[Bootsmom]

Here is a link to my pump: http://snipurl.com/27t4zl

This pump has served me well for the past 5 years, cycling on and off while draining (which is fine by me), until yesterday when I noticed a long string of lint in the laundry tub drain. I slowly pulled it out, being VERY careful, because I know how temperamental these pumps can be. Now the pump won't stop running whether there is water in the tub, and I have NO idea what happened, nor how to fix it.

I am a senior citizen female and the pump is installed so far under my laundry tub that I can't see a thing, even with a trouble lamp.

Any ideas what might have happened, or how I can fix it?

By the way, the pump was installed without the discharge flow adjuster (the red handle in the above pic); it didn't come with one. Irrelevant really because the pump worked fine until yesterday's adventure.

Thank you in advance for any advice you can offer :)

[massplumber2008]

Hi Boots...

You need to gain access to the float mechanism. Here, most likely the float mechanism has gotten tangled up with some lint and has somehow managed to hang the float in the up position which keeps the pump turned on. In this case, have a friend remove the pump and clean the float and the impeller and you should be all set.

If the float mechanism is free and clear then it is also possible that the on/off switch (attached to float mechanism) has failed in the on poision and that will mean that the pump will need further repair or even total replacement, OK?

Questions? Let us know, OK?

Mark

PS: No picture posted?

[Bootsmom]

Picture of the pump is in this URL:

Bur Cam Pumps 1/3 HP Laundry Tub Pump 300514W

Thanks very much for your response, I'll get back to you ASAP.

[massplumber2008]

Ahhh.. sorry, but you did say LAUNDRY TRAY pump and I was thinking it was a type of pump that had a float, but your pump doesn't (thanks for image). Your pump has an automatic switch that activates when water hits it.

In this case, you should try TAPPING The body of the mechanical switch a few times... see if that disengages the switch. Otherwise, you are probably looking at replacing the unit as the labor and time to fix this may not be worth it!

You can also unplug the unit and try replugging.. may reset the switch?

Glad to discuss, OK?

Mark

[Bootsmom]

Good morning Mark

1. yvw for the image, I did think it would help.

2. I tried tapping the body of the switch and unplugged the unit and replugged it several times.

3. A neighbour examined the check valve this morning and determined that IT is fine, nothing stuck in it (as had been suggested on another forum). The pump still drains fine but won't shut off... I doubt it's all that serious (she said hopefully)

4. As for removing the pump: not an option as my neighbour is very busy and I don't want to inconvenience him on his only day off.

5. I have a plumber coming by next Tuesday and will report back with results.

Thanks for your responses and interest,
Bootsmom

[Bootsmom]

Good afternoon all who helped me :)

The plumber took the switch off the pump, cleaned it off a tad (it wasn't dirty: nothing stuck in it) and it worked fine. When he reinstalled it (3 times btw) the pump would not shut off. He removed the switch again and lubricated the little white contact, put it back in and that time it DID shut off. We thought we had it beat: not so. Third time the pump wouldn't shut off. So the switch is intermittent and therefore unreliable. The price of the switch ($125 Cdn) makes buying a new pump preferable, so I'm looking around for another pump.

Thank you

[massplumber2008]

Thank you for the update... ;)

I recommend zoeller pumps... if you get a chance and can find a local supplier be sure to include this pump in your comparisons, OK?

Mark

[Bootsmom]

Can't find that brand in Ontario, but thanks for the recommendation.

[massplumber2008]

Hey! Good luck here... I'm sure replacing the unit is your best bet, for sure!

Mark

[Bootsmom]

Well... I had to buy a new pump pictured here:
http://www.amazon.com/Pumps-Laundry-300514W-Sewage-Effluent/dp/B000GA3PFG

The pump didn't come with installation instructions. I now have the pump part is installed below the sink drain. Looking at the diagram I see the checkvalve fits into both the pump and the flow regulator, but I don't know which way the ball within the valve is supposed to face: outwards toward the flow regulator or inwards toward the pump itself, or does it matter?

The black checkvalve has outside threads on both ends, and the white flow regulator with the red handle has inside threads on both ends.

Any advice as to how to proceed would be most welcome and much appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

B

[massplumber2008]

Hi B...

Should be as simple as attaching the pump to the sink and then installing the black check valve directly onto the pump and the shutoff (red handle) directly onto the check valve... see image below. Use teflon tape on all threads.

The direction of the check valve is easy to determine... you want the ball to stop waste water from flowing back into the sink so check the ball in the checkvalve and make sure that water will flow OUT from the pump/check valve and that should automatically put the check valve in the right posisition. The check should also have an arrow on it (in most cases)... that arrow will point away from the sink, OK?

Mark

[Bootsmom]

Good morning Mark, thanks for your reply.

Neighbour helped install the pump last night, (apparently there is a directional arrow on the checkvalve itself which my old eyes couldn't see with the bad lighting in the basement). Although there were no installation instructions with the new pump, neighbour knew how to make all the connections. I had already managed to connect the pump itself to the tub drain.

So, after installation, we discovered the exact opposite problem of the first (old) pump. The old pump wouldn't STOP pumping because the pump switch was (apparently - supposedly?) defective.

The new pump won't START to pump, even with the tub half full. The only way we could get it to remove water was to unplug the switch cord from the pump cord and plug the pump itself directly into the wall.

Very frustrating !

[massplumber2008]

Very...

Contact point of purchase and make sure they send you a new switch (at minimum) or an entire new pump (if you decide that is what you want).

Always something... huh?

[Bootsmom]

Isn't that a fact, Mark :)

I will be calling them at 9 am my time. Will post back with results.

Thanks again, I REALLY appreciate your advice.

Boots

[Bootsmom]

Hello again Mark :)

The plumber replaced the switch... and the pump works just fine now.

Thanks very much for your advice, I appreciated it, and got quite an education in the process

Boots

[massplumber2008]

Glad you are finally all set here! Thanks for the update... appreciate it!