Pump head orietation

Can the head on a chugger pump be orientated in any direction? My pump was working fine until I mounted it on my top tier system. I rotated the head so that the outlet was facing up (this put the head upside down in comparison to the base of the pump). I'm wondering if I have it oriented in a way that will not allow it to pump.

Are you sure it's the outlet and not the inlet facing up? Outlet up is the ideal orientation.

Yep. The little arrow that shows the direction of flow is facing up.

That's how it's supposed to work...are you getting any restriction on your inlet? Like is the hose at a tight angle that might be causing inlet restriction?

I've got everything with angled with fittings so that hoses don't kink, trimmed the hoses so that they don't have excess slouch. Ball valve on the outlet so that I can prime and restrict flow.

I've had the pump working in the past. Would the hose ID make any difference?

I even ordered a new pump head...still won't pump.

Horizontal is actually the best orientation (see below). As long as you can properly prime the pump, the orientation doesn't matter much. Priming is the key. Try to get the head completely flooded before you turn the pump on. Mounting the pump as low as possible will help with priming as well. I wouldn't expect height being an issue because you should still see over 5 gpm pumping from the bottom to the top.

itsme6582 said:

Horizontal is actually the best orientation (see below).[...]

Click to expand...

fwiw, according to the March Pump rep that posts here, outlet at 12 O'Clock is the preferred orientation...

Cheers!

Liquid wants to find equilibrium, that's just basic physics, so as long as your pump is below your volume source, the pump head should flood regardless of orientation (that being said, I still believe vertical is the best orientation to vent any gas buildup as well as for priming). What would stop your liquid from finding equilibrium is pressure in the column above the volume of fluid. On my pump I have a tee on the outlet with a vertical ball valve for main pumping and a horizontal ball valve for priming/sampling during pumping.

When I flood my pump from my source volume, I open the priming/sampling valve to release air pressure and flood the pump. After the pump is flooded, it works fine.

Have you tried disconnecting your outlet hose from your destination and opening the outlet valve? The manufacturers generally advise against any angled fittings within a few inches of entering the pump, but I suspect you're having an issue with air pressure in your lines instead of restriction.

Angled fittings and hose ID certainly matter, but they should result in reduced performance not NO performance.

Connecting an output hose prior to establishing prime is the biggest problem I see in practice. The method described above by putting a vent port on the output is another way to deal with it without having to disconnect and reconnect the output hose.

maybe i need to change my technique. What i've done in the past (which worked before the pump on my top tier) was hook up my connection from one vessel to the pump inlet and open up the ball valve on the outlet until liquid begins to flow out of the valve. Then I shut the valve and turn on the pump. Then i'll hook up my hose on the other side and open up the valve. Although instead of getting liquid pumped out, it will only drain out the same way it would if it was gravity fed.

Since my brain can't poke through the fog of text, now would be a good time for pictures.

it would appear that the pump head orientation is not the problem. My pump is. When the pump head is off, the pump spins fine. When the pump head is on, it won't spin. Sounds like something is keeping the magnetic drive from turning. Is my pump shot? has anybody else ever experienced this??

sgraham602 said:

it would appear that the pump head orientation is not the problem. My pump is. When the pump head is off, the pump spins fine. When the pump head is on, it won't spin. Sounds like something is keeping the magnetic drive from turning. Is my pump shot? has anybody else ever experienced this??

Click to expand...

Have you taken the head apart lately? If you did, is the teflon ring between the impeller and housing (the main part)?? If you haven't taken it apart lately, I would and make sure the shaft isn't all gummed up.

I soak my pump head in PBW solution and then rinse thoroughly after each use. Ever 2-3 batches, I take it apart and inspect/clean it (it's also a stainless head, but center inlet). Depending on when you got the pump, it could have one of the old design shafts that had an issue. If cleaning it, and making sure all parts are there, doesn't fix it, reach out to chugger.

all of the parts are in place. When the pump head and teflon ring are off, the magnetic drive has a slight wobble to it as it spins. it doesn't spin straight.

If you remove it from where it's mounted, does it spin true?

remove the entire pump from where its mounted? no, it doesn't spin true. I haven't removed the drive shaft though.

Contact chugger then...

day_trippr said:

fwiw, according to the March Pump rep that posts here, outlet at 12 O'Clock is the preferred orientation...

Cheers!

Click to expand...

I think he also pointed out the small pocket of air trapped in the top of the housing when pointed up. The reality is, if it's primed, this is six of one and a half dozen of the other.

[edit] This thread says it all...

Cheers!