Why don't we rebuild our own water pumps?
12-10-2015, 10:47 PM
#61
Rennlist Member
It used to be..a long long time ago, that one pressed off the pulley, then pressed the shaft, seal and bearing out of the housing from the front of the pump. Once the bearing starts to go, then the seal goes and pump begins to leak. If you let it go on and on, the the impeller starts to drag the housing. A new bearing and seal are mandatory. Before you press the assembly out, be sure to measure the clearance of the impeller and the housing. Try to duplicate that. If you mess up the impeller, you might be able to bend the blades back straight, but unlikely. They usually have to be pressed on and off the shaft as well, depending on the pump. If the bearing spun in the housing, then the housing has to be re-bored and a different/oversized OD bearing has to be installed. We used to do this routinely in my dad's plant, and then later we manufactured and sold equipment to do just this job..along with the replacement parts to automotive parts rebuilders. About a 5-10 ton press is mandatory to rebuild a water pump. Easy does it..Recommend a manual press with a long arm...JMHO.
12-11-2015, 01:18 AM
#63
Three Wheelin'
We are really on topic in regards to pump break down. Tiger mentioned leaks occurring in the early stages of failure. What else can we look out for in the cases of early pump failure? In increase in whirring noise, etc?
12-11-2015, 01:31 AM
#65
Three Wheelin'
12-11-2015, 01:32 AM
#66
Race Car
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Location: Austin TX, drinking beer in the garage
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oil cooler seal failure, if not caught and corrected promptly, is a common cause of pump failure too from the added strain of trying to force around all that viscous oil/coolant slurry.
12-11-2015, 10:41 AM
#67
Rennlist Member
You are right, bonus 12. When the pump impeller drag gets too high, either the impeller will come off the shaft, or the pump will seize. If the pump housing were steel, and harder than the impeller, it would continue to leak and wear down the impeller. But the housings are aluminum and my impeller is steel..so that won't happen. It might gently wear off enough of the housing, but in that case the the housing would be junk after that, because the clearances would be too wide to create any flow.
