Pressurised water system

[Athene V30]

It used to be so easy, fill water tank, pump with hand level to get water out.

Now I have a boat with technical stuff like a water pump, a pressurised system and water heating from the engine or an emersion heater!

So I filled tank and switched on pump - pump ran and just kept on running so I turn pump off. Water flows, sometimes with air mixed in, better in heads than in galley - both about same distance from pump.

How do I get rid of air in system? How do I prime the pump or does it do it itself?

How do I know the hot water tank is full of water - to be honest I haven't even found the tank yet?

Water pump says Flowjet on it. To be honest I haven't googled to see if there is a handbook yet.

Not sure if it was me or chap in next boat but I turned emersion on and next thing I realised all shore side electrics went off, chap next door wasn't sure if it was when he turned on his kettle. So now I know where the trips are on Fox's pontoons too! Sorry if your power went off.

 

[Lucky Duck]

The pump should self prime. If filling the tank from empty I find it runs a little 'rough' for a while until all the air has been pumped through.

 

[Tiller Girl]

It used to be so easy, fill water tank, pump with hand level to get water out.

Now I have a boat with technical stuff like a water pump, a pressurised system and water heating from the engine or an emersion heater!

So I filled tank and switched on pump - pump ran and just kept on running so I turn pump off. Water flows, sometimes with air mixed in, better in heads than in galley - both about same distance from pump.

How do I get rid of air in system? How do I prime the pump or does it do it itself?

How do I know the hot water tank is full of water - to be honest I haven't even found the tank yet?

Water pump says Flowjet on it. To be honest I haven't googled to see if there is a handbook yet.

Not sure if it was me or chap in next boat but I turned emersion on and next thing I realised all shore side electrics went off, chap next door wasn't sure if it was when he turned on his kettle. So now I know where the trips are on Fox's pontoons too! Sorry if your power went off.

If you find out, let me know please! And there is a Hotel I stayed at on Friday night that might like to know as well! Well I hope they might be interested.

 

[ianfr]

Peter

Our system needs BOTH taps open, the pump self primes, and once the water is running at each tap, turn them off.

Works for us

Regards

Ian

 

[Athene V30]

and once the water is running at each tap

Just as well I am still in a Marina - all this wasted water seems quite wrong, but at least I can fill up again before I move to Pin Mill for the season.

Thanks for the advice, will try next weekend then move on to servicing the jabasco.

 

[ex-Gladys]

I found it is always better if I turn the pump off and leave the taps on whilst filling the tanks.... After that it only spits and sputters briefly

 

[MoodySabre]

After I ran the tank dry by mistKe last year I refilled it. The pump wouldn't stop running. I took some advice here. The possibility wa that the pressure switch wa stuck or got some crud in it. A few good thumps with my fist solved the problem.

 

[Dill et Bound]

After I ran the tank dry by mistKe last year I refilled it. The pump wouldn't stop running. I took some advice here. The possibility wa that the pressure switch wa stuck or got some crud in it. A few good thumps with my fist solved the problem.

My pressure pump did nt work so did above, then it would nt stop...
I thought it was the pressure switch, but after a season of trying to find the problem have diagnosed a small pinhole in the base of Calorifyer...
The bilge only filled up if I left the pressure pump on for a long period of time, which I did nt cos it was very annoying...
So it seems I may have had two problems... Hopefully the new calorifyer, and I am getting a twin coil unit with Immersion, will fix the problem.
If not have located a pressure pump switch for £20 on internet..

 

[Bru]

If your setup is similar to ours, and it sounds very much like it, you might need to run the hot tap for quite a while (like a minute or more) to clear the air out of the hot water system if it's been allowed to run dry or close to it

 

[Steve Clayton]

Thanks for the advice, will try next weekend then move on to servicing the jabasco.

If you endup deciding to totally replace the Jabby hand pump unit then don't throw away the 4 base screws expecting there to be 4 new ones with the new pump. Jabby provide just 1; expecting you to reuse at least 3 of the old ones (don't ask me how I know!)

 

[jimi]

Might also be worth checking any filters in the system to ensure they are clear.

 

[johnalison]

Don't forget to drain the pump if it is likely to freeze or you may have to replace it.

 

[Lucky Duck]

It is advisable to remove the cockpit shower head, if you have one, as they have a habit of cracking if the water freezes inside.

 

[maby]

It really should not be that difficult - if the pump is running continuously, I would suggest checking the bilges to make sure they are not full of water! The pump should self prime - may take quite a few minutes before the flow from the taps is bubble free, but if you open a tap to get the air out of the pump, it should stop within a minut or two. I assume you don't have multiple switchable tanks, do you? We have a large main and a smaller reserve - each wth their own filler - there's a change-over valve to select which tank the water is coming from. Many modern AWBs have provision for multiple tanks, some of which are optional extras. They still fit the selector valve even if the extra tanks have not been installed - if that valve has somehow got set to the wrong position, your tank could be full but you will still have no running water - don't ask how I know this!