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Cavitation Problem

Etowah

washman2016

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I have a bay that started cavitation very bad over night. I have checked the sleeved head all looks good. Went ahead and installed new seals and valves. Replaced the regulator and applied direct water pressure. No leeks but still have bad vibration. I even put a new pump head on just to be sure. Has to be something past the pump. Any ideas?
 

MEP001

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Just for clarity, cavitation is when the water supply is restricted and the water boils under vacuum in the pump.

With what you've done you've eliminated everything except a crankcase issue. Remove the head again and make sure all the plungers/pistons are moving and there's no in and out play.

What brand and model pump are you working on?
 

JGinther

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By direct water pressure, you mean you hooked up a positive pressure line directly to the inlet of the pump without any valve or solenoid or check valve in the way? The new pump head had new valves and seals? First thing i would check would be the plungers at that point. If a connecting rod broke, one plunger will not operate properly and could cause what would seem like cavitation.
 

washman2016

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It was a busted rod. Box is only 2 years old would not have thought it was that. Thank You for the help.

When I bought this place I found about 20 gear cases. Are they worth trying to rebuild?
 

Randy

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It was a busted rod. Box is only 2 years old would not have thought it was that. Thank You for the help.

When I bought this place I found about 20 gear cases. Are they worth trying to rebuild?
It all depends on how you value your time. I’ve rebuilt a few but now I toss them and put on a new crankcase. A couple of years ago I got a Cat 310 pump stash from a car wash that went out of business. When a head would wash out or need seals they’d toss the complete pump, put on a new one and press on. A couple of them were like new, just needed seals. In 38 years I’ve only had 3 pump cranks fail. I stopped changing the oil in them years ago, I add oil now and then.
 

MEP001

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When I bought this place I found about 20 gear cases. Are they worth trying to rebuild?
Odds are most of the crankcases aren't even bad. Some people buy new pumps when the manifold goes bad and keep the old crankcase. If the shaft turns smooth and quiet and the plungers are tight with no play, it should be good. It's probably not worth fixing the one with the broken rod if you have a bunch of potentially good ones, especially if they're Cat pumps. They're not easy to disassemble, and you have to be careful and know what you're doing or the repaired one won't last.
 
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