Replaced the original 1.5hp motor, gaskets, seal on my Whisperflo in the spring after 12 years of service with an equivalent Century model. Late in the season, it started whining and eventually became loud enough to hear inside the house - 100 feet away. While shut down for the winter, I took it apart today and everything looks fine (diffuser, impeller, seal, etc) and the motor runs quietly with everything detached. Not sure what to consider next. Could it be a problem only under load?
Noisy pump and motor is only 4 months old
- Thread starter robdonna
- Start date
- Oct 25, 2015
- 5,432
- Pool Size
- 28000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-60 Plus
Rob,
With a new motor it's more likely inside the pump. Here are a few things to check:
- Does the pump impeller have any signs of a hairline crack. Try to pull it apart all the way around. I have seen one with a crack that only opened up when it was spinning fast.
- Does the new seal show any damage from miss-alignment? If you don't get it pressed all the way into the housing this can happen and cause a screeching sound.
- Are you sure you've got the right seal?
- If none of these are the problem then I'd bump test the motor without connecting it to the pump.
I hope this helps.
Chris
Thanks Ralph and Chris. No apparent impeller damage, even when attempting to pull it apart. Seal looks fine, without evidence of leakage or damage, and I'm sure it is the correct one - especially after 4 months of flawless performance. As noted above, I ran the motor independent of the pump while disassembled and it runs smoothly and quietly. Like Ralph, I initially suspected a bearing and now I'm curious if a failing bearing might behave differently (loudly) under load, but don't know of an easy way to test that.
- Oct 25, 2015
- 5,432
- Pool Size
- 28000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-60 Plus
Rob,
I certainly agree the whining is classic bearing noise. Just that normally a new pump lasts 4-6 years before you hear it. Pumps motors can make a different noise under load but not a the level you describe unless there's something wrong with the bearing or the motor fan. One thing you could try to isolate the problem is to see if there's a way to squirt some lubricant on the bearing. This will usually temporarily quiet the bearing if it's the problem. Is there any rust on the shaft?
Chris
Thank you, Chris. No rust on the shaft - looks like new. I will try the lubricant suggestion and see if any change is detected. Meanwhile, I will get a some spare bearings on hand - just in case...
- Oct 25, 2015
- 5,432
- Pool Size
- 28000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-60 Plus
Rob,
Fingers crossed for you, I hope this helps. Either way you could always change the bearings. They're pretty cheap. Also you should take the 4 long bolts that hold the motor together and apply anti-seize to the threads. This will allow you to change the bearings in the future without twisting the bolts off. I do this on all my motors. You don't need to dismantle or remove the pump. Just de-power and remove the bolts one-at-a-time coat and replace.
Chris
Chris. that's a great suggestion and almost universally acceptable to many applications. I have had a wkend ranch for almost 25 yrs and was a major rookie on all...over the years, and asking a lot of questions, I've had to go back and loosen something for maintenance, replacement, etc...you would not believe the difference btw an anti-seize based bolt/nut and one that wasn't, esp galvanized unions...makes just thinking about the repairs much easier - HNY to all - tstex