fresh water pump delay

[seatotaler]

Originally Posted by Tellie

Unfortunately many pumps you can not adjust the pressure switch. These are also non continuous motors. Once the TP ( thermal protection) gets worn from constant tripping, it can trip a lot faster giving you the same symptoms you have. I'd scrap the accumulator tank and just install a nice on demand pump instead.

This is sort of the answer I was hoping to hear. It's just one of those things since there doesn't seem to be any other faults that what you say makes sense.

[seatotaler]

I'm just a little concerned about what was said about that shurflo recommends 1/2" dia. lines. I have 5/8" line from my holding tank to the pump now. But then the distribution lines are 3/8" Even the tap set I just installed drops down to 1/4".
I just can't see myself replacing all the water lines. Even though I can see the fittings on my shower tap set. I have no idea how you would ever get to them unless you happened to have a 4 foot arm reach. The rest I can probably get to and with a little effort and a lot of moaning and groaning from these 7 decade bones, I could probably accomplish the job. But it would take time. Being a liveaboard, I get used to having water "now" haha! This procedure would take days without water and a lot of cursing.
Going up to 1/2" would take a lot of "you can do it" attitude.

[singlespeed]

Been there, done the same things. Kept looking for debris in the water line prior to the pump. Finally replaced the pump and removed the accumulator tank. No further problems in eight years of continuous cruising. Took apart the old pump (keep the motor, you never know) and found that water had gotten behind the inside rubber cover of the pressure switch. A tiny amount of corrosion was causing the piston to hangup in the closed position. Once it finally opened there were no restrictions to keep it from closing when the water was turned off.

[svJasmine]

I use the sureflow with no accumulator and it is fine.

[Brewgyver]

Originally Posted by seatotaler

I just realized that the vidoe I was watching with lots of taps flowing was the "smart sensor" model. So maybe that's the one to get. I think it is available in a 4.0 and then a 5.7 I'm guessing that the difference is that if one is showering and another person turns on a tap, you would avoid that loud scream

The issue with your shower water suddenly getting hotter is directly related to your undersized supply lines. You mentioned you have to run the shower

with the hot full open and the cold only slightly open.

When somebody opens the kitchen faucet running cold water, the pressure (and therefore flow) of cold water to your shower drops. Unless your new pump is significantly higher pressure than the old, the new pump won't cure the issue with the shower. Running 1/2" ID lines to the shower would have more effect, as they will deliver almost 80% more water. Conversely, don't increase the galley line sizes, or you'll be back where you started.

[skyline]

Marco pump, no accumulator needed. Pricy, but bullet proof.

[svchinamoon]

I can endorse the pump only no accumulator system as we have used it for many years. At one point we did notice the pump cycling on but after some investigation discovered a small leak in the plumbing which we repaired. Good luck.

[s/v Jedi]

This is the pump I recommend. I guess it’s gonna be the most expensive one recommended here
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[dalonzi]

I chased a problem like this last year for several weeks. I replaced the JABSCO pump with new - same issue. I ultimately found the source of the problem in the galley faucet. At the base of the faucet there is a small filter in the flexible hose line. Took it apart and it was full of gunk. The faucet would run, but took awhile for water to appear, then at low volume.

Cleaned the filter and adjusted the pump on-off cycle settings and all is good.

I always fill the water tank through an external GE home style water filter, but some stuff gets through.

Check the faucet filters (if you have them) and the pressure settings on the pump head. You may quickly locate your problem!

Safe travels, wear your mask and wash your hands!

Dave
Pier Pressure

[waterman46]

Originally Posted by NewMoon

The installation instructions I have recommend a min of 1/2" ID pipe. Not sure how well the 4gpm would work for you. I would not try the 5gpm pump in your case (it might require heftier wiring too).

"Use a minimum of 1/2" [13mm] Inner
Diameter plumbing. Smaller ID plumbing
will cause cavitation, high back
pressure, low flow and noise."

To OP, seems like your non-adjustable pressure switch is quite obviously the problem, and is sticking in the open position a few seconds longer than it should, after a pressure drop.
Regarding the above quote, what happens with this type of pump if you open a tap just a little, why is that any different than having a small diameter tubing? To conserve water we always rinse dishes and take showers with just a very low flow rate. In that case won't you still have a high pressure in the line with a constant running pump and it shouldn't it be designed to behave well in that condition?
Also Can anyone explain why accumulator tank needs a diaphragm? It is simply an air space above a layer of water. Gravity keeps water on bottom, air on top. I doubt our tank has a diaphragm anymore, if it ever did as it is 30 years old but still functions fine.

[seatotaler]

Originally Posted by dalonzi

I chased a problem like this last year for several weeks. I replaced the JABSCO pump with new - same issue. I ultimately found the source of the problem in the galley faucet. At the base of the faucet there is a small filter in the flexible hose line. Took it apart and it was full of gunk. The faucet would run, but took awhile for water to appear, then at low volume.

Cleaned the filter and adjusted the pump on-off cycle settings and all is good.

I always fill the water tank through an external GE home style water filter, but some stuff gets through.

Check the faucet filters (if you have them) and the pressure settings on the pump head. You may quickly locate your problem!

Safe travels, wear your mask and wash your hands!

Dave
Pier Pressure

The day before I posted this topic I replaced the galley faucet set. I have a filter just before the pump that I check regularly. There is no adjustable setting on the pump pressure switch. I'm tempted to try and figure out a way to bypass the wiring so the pressure switch wouldn't be working and it would be a on demand tupe pump. Just to see what difference I might get.

[David B]

Originally Posted by seatotaler

I may have posted this topic a couple years ago. But I'm still pulling my hair out. My fresh water system has issues with pausing for an eternity before the pump kicks back on. But the length of time delay isn't always consistant. Making it really difficult to pin point or to weed out things. I got tired of replacing my big accumulator tank. The metal one that looks like a small propane tank. I think it was a 4 gal. The bladders kept breaking. I thought the broken bladder might be the issue. Recently I replaced it with a Jabsco 30573 one litre accumulator tank. But still no difference. I've checked the pressure several times on the new accumulator tank. Water breaker turned off, tap open, then 17 psi pressure added to the tank. I've checked every fitting on the boat and nothing is leaking water. The pump doesn't come on randomly when I'm not using water. But when I turn the tap on usually I will get water until it runs out of what was previously in the line. Then I can wait up to 10 seconds for the pump to come on and it will flow on full pressure for about 12 seconds, then no water and I wait again for 10 seconds or so for the pump to come back on. That's on the galley sink. I just replaced the tap fixture because it would leak when I was using it and I thought maybe that might contribute to the issue. Time to replace it anyways. But that replacement didn't make any difference. My sink in the head doesn't seem to have as long as a pause period. At times I can get it to flow perfectly and constantly. The shower only has about 5-6 seconds pause without any water. That's what annoys me the most especially for those cold winter showers. The shower operates with the hot full open and the cold only slightly open. All 3 of the tap fixtures are within about 6 feet of the pump and accumulator pump.
I'm thinking maybe to try and just replace the pump. Maybe there is an electrical issue with the pressure switch on it. It is a jabsco 3.8, at least 6 plus years old. I might switch to a 4.0. I've heard I can get a pump that doesn't require an accumulator tank. I'm curioius about the pro's and con's for that pump. I think it's like a hundred bucks more.

Sounds very much like a sticking pressure switch. Usually mounted integrally with the pump. If it's an old system, my be worth replacing the unit rather than just ordering a replacement part.