what's wrong with my pump?!?!?!?!?!?

[OC CJ]

hey guys, my stock pump on my octopus nw 150 has been working fine for a little while but i decided to mesh mod it with the gutter guard material. this weekend i did the mod and once i plugged the pump in it worked but there were very few bubbles coming out. couldn't figure it out so i took the mesh off and still, no bubbles.

well, i started messing around with it again tonight, redid the mesh much better this time, plugged it in and the same thing, it's moving a ton of water but hardly any bubbles. i didn't change anything else. i've tried blowing into the airline but that doesn't work. i can hear the sucking sound and know the pump is getting air but all i see are a few big bubbles but not the white foam i saw before.

any ideas what could be wrong?

 

[lowbudget]

post a picture of your impeller with the mesh mod

 

[OC CJ]

well, i'm trying but photobucket won't upload the pic for me right now.

the pump wouldn't create any bubbles even with the mesh removed.

i can here the sucking noise at the end of the airline and there are some bubbles coming out but just a few. not sure where all the air is going????

this thing is driving me crazy!!!

 

[OC CJ]

photobucket just went through, crappy pic on my cell but you get the idea.

 

[OC CJ]

well, i've been trying to get this thing to work all night... i give up unless someone can tell me what's wrong.

found some replacement pumps on aquacave and just might upgrade my octopus 2000 to the 3000 pump

 

[OC CJ]

no one has a clue as to what could be wrong?

 

[five.five-six]

is the venturi cloged? it never hurts to clean skimmer parts with viniger

 

[OC CJ]

venturi is not clogged and the pump is spotless. i've checked everything i can think of. there must be something i'm missing or just something wrong with the pump.

 

[five.five-six]

how about the venturi hose? can you suck water through it. did you try running the pump disconnected from the skimmer? did it blow bubbles,

 

[OC CJ]

i've been testing it in a bucket of water, not hooked up to the skimmer. I've blown air into the air line and big bubbles come out but nothing. i can even hear the sucking sound at the end of the air line and a few bubbles come out into the bucket but not much at all. no white foam at all. i don't know where the air is going...

 

[SENSIREEF]

Your using the wrong material, well atleast I have never seen that used before, seems very rugged and harsh, Try INkA Mat. I will work out alot better for you.

 

[OC CJ]

i've seen this stuff used before so i thought i would try it.

like i said, even when i removed it the pump will not produce bubbles any longer. I do feel a difference in the water movement when this stuff is in and i plug the venturi, much stronger flow.

 

[xtm]

The sedra on my ASM had this problem. Try trimming the mesh mod so that it's NOT snug in the casing, giving it more space to spin. I don't know how you did your mesh mod but I used Enkemat and tiny zip ties and it's perfect. You can also check your venturi inlet and make sure it's clear.

 

[OC CJ]

the wheel spins freely... with or without the mesh it doesn't create the bubbles now. the venturi is completely clear. this is just a freakin mind boggler!! air is getting sucked in, pump is spinning, hardly any bubbles. ????? i'm going to mess with it some more tonight but if i can't get it to work i'll sell it since it works great for a return.

 

[five.five-six]

does it pump water?

 

[OC CJ]

pumps plenty of water, especially when i plug the venturi. that's why i don't understand what's going on.

 

[Frankysreef]

use the pf4 enkamat... that works really good.

that gutter guard material looks too thick

 

[OC CJ]

the material was easily found which is why i used it. plus i found an old thread on here where some people used it for this exact pump with excellant results. either way, switching the material at this point will do no good until i can get the pump working.

 

[Frankysreef]

Maybe the problem is in the venturi...

Reread the mesh mod thread.. there is directions there for the venturi.

 

[OC CJ]

where is the mesh mod thread?