Drinking water accumulator

[whiteoaks7]

My accumulator seems to have given up the ghost. This is a diaphragm type, (3 ltr job I think). In general, do these things lose their pressurisation (it must have come with ?1bar or something preset) and if so is it feasible to attach a pump to the nipple and re-pressurise? If I try this how do I measure the presurisation or is it irrelevant in a pumped water system?

Help please, I'm sat in le Havre with limited resources . . .

 

[alan17]

They can lose pressure. You can pump them up with a cycle pump through the schraeder valve at the ed and check the pressure with a car tyre guage. Mine is set to 3 bar (about 45 psi).
It is possible that the diaphragm has become porous and loses pressure very quickly in which case a replacement is the only answer.

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Yep, I pumped mine up with a cycle pump.... Its also possible to drain the system down, empty the accumulator, and then refill.... this creates a new 'head' of air in the accumlator that the pump can compress.... according to Calder's bible, sometimes the problem isn't a lack of pressure, its a lack of air, with not enough to maintain the pressure....

 

[sailorman]

All as above + its recommended to release the pressure when leaving the vessel for a time i.e. end of the w/e switch-off pwr open the tap

 

[Anchorite]

My 3 litres tank says: pump preset to maxi 1.5 bars (22 psi). This assumes tank is empty. Tank (service) pressure test was to 5 bars, max service pressure 3 bars.

 

[Dazedkipper]

Jabsco recommend setting the accumulator pressure to approx 3 psi below the pump cut-in pressure. Set with no pressure on the water side.