Spectra 150 clark pump

[robertevans]

I was looking at making a watermaker and came across a spectra 150 Clark pump on its own with no outher parts.
Is there any reason why I cant run it as a bear bones system with no electronics
Example
Hull fitting.
Sea strainer.
100 psi diaphragm pump 6 amp.
30 and 5 micron filters.
Y tap for fresh flush from bucket and bleed air out after filter clean.
A shut off tap to allowing all filters an strainer to be cleaned with out draining the rest of the system.
Acumilator.
Clarke pump.
Membrane.
Brine over side.
Y tap for Product water to test bucket or tank
Flush with product water collected in bucket.
If all components are in good order will this system work or am I deluding myself.
Wanting basic, expecting to have no choice but to fix it myself were I'm intending to go, fixing electronics way over my head.
Thanks in advance
Regards Rob

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by robertevans

I was looking at making a watermaker and came across a spectra 150 Clark pump on its own with no outher parts.
Is there any reason why I cant run it as a bear bones system with no electronics
Example
Hull fitting.
Sea strainer.
100 psi diaphragm pump 6 amp.
30 and 5 micron filters.
Y tap for fresh flush from bucket and bleed air out after filter clean.
A shut off tap to allowing all filters an strainer to be cleaned with out draining the rest of the system.
Acumilator.
Clarke pump.
Membrane.
Brine over side.
Y tap for Product water to test bucket or tank
Flush with product water collected in bucket.
If all components are in good order will this system work or am I deluding myself.
Wanting basic, expecting to have no choice but to fix it myself were I'm intending to go, fixing electronics way over my head.
Thanks in advance
Regards Rob

Small Spectra units do not use any electronics, so you shouldn't need them either.

[jordanbigel]

No deluding here. This is exactly the system I have, and used for 6 years cruising, right down to using a bucket with product water for flushing. The Y valve for product water testing was plumbed below, into the galley, under the sink with a small hose I can pull out and leave discharging in the sink while the system gets up to speed, once its clean, I turn the Y valve to direct water to the tanks and put the little hose back under the sink. One thing not on your list which may be desirable to you is a mechanical pressure gauge. When things go south you will notice the pressure drop if you are paying attention. Would also suggest a kit of spares for the Clark pump for certain parts which commonly need replacement, if you run the system regularly for more than a year or two, you will need them.

[Celestialsailor]

I built one for my Hallberg Rassy 35 out of a defunked 150. Used some of Spectra's parts and some online parts.

[Sailmonkey]

I took a schenker modular 35 (very similar to the spectra) that wasn’t functional. Stripped every last bit of wire, PCB, relay, etc... off of it and set it up after a rebuild to operate with a simple on off switch. Works great!

[robertevans]

Originally Posted by jordanbigel

No deluding here. This is exactly the system I have, and used for 6 years cruising, right down to using a bucket with product water for flushing. The Y valve for product water testing was plumbed below, into the galley, under the sink with a small hose I can pull out and leave discharging in the sink while the system gets up to speed, once its clean, I turn the Y valve to direct water to the tanks and put the little hose back under the sink. One thing not on your list which may be desirable to you is a mechanical pressure gauge. When things go south you will notice the pressure drop if you are paying attention. Would also suggest a kit of spares for the Clark pump for certain parts which commonly need replacement, if you run the system regularly for more than a year or two, you will need them.

Hello Jorden thanks for replying and putting my mind at ease.
Are you using spectra pressure vestals for you membrane or normal ones?
Are you using hydraulic hoses or stainless ones as spectra use?
thank you in advance
and thanks to every on who replyed for there help/input
Regards Rob

[SYCavalier]

Originally Posted by robertevans

I was looking at making a watermaker and came across a spectra 150 Clark pump on its own with no outher parts.
Is there any reason why I cant run it as a bear bones system with no electronics
Example
Hull fitting.
Sea strainer.
100 psi diaphragm pump 6 amp.
30 and 5 micron filters.
Y tap for fresh flush from bucket and bleed air out after filter clean.
A shut off tap to allowing all filters an strainer to be cleaned with out draining the rest of the system.
Acumilator.
Clarke pump.
Membrane.
Brine over side.
Y tap for Product water to test bucket or tank
Flush with product water collected in bucket.
If all components are in good order will this system work or am I deluding myself.
Wanting basic, expecting to have no choice but to fix it myself were I'm intending to go, fixing electronics way over my head.
Thanks in advance
Regards Rob

You're certainly not deluding yourself.

This is the basic system that I bought in 2006. The only thing missing is a charcoal filter for your flush side. Spectra, or Katadyn as I believe they are now, will tell you that their charcoal filters remove 99% of chlorine whereas those available in your local hardware remove only 90%. My solution, two charcoal filters in series. Local elements are about $5 a piece and change every 6 months. If you have filled your tanks with dock water and flush, you're going to have chlorine in the water.

If you need to replace the membrane, you can find on Amazon for a little more than $100 compared to about $900 from Spectra.

I have rebuilt my Clark Pump in 2015 with the rebuild kit from Spectra and a membrane sourced on Amazon.

[Chotu]

Eagerly watching this thread.

I also have an old Spectra that may or may not work.

Looking at the old electronics has me concerned. If they’re not gone already, they will be soon.

This approach (and a TDS meter) seems like the way to go. Maybe an automatic shutoff when the water tank is full. Pressure gauge.

I plan to use the spectra membrane housing and just put in a new membrane.

Hope this thread really takes off with best places to get parts, etc.

[SYCavalier]

Originally Posted by Chotu

Eagerly watching this thread.

I also have an old Spectra that may or may not work.

Looking at the old electronics has me concerned. If they’re not gone already, they will be soon.

This approach (and a TDS meter) seems like the way to go. Maybe an automatic shutoff when the water tank is full. Pressure gauge.

I plan to use the spectra membrane housing and just put in a new membrane.

Hope this thread really takes off with best places to get parts, etc.

Not sure what 'old electronics' your talking about.

My Spectra 150 has an off and on switch and select valve for Run or Flush manually.

When the tank is full it overflows through the breather, turn the Watermaker off or switch to another tank. Not much to concern you there.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by SYCavalier

Not sure what 'old electronics' your talking about.

My Spectra 150 has an off and on switch and select valve for Run or Flush manually.

When the tank is full it overflows through the breather, turn the Watermaker off or switch to another tank. Not much to concern you there.

Hmmm.

I think mine is called a Newport or something like that. Not a 150 actually.

It has a Zbrane set of electronics, lots of various buttons for backflush and other modes of operation, a TDS meter integrated to switch to tanks when product water is good, etc. it’s complex. And old. And looks very prone to failure due to age of electronics.

I’d like to do as this thread says I think, rather than try to get it all running with the electronics.

[Quadrille in JB]

It sounds Like you have left out the high pressure bypass valve and pressure gauge. After starting up you close the valve until the pressure reaches ~800 psi. A liquid rotometer calibrated in gph is also handy to gauge your freshwater output and to keep track of your membrane’s condition.
The basic complete system from SeaWaterPro has all of this, including membrane, pump, and raw water pump for under $2K

[Seriously Slow]

If you are getting a used pump only ask yourself why it is being sold that way. I have had plenty of problems with my 200T that I bought new and treated it properly to the letter. You will surely need to replace everything inside that can wear and hopefully the cylinders are not scored. just to get to start. There is no pressure adjustment knob. The feed pump provides the pressure and will shut off if pressure goes too high. That setting is adjustable, see instructions. I think it is to shut off at 125 lbs. while the pressure bleeds down a bit.
Good luck.

[jordanbigel]

Originally Posted by robertevans

Hello Jorden thanks for replying and putting my mind at ease.
Are you using spectra pressure vestals for you membrane or normal ones?
Are you using hydraulic hoses or stainless ones as spectra use?
thank you in advance
and thanks to every on who replyed for there help/input
Regards Rob

We have the spectra pressure vessel and membrane, and we have hydraulic hoses, all purchased from Spectra, circa 2001. I haven't seen their stainless hose version, I bet they are nice. My system has been idle for about 10 years, but I am planning to have the clark pump and pressure vessel rebuilt at a local shop which specializes in that and get it going again in time for a post-pandemic voyage... so, plenty of time still.

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by Quadrille in JB

It sounds Like you have left out the high pressure bypass valve and pressure gauge. After starting up you close the valve until the pressure reaches ~800 psi. A liquid rotometer calibrated in gph is also handy to gauge your freshwater output and to keep track of your membrane’s condition.
The basic complete system from SeaWaterPro has all of this, including membrane, pump, and raw water pump for under $2K

An intensifier pump system (spectra/schenker) don’t require these bits....nor is a seawater pro system even comparable to these systems. It’s apples and oranges

[Madehn]

yes it is possible- i just completed that project using a pump that someone had gifted me along with filter housings and prefilters-- i purchased parts from Cruise RO and sought out Rich Boren's assistance- in the end i saved a little money at the cost of some headaches melding the parts. To be honest i think i would have been ahead to have just bought Rich's simple unit in total. One other thing you need to realize is that you also need the electrical wiring/breakers etc for the pump and the feed pump- make sure you dont stint on the feed pump- you need something that is rated for continuous duty- run that high pressure pump without feed water and very shortly you have a veryexpensive paperwieght/puzzle. -- i have done a lot of projects on this boat i am rebuilding but this one for some reason was very challenging- part of it might have been that i was putting it in a tight location but it was still difficult. Be sure you put the pressure vessels where you have access- they will need to be taken apart to replace the membranes. TDS meter you can get on Amazon--keep in mind also that these things like to be run fairly often or be flushed out fairly often-- like every 72 hours-- you can pickle for longer periods but that is another thing entirely.-- mine is set up to flush automatically using water from my tanks every three days so that i dont have to remember to do it-- yes i know electronics to break but forgetting to do it and trashing membranes is pretty expensive also. Rich can help you source/get parts- if i had to do it again i would have sold the pump that i was gifted and bought the whole unit new from Rich. ( no connection just a satisfied customer).