had a Baldor/Thomsen pump as out knockout pump and were constantly replacing seals. Finally through the forum and a confirmation call to Thomsen I made the switch from a typical internal seal to a water bath cooled external seal.

      Guess in some cases the internal seals cant deal with the thick wort, the wort sugars tending to burn and cause the friction that wears out the seal.

      Seems to have done the trick, a bit of a hassle to set up getting the water to drain away, but its not leaking.


      ...if its not your wort pump, donno ;-)

      Comment


      • #4
        Replaced 100's- still learning

        So, I've replaced hundreds of pump seals in my brewing career and recently had one that refused to stop leaking.

        We've had the pump for over a year and this was the first time we put a new seal on it. I thought I knew everything about pump seals, but after checking out Dixon's youtube videos , I learned a lot and was able to get it to stop leaking.

        My mistakes were: not lining up the tab on the adjustable collar with the notch in the cup that holds the seal, not snugging the spring end up against the tab on the cup that holds the seal, and letting the O-ring on the back of the seal slip forward just a bit when putting on the face plate.

        These were very small adjustments that ultimately made it work. Not sure if this helps, but besides manufacturing defects on the parts of your pump, I would say it's probably user error...

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by Starcat View Post
          You either have a defect or the unit is not setup correctly.
          OEM seal kits are preferred on the units I run and they are better.
          There is generally an o-ring on the back of the carbon seal which must be in place.
          The DOCs are not very well done, but generally you have to look at the drive collar position as this is what sets the tension on the backplate.
          http://www.ampcopumps.com/wp-content...nce-Manual.pdf
          You are correct sir, the DOCs leave a little to be desired. The o-ring you speak of is in place.

          Originally posted by Sauce View Post
          Is this a hot-side wort pump?

          We had a Baldor/Thomsen pump as out knockout pump and were constantly replacing seals. Finally through the forum and a confirmation call to Thomsen I made the switch from a typical internal seal to a water bath cooled external seal.

          Guess in some cases the internal seals cant deal with the thick wort, the wort sugars tending to burn and cause the friction that wears out the seal.

          Seems to have done the trick, a bit of a hassle to set up getting the water to drain away, but its not leaking.


          ...if its not your wort pump, donno ;-)
          Not a wort pump, portable unit mainly used for CIP.

          Originally posted by porter View Post
          So, I've replaced hundreds of pump seals in my brewing career and recently had one that refused to stop leaking.

          We've had the pump for over a year and this was the first time we put a new seal on it. I thought I knew everything about pump seals, but after checking out Dixon's youtube videos , I learned a lot and was able to get it to stop leaking.

          My mistakes were: not lining up the tab on the adjustable collar with the notch in the cup that holds the seal, not snugging the spring end up against the tab on the cup that holds the seal, and letting the O-ring on the back of the seal slip forward just a bit when putting on the face plate.

          These were very small adjustments that ultimately made it work. Not sure if this helps, but besides manufacturing defects on the parts of your pump, I would say it's probably user error...
          Watched a few of the video's, no new or groundbreaking information there. Keyway on spring collar is lining up, end of spring is where it should be, and o-ring is where it should be. As well as the gaskets on the shaft infront of and in back of the impeller. As far as user error, thanks for playing.

          Reached out to Ampco and after several emails finally got a call from on of their engineers who is sending a tech out to look at the unit. Will update once it gets resolved.

          Comment


          • #6
            Fixed

            So after some more digging(comparing non leaking pumps) the problem is solved. The drive collar was 1/4 inch too far back on the shaft. Not enough tension on the spring. Was a mistake by the guy that put it together orginally.

            Comment

            Working...
            X