Water pump issue

[Jbrowland]

Hello folks and thanks once again in advance for all of the wonderful assistance and expertise you have and will provide.

We just returned from a lovely Christmas trip to Yosemite. Amazing! Only one small issue. We went for lunch and left the water pump on. One of our dogs bumped the water faucet on in the sink while trying to get a dish out of the kitchen sink. The fresh water tank over flowed into the shower and caused a minor flood. We shut off the water, shut off the pump, and cleaned up the flood then went to dump our grey tank. It looked like we got pretty lucky.

Only one problem. The water pump seems to be working normally but it is a little louder and runs a little longer when we first turn it on. It used to just vibrate/pulsate for about 3 seconds when switched on and now after running dry for an hour our so it will pulsate for about 8 seconds when switched on or used. Water pressure is the same just the noise is different. It is about 25% louder and runs about 25% longer when first switched on or water is demanded from a toilet flush or an open faucet.

Should I be concerned? Is it possible we damaged it?

[Jbrowland]

Thanks again folks. Seems to have resolved itself after a day. Must have been air.

[ksg5000]

Agree with most of the comments. Pumps probably OK and air in the system might make the pump run longer than normal. Akin to std problems you might encounter when de-winterizing the rig ... you might consider running the pump with all the faucet valves open (hot/cold including outside shower). If it's air related then that should fix the problem. As far as vibration -- maybe the overflow got some floor boards wet and the moisture makes more noise or maybe it caused some warping which is accentuating the noise ... time may fix or maybe some insulating pads under the water pump (I use old mouse pads)

BTW - turning off the water pump as well as the outside water supply is a good idea whenever you leave the rig. If a pipe develops a leak when your not their or your dog turns on a faucet you got big problems.

[StarkNaked]

It's already been suggested to make sure that all the air is purged from the system. Also check to see if the extra vibration of running dry caused any of the pump and hose screws/clamps/brackets to loosen up. Tighten if needed.

[Jbrowland]

Okay, since some of you asked. 😉 The dish was dirty. We usually don't leave dirty stuff in the sink but we had visitors in our RV distracting us from our normal leaving the RV routine. Add to that the guests were elderly/disabled and the ground was covered in ice and snow and we are seriously distracted and the water pump gets left on accidentally.

The kitchen sink and faucet handle is located about 3 inches away from the foot of our bed at the back of our small 24ft RV. The dog jumps on the bed and has very easy access to the entire kitchen counter perfectly level with the bed. Anything left on the counter or in the sink gets "cleaned" by the dog. In the process of cleaning the dish, the dog bumps the faucet handle turning the water on easily as the faucet handle isn't the turn kind but the kind with the lever handle. A small bump and the water starts running. The fresh water tank empties and over flows into the shower. Some **** good times in RV land!

Now back to the water pump. ??

Yes, I am definitely over sensitive thanks to the small amount of water that over flowed from the shower when we started to move but luckily cleaned up quickly. That said, the water pump is louder and runs a little longer now. It almost sounds like it is working a little harder.

Yes! My dog climbs trees all the time. I have had to go up for him twice. He's part monkey. Some kind of Jack Russell hound mix.

[path1]

Probably air in system that will work itself out over time.

We don't use "city water" connection anymore and turn off pump when we're not at RV.

To much to go wrong and water is big destroyer of RV's.

As far as dog being commented on...We had one that would climb trees. Sinks would be no problem for him.

[Ozlander]

Happy Prospector wrote:
Why would you keep the dog dish in the kitchen sink, most be one of those Kalifornia things.

And why would you let the dog get in the sink?

[Happy_Prospecto]

Why would you keep the dog dish in the kitchen sink, most be one of those Kalifornia things.

[SoundGuy]

Jbrowland wrote:
Is it possible we damaged it?

Unlikely, as these are run dry pumps. Chances are air was introduced into the system as the pump was attempting to suck the fresh water tank dry ... purge the system of air and I'll bet it'll be back to "normal".

[beemerphile1]

The typical RV demand water pump can run dry or wet for hours and hours without damage. Any chance you are just hypersensitive because of the flood?