Noisy Panworld 50px Pump!

[hambone_smith]

I have recently plumbed a basement sump system with a Panworld 50px external return pump. My plumbing worked as planned but the pump is so loud you can here it upstairs when it is located in the garage below the living room (I own a split foyer, it sucks). The pump is hard plumbed up until about 3 feet of head where it goes through the living room floor and back up into the tank where I used spa flex tubing and then went back to hard pvc. I have seen the computer fan mods but that doesn't look safe for the pump's longevity. Either way the pump is crazy loud and it is annoying. Also, the pump
Is sitting on a few layers of rubber roofing membrane which I hoped would reduce vibration. Any insight would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

 

[alton]

Return it, my 50PXX is super quiet and my friends 50 PX was quiet. First foot from the pump should be flexible?

 

[shifty51008]

I agree both of my blueline (panworld) pumps are very quiet. I do have pads underneath but dont think it matters much.

 

[slief]

Is this a new pump? Is it the pump itself that's making the noise or could it be that the plumbing is touching the walls and or framing where it goes through the floor or walls? That could cause resonance that you would hear and feel throughout the house.

 

[hambone_smith]

Yep the pump is new and I'm pretty sure it's the pump not the resonance. The pump is running wide open if that makes a difference. The plumbing is designed to have a full siphon controlled by a gate valve. The pump has a ball valve plumbed after the output but it pretty much just handles what it can and I adjust the siphon from there. I have seen where people advocate using flex tubing on the pump but I have heard others argue that it doesn't make a difference and restricts flow with the barb fittings.
Unless I am missing something I don't know a way around using the barb fittings and pipe clamps? I suppose I could use a bushings and go up a size for my barbed fittings and flex tubing.

 

[slief]

Yep the pump is new and I'm pretty sure it's the pump not the resonance. The pump is running wide open if that makes a difference. The plumbing is designed to have a full siphon controlled by a gate valve. The pump has a ball valve plumbed after the output but it pretty much just handles what it can and I adjust the siphon from there. I have seen where people advocate using flex tubing on the pump but I have heard others argue that it doesn't make a difference and restricts flow with the barb fittings.
Unless I am missing something I don't know a way around using the barb fittings and pipe clamps? I suppose I could use a bushings and go up a size for my barbed fittings and flex tubing.

With those pumps, I'd use flex PVC and not vinyl tubing that requires barbed fittings. Any chance there is air trapped in the pump? Granted that should purge itself before long. I looked but cant't tell whether the 50px has a fan on the back. If it does, you might want to remove the shroud and check to see if the blades are rubbing. I've seen some of those pumps come in with the blades slightly tweaked and if the blades rub the shroud or the back of the motor, they can be pretty noisey. This is something that is easily fixed. That said, these pumps should be pretty quiet so you might just contact your vendor and get a replacement.

 

[chimmike]

if you've strapped the hard piping down to any framing, you'll get a good bit of noise from that.

 

[ca1ore]

I've run a number of the panworld 50 pumps and while I'd not characterize them as 'quiet' given that they are fan cooled, I'd not judge them to be particularly noisy either. I'd not personally run one in a tank stand, but when I've run them below the tank in my basement sump room they are inaudible from upstairs. That yours is audible suggests, as others have noted, either a malfunctioning pump or some kind of vibration transmission.

FWIW, a little back pressure on these pumps obviously reduces flow, but does not make them noisy.

 

[hambone_smith]

Thanks for the input everyone, I'm going to disassemble the pump from the plumbing and check the pump fan and impeller and I'll plumb a piece of flex pvc somewhere close to the output. I'll let you guys know what happens. Thanks again!

 

[hambone_smith]

I have an update on the Panworld. I called Marine Depot and they told me to dissemble the pump and make sure the impeller is seated properly. So I went ahead and did this and while I had it apart I noticed a decent wobble with the impeller, I called Marine Depot back and they said that would be normal. I also plumbed some PVC flex pipe into the output of her return. I also placed ~3/4" of styrofoam under the pump. Upon starting the pump back up the noise is still close to the same from what I can tell. I decided to get a decibel meter app on my phone and it reads in the 70s from a few feet away. It definitely sounds like the fan just being noisy, not like a harsh vibration. Is this normal for anyone else with an external pump or Panworld for that matter? Thanks ahead!