Water pump problem

[racefan]

I was hooked up water at my house (well water) things worked fine. I filled the water holding tank & we started on a 2 week trip & my wife filled the fogs water dish when we stopped for lunch & now there’s no water at sinks or toilet. Holding tank is full & pump is on. The light on the panel is on indicating the pumps on. Any ideas on where to start?

[Pete'sMH]

Originally Posted by racefan

I was hooked up water at my house (well water) things worked fine. I filled the water holding tank & we started on a 2 week trip & my wife filled the fogs water dish when we stopped for lunch & now there’s no water at sinks or toilet. Holding tank is full & pump is on. The light on the panel is on indicating the pumps on. Any ideas on where to start?

Is the pump actually running or just switched on? If it’s not running look for it’s fuse and/or check the voltage at the pump terminals with a voltmeter. If it is running but not moving any water check the screen/sediment bowl if it has one to make sure it isn’t clogged with debris. Then perhaps see if the pump will move water from a bottle using the winterizing valve instead of the water tank. Try loosening the outlet line at the pump and see if it flows water there. This will tell you if it’s an upstream problem or downstream. If it runs normally but won’t move water at all from either supply source id suspect a problem with the pump and either rebuild it or replace it. Good luck!

[16ACE27]

Also make sure the isolation/winterizing valves are in the proper positions. Don't assume they are - check them.

[Chateau_Nomad]

Do you have a diverter valve you switch from city water to tank fill? Possibly that is in "city" position, which could be stopping flow from your fresh tank.

[paulwadley]

On my diverter valve, I have 4 settings:
1. City Water: When connected to city water line
2. Tank: Allows me to fill my onboard tank from the city water line
3. Winterizing: Allows me to winterize my water line
4. Normal: Allows water to be pumped from the onboard water tank with the electric water pump. My motor home does not have a gravity fill for the on board water tank.

Paul

[racefan]

We finally stopped for the night and I looked under the cabinet. I found this wire that’s unhooked. There’s a spade connector on the end but I cannot see where it might go. Why Thor would start with a black wire and go to red is beyond me.

[Chateau_Nomad]

Can't see the pump terminals... maybe the other end to that connector is behind that 1x support? That may be key.

There's your winterize bypass inlet. The blue stub of pex sticking up with a screw-in plug.

Did you buy your rig new? If not, someone could have replaced the pump and spliced the wire. Although I've seen all kinds of weird splices in my 12volt system... and I bought mine new.

[racefan]

Originally Posted by Chateau_Nomad

Can't see the pump terminals... maybe the other end to that connector is behind that 1x support? That may be key.

There's your winterize bypass inlet. The blue stub of pex sticking up with a screw-in plug.

Did you buy your rig new? If not, someone could have replaced the pump and spliced the wire. Although I've seen all kinds of weird splices in my 12volt system... and I bought mine new.

Didn’t but it new. 2018 Freedom Elite FE24 with 1290 miles when we got it.

[racefan]

Originally Posted by Chateau_Nomad

Can't see the pump terminals... maybe the other end to that connector is behind that 1x support? That may be key.

There's your winterize bypass inlet. The blue stub of pex sticking up with a screw-in plug.

Did you buy your rig new? If not, someone could have replaced the pump and spliced the wire. Although I've seen all kinds of weird splices in my 12volt system... and I bought mine new.

It’s fixed!! Of all places for a reference pic I went to Amazon & looked at pumps & it showed where the wires should be🤣 Works like new now🤞

[Pete'sMH]

Most excellent! Glad you’re back in business. Usually some simple detective work will do the trick?

[Chateau_Nomad]

[Bragency]

Glad you fixed your problem. I also fill my tank with well water and have started adding a little bleach in also. I had my screen get blocked with an algae-like growth once. Not too much or you will have blond hair again!

[Galobo]

Originally Posted by racefan

I was hooked up water at my house (well water) things worked fine. I filled the water holding tank & we started on a 2 week trip & my wife filled the fogs water dish when we stopped for lunch & now there’s no water at sinks or toilet. Holding tank is full & pump is on. The light on the panel is on indicating the pumps on. Any ideas on where to start?

You should have two wires going to the front of the pump at the diaphragm

[roy stone]

There is a filter between the intake water line and the pump/ It is a small filter that catches the tiniest materials. If it is clogged, water will not flow. Find your pump, you will see the little diaphragm that contains the filter. Turn the water pump off, also the power to the pump. You can hand loosen the connection, remove the filter and clean it, hopefully someplace where you can run water through and over it, replace and viola, water again. The strainer at the galley sink can also collect debris and stop water flow at the sink. It should be checked also as a part of your yearly maintenance. If this does not correct your problem, check the other suggestions.

[Scubawise]

Glad it is fixed

[JeffThor325]

First, I'm glad you got your problem figured out and that the fix was free.

I was already planning on posting on a similar topic here but will just tack onto your thread instead.

Last week my daughter, who is also a full-timer, had her water pump stop working. She called me in distress and asked if I'd come help fix it.

Knowing what I do about these pumps, they are not as complex as some might think. The pump itself should last for decades. 10 minutes of research confirmed what I already thought: the weak link in the system is the pressure-sensing switch.

These are usually attached to the pump and the whole thing sold as a unit, for around $90. The switch by itself is only about $14.

A quick test confirmed that it was her switch. Easy replacement and she's back in business.