Mr. Murphy stopped by, whizzed in the tank.

[Conesus_Kid]

So yesterday I went in to school because the B & G guys were installing GFCI outlets in my room and wanted me to be there in case anything went wrong with the aquariums.

When I was there, I noticed quite a bit of salt creep on the Barraccuda pump shaft and the floor near the pump was wet. Okay, I need a new seal. No biggie.

Throughout the evening, I kept checking the webcam and AC3 to make sure things were okay. My concern grew as I watched the temperature increase from 82 to 85 to 86, topping out at 87 at 5:00 am today.

Needless to say, I got to school around 6 this morning to see what the deal was. I initially thought that flow was blocked to the chiller, so I disconnected it and flushed water through it. Hooked it back up, and watched it kick on, then stop as it read the internal temp at 76 degrees while the tank was still north of 86.

It turns out that it wasn't getting enough flow. Whether this is related to the bad seal on the pump or not, I'm not sure. I put a one hole rubber stopper in one of the return out puts and that increased flow through the chiller, bringing the temp back in line.

Oh, and my rabbit fish was dead.

 

[Capt_Cully]

Coulda been worse. Nice kick save!

 

[Conesus_Kid]

Yeah, this is definitely a temporary fix. The feed to the chiller is suffering from a significant case of design flaw. My plan is to run the closed loop through the chiller.

Corals, the RBTA and all other fish seem to be okay.

I'm bummed about that rabbitfish. I've had him over five years.

Anyone here ever change the seal on a Reeflo pump? (Why do I think Walter is the man to provide guidance on this one?)

 

[Capt_Cully]

First guy that pops in my mind.

 

[captain7359]

Half way through a change on my dart, but I've got 2 of them to do my dart & uno if you need one asap. hammer, chisel/screwdriver, socket, beer, and bandaids are all that is needed to change them. I've got a scribbled rabbit too if you're interested.

 

[Conesus_Kid]

I think I'm okay for now, thanks Walter. If I end up in a pinch, I can swap the Dart off of the closed loop.

Do you recommend a place to get the new seal kit? Most online sources are around $44.

Thanks.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

hammer, chisel/screwdriver, socket, beer, and bandaids are all that is needed to change them.

now THAT's a tool kit! :spin3:

 

[captain7359]

Sequence had them for like $27.50 and $30 plus shipping.

 

[Henry Colf]

Hate that freakin Murphy guy!!!!!

 

[andrew2010]

I have replaced a hundred plus pump seals.. very easy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WT6FaK3MX4o


However if your pump shaft is rusted (as sw is very corrosive) clean it as good as you can. I turned the pump on (wet end un assembled) and cleaned it with a piece of emery cloth wrapped around it. Don't take too much off the shaft or sometimes it wont ever seal correctly again. Gotta find the happy medium between too much rust and not enough shaft.
Drew

 

[Conesus_Kid]

Thanks, guys. I called Reeflo directly and the new seal kit was $33 including shipping.

 

[Dave VG]

Wow good thing you caught that Murphy guy in the act scott. That could have been a very very bad thing. Gotta love that real time monitoring thingy mabob.

 

[der_wille_zur_macht]

If your pump doesn't have one, put a slinger (large diameter rubber washer) between the seal and the front bearing in the motor. Otherwise, the next time it starts leaking, you might kill a bearing, too. Sequence/Reeflo seem to change their mind often about whether or not a given model has this from the factory so it's worth it to check your particular pump.

 

[Conesus_Kid]

Yep, there's a slinger washer on there. I guess that will be my silver lining. :lol:

 

[Conesus_Kid]

So I stopped in today since my daughter takes clarinet lessons on Tuesdays at my school to find that the return pump had completely quit. It was hot to the touch, so I took it off and brought it home. At first, I was worried that the motor had seized up, but I let it cool off and it spins fine.

I'm going to replace the seals tomorrow, but was wondering what type of "silicone lubricant" the instructions call for. When I look online, all of these sprays come up. Are we talking KY here?

 

[captain7359]

keg lube if you've got it...

Or you can just spit on it and it'll achieve the same results.

 

[Conesus_Kid]

Thanks, bud!
I do have keg lube (and spit). :thumbsup:

 

[Conesus_Kid]

Nuts!

I think the bearings in the motor are shot. It makes a weird noise when running (without impeller or dust cover), slows periodically, and there's a slight wobble to the drive shaft. Also, after running for less than a minute, the drive shaft gets so hot, you can't even touch it.

Anyone ever replace bearings in an electric motor? Is this a DIY job?

 

[andrew2010]

bearings are easy yes it can be diy. take off front cover and remove core. replace front and back bearings @ the same time. easier than the seal IMO. get the bearings and seal and I can help if you need. ( i need an excuse for a bike ride)

 

[Conesus_Kid]

Do you have a good source for getting the bearings?

Thanks.