HELP! new impeller & diffuser smoking!

[horn1993]

OK - I know something has to be wrong here.... :grrrr:

This is the 3rd post in my ongoing saga... new 1hp pump motor (century centurion 1081) installed today with new impeller and diffuser recommended by parts guy (old motor was an oversized 2hp motor).

When I flipped it on, it made a horrible squealing like the pump was binding. Much like a reboot, I shut it off and back on and the squeal was gone and it ran quietly but it didn't seem to be drawing water at all. I opened the filter basket and smoke poured out.

The copper "tubing" on the interior of the diffuser had chewed away huge chunks of the impeller.....

I'm assuming this is not normal - that they wouldn't have to grind down to a fit.

Any advice? Impeller and diffuser are mis-sized?

Thanks!

 

[spishex]

I'm not sure what you mean by copper tubing. You mean the copper heat sink that holds the ceramic part of your pump seal (may or may not have this in your pump)? If the diffuser screwed into place properly then you may have put the seal in incorrectly. They make two different types of impellers for the Challenger (high head and high flow I think?), but if you got that mistaken then you wouldn't have been able to put the diffuser back on.

 

[horn1993]

see the picture attached for what I'm describing.

the motor with impeller attached are on the left (obviously) and I'm holding the diffuser in my hand on the right. my index finger is pointing to the copper? piece that I'm describing.

When fully assembled, the interior of the piece on the right was grinding down the exterior of the center cylinder of the infuser on the left.

does that make sense?

:?

 

[spishex]

Ah! I see what you mean now. Well, if the diffuser sits in place properly, the noise has gone away, the motor is spinning freely, and the impeller isn't wobbling as the shaft spins I'd go ahead and try to prime it. I'm not sure if they put that ring in as some sort of weir or a heat sink or what, but from the sounds of it it's done what damage it's going to do.

 

[horn1993]

well it's working now - and seems to be fine - God only knows why it had to grind off 1/8 inch of impeller all the way around, but I guess I know it doesn't have a big gap!

thanks again