Press Pump Worn Out?

[Amber Gold]

Twice now, I've tried getting the Oberdorfer pump to pump water out of a 5-gallon pale to clean it out and it won't do it. Shouldn't the pump be able to do this...kind of like pumping out a barrel of syrup? If it can't, does it mean the pump needs a rebuild?

Thanks

[Brent]

I think I remember seeing instructions on the Oberdorfer site for rebuilding. I think they had kits. Worth a look.

[NH Maplemaker]

Josh, mine will pump water. I have one set up as a sap pump for picking up sap from road side tanks, have used it for years! Bascoms use to sell the repair kits .JimL.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Even hot syrup is thicker than water so see if the packing seal is leaking. Have you greased it? Air leaks are a suction killer. The repair kits arnt cheap they are in the cataloge.

[Amber Gold]

Jim, that's what I thought. I thought I remember reading that people use them to suck buckets out.

It's an old pump I think. So if the pump hasn't been greased then it won't suck properly? I haven't greased it.

Yeah, I saw the repair kits and they're almost as much as a new pump. If it comes to buying a new pump, I may just go with a diaphragm pump.

[maplwrks]

Try greasing it with food grade grease. You may find that it will work fine.

[Amber Gold]

I got the press working tonight in the bathroom. Once it sucked all the air out of the intake hose, it pushed water fine, but it took ~3 min. for it to happen. Once it did, it recirc. water in/out of the drawoff pail fine. It does rattle a lot so the internals need to be greased pretty bad. After that it should work fine. I'm drawing off into a 9 gal milking station. The press will be set on some blocks off the floor and plumbed to the drain on the station. Pump/filter from that and into the canner.

What's the min. temp to run through the press? I want to wait until I have quite a bit of syrup in there before I run it through the press. It's a cast iron press if it matters.

[WESTVIRGINIAMAPLER]

Josh,

I run mine thru boiling hot as the more it cools, the harder it is to get it thru. You can't get it too hot and a few degrees cooler make a difference.

[Haynes Forest Products]

Please tell me your not using it as a transfer station:o Have you tightened the packing not on the shaft?

[Brent]

They all rattle at least a bit. Gear pumps do that.

The grease is not meant to coat the gears, just the bushings. And if yours is built like most the grease nipple only puts grease on one side. When i had mine apart I put a little grease on the packing side. As suggested above, I think the air is likely leaking in around the packing. If they get seriously worn, they just won't pump under much pressure. Not the same issue as sucking air.