Well I had a horrible day at work only to come home to a non functioning main pump. While taking off the cover to check the power to the pump the bold sheared off. While turning the power back on to check with my meter the pump started working again. I then found out that the power had flickered during the day which probably caused the automation to get confused. Anyways how can I get the cover on the pump tight again?
Stupid question....
- Thread starter Flippy
- Start date
![pump [1024x768].JPG](/data/attachments/24/24214-6263839b04267af836e7140fd1788a3c.jpg)
Jeetyet
0
With a bolt that small, I would guess drill and re-tap would be about your best option. Of course you could try a quick and dirty fix that might work with some silicone and a brick or something leaning against the cover plate to hold it until the silicone sets up.
laprjns
LifeTime Supporter
- Aug 14, 2012
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The same thing happened to me last week when I replaced the bearings on my pump motor. I used two large washers under the two nearby motor bolts, with both washers overlapping the electrical cover.
laprjns said:
That was my first thought but I was worried about another bold shearing off. I have it closed with a brick for now and will have to look at it this weekend.
laprjns
LifeTime Supporter
- Aug 14, 2012
- 577
- Pool Size
- 30000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pureline Crystal Pure 60,000
I believe the large hex head bolts adjacent to the cover are the long thru-bolts that hold the entire motor together. They're about 8 inches long and they thread onto the opposite motor end cover. If you squirt some WD-40 or PB Blaster, it won't do much good spraying it on the hex head. You'll have to spray it on the other end and I can't see from your photo's if you have any access to that end. You may have to remove the motor from the pump and at that point I'd just drill out the old broken off screw and re-tap it or use a TEKS screw or other thread cutting/forming or sheet metal screw. Since this isn't a structural fastener, it's just holding down a little cover, you just need a short screw that grabs just a little.
I am not even sure I would tap it, I would simply use a short, self-tapping screw. The panels on air conditioners are installed with the all the time. An electricians grounding screw may be the right size.
Can you post a picture? The correct answer is going to differ if you're talking about a simple cover bolt vs a through bolt.
I wouldn't touch those 4 through bolts. They tend to shear off rather than unscrew.
Drilling a small hole and using a self-tapping screw would probably work OK. Make sure not to go too deep, as you could potentially hit something inside the motor.
It might not look pretty, but you might even be able to use tape. Perhaps like this.
http://www.findtape.com/product687/ISC- ... -Tape.aspx
Drilling a small hole and using a self-tapping screw would probably work OK. Make sure not to go too deep, as you could potentially hit something inside the motor.
It might not look pretty, but you might even be able to use tape. Perhaps like this.
http://www.findtape.com/product687/ISC- ... -Tape.aspx