Lubricating Impeller in Ballast Pump

mmascari 07-17-2003, 10:38 AM

I have been having trouble with my Jabsco Waterpuppys(model 18220-2121). They are designed to create a vacuum that will pull in water up the intake. Because of this, the rubber impeller is very tight in the housing and sometimes hangs in one direction when I try to change the direction (IE- Fill vs. Empty). I put a little grease on the outside walls or housing where the impeller sits. This solved the problem. Will a petroleum based grease eat the rubber impeller. What other grease can I use that won't damage the impeller, or is the petroleum OK?

d_fresh 07-17-2003, 12:41 PM

Usually cooking oil is recommended. Purchase a large syringe from the drug store. Fill it up with oil, disconnect the inlet hose, and squirt inside the pump where the hose normally connects.

(troyl) · (troyl) **Join Date: Feb 2002** 07-17-2003, 4:32 PM

I always run the pump in the reverse direction for a second after filling/emptying so that it is ready to go in the next cycle. That way it does not have to reverse while dry. Completly solved my problem.

barryb 07-21-2003, 7:39 AM

I've never had this problem with the simer pumps. I stopped using the jabsco specifically because of this issue.
When I had a water puppy, I did as Troy does and it usually worked.

jmccallum 07-29-2003, 5:46 AM

I talked to our materials engineer here at work and he suggested silicone lubricant(o-ring lub or see the plumbing section at HD).

I tried it this spring and had zero reversing problems for the longest time ever. Silicone out lasted the cooking oil by a lot.

(grwoolf) · (grwoolf) **Join Date: Aug 2002** 07-29-2003, 7:25 PM

A higher guage wire will probably solve your problem for good. I had the same issue with the jabsco pumps in my mastercraft. I would re-lube them with silicon and they would be fixed for a few weeks. When it was re-wired with 8 guage wire, it was fixed for good. These pumps pull over 10 amps and if you are running 12 or 14 guage more than a few feet, there will be a voltage drop.

sonicr1 07-29-2003, 9:39 PM

I had the same problem with the pumps... They changed out the impellers with smaller ones. No problems now, and no performance change.

musner 07-30-2003, 7:56 AM

Not only have I had the same problems with my water puppy, but my impeller has a plastic hub, which is now stripped. Now I can take the cover off, turn on the pump and watch the shaft spin and the impeller stay stationary!

(wpstevenson) · (wpstevenson) **Join Date: May 2002** 07-30-2003, 10:47 AM

Mike

The Jabsco ballast puppy has the same size impeller, but has a brass sleeve so the motor shaft can't slip. I'll get you the part number if you can't find it. You can buy the replacement impellers from depcopumps.com We can't sell parts or pumps unless they are for someone who bought a system from us per our deal with Jabsco.