March Pump Problems

I am having a problem with my pump since I changed the input. I was wondering if it was restricting the flow too much to have the pump with this input. The temp probe is on the input side, output on the top.

Can the pump head be rotated around, or does it need to stay in one orientation?

The pump now keeps throwing the breaker in my control panel and was definitely overheating when I was testing the new set up. There was definitely a burning smell coming from the pump.

Thanks,
Scott

I'm pretty sure the pump head can be rotated. It looks to me like you have 1/2 inlet/outlet with that configuration. It sounds like you might have other problems. Try taking the head off and checking that the motor turns freely. If it does, it might be a stuck impeller.

restricting the input can be a cause of cavitation according to the other thread, but I don't know that it would cause tripping breakers and burning up your pump...

Also, yes, you can rotate the head of the pump. Just unscrew the outer screws, rotate the housing, and screw it back in.

Taken from another March pump thread:

"Here are some quotes from the March pump installation manual:

Install the pump as near to the suction source and as low as possible. Suction must be flooded. When using an elbow, valve, etc., the suction must have straight piping in length at least five (5) times the diameter of the pipe.

All suction piping should be direct and short as possible with as little bending as possible. Excessive bending and pump suction length will lead to flow distortion and pump cavitation.

You have elbows directly connected to the suction inlet. According to the instruction manual, you should have at least 2.5" (preferably longer) straight pipe directly before the suction inlet."

I very much doubt that the fittings on the intake side are the source of the problem. The breaker tripping and smoke indicates that the motor is not turning for some reason. I would remove the pump head and see if the motor will run normally on its own. If so, then there is a problem with the pump head/impeller assembly. A stuck impeller would be my guess. Make sure the impeller spins freely and that the thrust washer(s) are in place. There's not much to these pumps, so you should be able to repair it easily so long as you did not fry the motor entirely.

The pump definitely pushes water. I had it running for about 30 seconds before the pump began giving me problems. I was getting about the same amount of flow as I expected before the problem stared. I will take it apart and clean it though.

I do have the pumps as low as possible. Both pumps ended up doing the same thing.

I guess the only other change was a plumbing manifold to direct wort flow. All is made from 1/2" full port with snaplock fittings.