Whale Gulper 220

[D&D]

We have a (Lagoon factory installed in April 2010) Whale Gulper 220 diaphram pump for our showers and sinks. Recently, however, one of the pumps is not working, or at least not removing the water. We ran a number of checks...

- The pump and switch work fine
- On removing the exhaust hose (after the pump) and running the pump, there is no water coming out of the pump. So the problem is not the exhaust hose.
- On removing the intake hose, we were able to move air through the hose easily. So there is no blockage in the intake hose.
- On removing the diaphram cap, the diaphram itself appears to be operating correctly and there is no damage (that we can see anyway) to the diaphram.
- Similarly, the two one-way valves inside the diaphram cap appear to be undamaged and operating correctly.

We are yet to force water up the intake hose to try to prime the pump, but all the material suggests this should be a self-priming pump.

Any suggestions?

[DotDun]

Is the pump spinning? Or just the motor running.....

[D&D]

Originally Posted by DotDun

Is the pump spinning? Or just the motor running.....

Didn't remove the pump housing, just the cap over the diaphram. When the cap was removed and the pump then turned 'on', the diaphram moved up and down as intended...and the motor sounds much the same when running with the diaphram cap secured back on. So we assume there is no problem with the pump motor...

[bobconnie]

Sonds like a faulty diaphram, I really mean a hole in it somewhere ! Just my 2 cents Bob and Connie

[HopCar]

I'd bet on a bad valve. I haven't taken one of those apart but I think they have three valves, one intake valve and two discharge valves. On a diaphram pump the valves usually go first.

[RobertKoch]

Originally Posted by HopCar

I'd bet on a bad valve. I haven't taken one of those apart but I think they have three valves, one intake valve and two discharge valves. On a diaphram pump the valves usually go first.

I have just repaired the problem on my Lagoon 380 by replacing the valve end of the gulper pump. Hopefully I can get replacement valve ends without needing to buy a whole pump.

There is substantial backpressure from a very long hose to the output seacock which may aggravate the valve problem.

[D&D]

There is a service kit available that effectively replaces all the moving parts, apart from the motor. They say the units rarely need servicing, but nevertheless there is this kit available. It took a while to locate one, but when we did, and then installed it, the unit now operates perfectly. If you can't find one, approach the manufacturer directly; they were very helpful.

On balance, I suspect our problem was the diaphram, but rather than 'cherry pick' each component we opted for the service kit...and it worked!

[Randyonr3]

I've got 3 of the pumps aboard. one for the shower sump, one for the crapper and one for the bilge.. the valves are what goes first.. they lose their shape and wont seal to pull the water. when you go to buy replacements, they sell you the complete kit for around 75.00.. but all you need are the two small valves..
I've modified my bilge gulper by adding two flow gates, (not sure of the real name) but bought them from ace hwd in the right size.. mounted one on each side of the pump.. works great at a fraction of the cost and I think it even works better..
The ones I bought have a flapper on the inside instead of the pinched rubber type.

[D&D]

Originally Posted by Randyonr3

I've got 3 of the pumps aboard. one for the shower sump, one for the crapper and one for the bilge.. the valves are what goes first.. they lose their shape and wont seal to pull the water. when you go to buy replacements, they sell you the complete kit for around 75.00.. but all you need are the two small valves..
I've modified my bilge gulper by adding two flow gates, (not sure of the real name) but bought them from ace hwd in the right size.. mounted one on each side of the pump.. works great at a fraction of the cost and I think it even works better..
The ones I bought have a flapper on the inside instead of the pinched rubber type.

Interesting, thanks! Can you recall "the right size" you used?