Fresh water Pump Noise

[MarieK]

Hi

Our fresh water pump seems to be extremely loud, especially in kids cabin as its mounted on bulkhead other side of cabin. I always like a "slightly" noisy pump so i can hear it and detect and leaks etc but this is too much. Majority of noise seems to be vibration so I was wondering if there are rubber mounts or something can be added to normal jabsco pump or will i just mount some foam behind it?

Also curious as to what size accumulator you guys are running in a 45 ft boat.

Lastly - we are in a marina, could I just hook up the mains water and have it pressurize the system so no need for pump when we are in the marina? Other than a leak sinking the boat (wouldnt leave on when away) is this a bad idea?

 

[Portofino]

I would try those insulation solutions first .

Legionella is just one example of a nasty bug that festers in pipes around body temp …..marina hoses in the sun etc .
Theres potentially a lot more on top .
For that reason from a cross infection pov it’s a “bad idea “ to permanently hook it up to the dock supply

Additionally boats tend not to have a iirc a type 2 air gap ( cistern + stop cock float ) in the toilet bowls like in a domestic house .So if you were and a any neighbours on your dock water feed were to simultaneously be connected / hooked up is possible for faecal microorganisms to be transmitted from head bowls , between boats . Or get into the dock system and proliferate in your stagnation hose sat in the sun .Tiny risk I know but it’s there .

 

[Plum]

Hi

Our fresh water pump seems to be extremely loud, especially in kids cabin as its mounted on bulkhead other side of cabin. I always like a "slightly" noisy pump so i can hear it and detect and leaks etc but this is too much. Majority of noise seems to be vibration so I was wondering if there are rubber mounts or something can be added to normal jabsco pump or will i just mount some foam behind it?

Also curious as to what size accumulator you guys are running in a 45 ft boat.

Lastly - we are in a marina, could I just hook up the mains water and have it pressurize the system so no need for pump when we are in the marina? Other than a leak sinking the boat (wouldnt leave on when away) is this a bad idea?

I have has some success with reducing noise but you need to address both airborne noise and structure borne noise. For the latter the pump must be connected to flexible hose, not the pushfit plastic type, remove all screws holding the pump down then wrap foam around pump and fasten the pump down with a short length of seatbelt webbing around the pump with the webbing screwed to the bulkhead. The wide webbing stops the roam being crushed too much. Now seal the locker door with draft proofing foam to seal all air gaps so no airborne noise can get out.

www.solocoastalsailing.co.uk

 

[Andrew M]

We have the same issue, our pump system is a Twin Max with accumulator but is in our view overly noisy. I'm going to try any suggestions on insulating the thing, both mountings and enclosure, but am also investigationg if there's actiually a "silent" option. So far the best pump I can find on recommendation is one called Excaliber but it's quite a bit of money..

Will follow with interest any other recommendatins either for improving the current set up or for a replacement.

 

[ChromeDome]

Two things spring to mind, in addition to localising the source and isolating:

1: Many pumps come with rubber feet as standard. Check/replace or fit if not in place.
2: Different pump technologies: Gear, diaphragm, impeller. Different noise levels.

 

[Simon 420]

I used some anti vibtation mounts on ours which reduced the structure- borne noise significantly. Readily available and cheap on ebay and easy to install

 

[ChromeDome]

Actually same issue with heater dosing pumps ...

 

[vas]

gone through all that, added extra rubber mounts (too hard rubber to silence the vibration imho), relocated it (a bit), used flex hose pipes around the pump, nada.
ended up buying a super expensive Gianeschi bronze impeller pump (s/h at a reasonable price, new it's a grand or so ) and I'm now fine..

imho, problem is integral to all the diaphragm pumps, extremely difficult to get a quiet one, whereas impeler pumps dont have such problems with vibration as it;s just a motor spinning.

unfortunately I'm not aware of anyone doing cheap impeller pumps for freshwater pressurised system use.

 

[ChromeDome]

Gear pumps too have a distinct noise. Like a 1903 gearbox.

 

[vas]

It's bronze impeller I'm talking about, but yes, it has some whining noise to it but it's easier to accept compared to the high pitch hammering of the diaphragm ones.

 

[ChromeDome]

When my old pump gave up I fitted a Flo-jet R4325 on the included rubber feet (marketed as Wash-Down pump) and it works fine. Can hear it, but not disturbing. Fitted to a plate down below (not bulkward) and provides nice flow to pantry + heads w/shower + swim platform shower. Not all taps open at once (I think), but happy with it.

A dedicated 'Seaflo 53' 26 lpm/ 70 psi pump is fitted as deck wash

 

[oldgit]

Connecting up a boat pressurised system directly to mains water could give you a boat "full" of fresh mains water very very quickly indeed.
Replacing an old water pump with new more powerful waterpump could result in pipes detaching themselves from taps etc.
Ask how I know.

 

[BruceK]

You might want to check the pressure in your accumulator tank before anything else.