Sprinkler Pump Not Working

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S

SFLman

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The lawn got browner and browner. Finally I realized I needed to see if the sprinkler had stopped working.

When I flip the switch in the timer box to the manual start position, the pump hums. There is no big "WHOOOSH" and running motor sound.

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Getting the motor information was kinda tricky because the label was facing the wall of the house!

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I did a mirror shot and flipped horizontal on my photo software. And that is right where my expertise and knowledge in all of this stops.

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As best I can tell from page 55 of the manual, serial BT1 = Jan of 1998 for the year of manufacture.

http://www.conelyco.com/images/motor_wiring.pdf

I searched the word "prime" in the manual, there's only one instance under trouble shooting "loss of prime."

Is the old feller shot ?
 
If it lost prime, it may be a check valve failure.

How do you check a check valve?
 
It does not seem as if anything is spinning.

I saw this video on youtube which talks about the shaft not spinning, and how to try and get it spinning again.

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RH78q36liks[/ame]


I tried to take the back off of the motor to see if the shaft was spinning. Things did not go well.


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Without even feeling it, I snapped three out of four long screws, and the back of the motor did not even start to come off.

screws--1-1488.jpg


I may have ruined an 18 year old sprinkler pump motor! :mad:

BTW - I did try to pry out that center circle to see if it was an access to the shaft. It would not budge.
 
I got the idea to try and turn the center piece. No luck.

I took an extra long pipe wrench and tried to turn it. I braced the motor so I would not stress the pvc piping. The metal broke off a little, and it would not turn.
 
I'd start with a motor replacement but before it is installed, make sure the impeller (the fins in the rusty housing) spins freely. If it doesn't, then you will need a new impeller and probably a new housing.
 
Buy a new pump. Don't even try to replace the motor on a pump that old and of that quality. By breaking three thru bolts, you have trashed the motor. Not your fault, blame the weather and corrosion.

When you take the pump apart which you must do to get at the impeller which is screwed on the motor shaft in front of the seal plate, you will fine the inside is very nasty and that is isn't worth putting a new motor on.

If you want to get a unit that lasts more than a couple of years, stay away from big box stores. None of the pumps made today for domestic use have the quality they once did. The SF 1.1 signifies a rather cheap motor. A better one would have a 1.24 or 1.65 service factor. That is one way to look for better quality.

Another thing, you don't know if the impeller is stuck to the pump housing or if the bearings in the motor are locked up. Another unknown.
 
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