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a/c problem

Discussion in 'Carver Yacht' started by sam356, Mar 17, 2012.

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  1. K1W1, Apr 13, 2012
    #21
    K1W1

    K1W1 Senior Member

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    Hi,

    If your pump was primed and then it didn't have enough suction to pull the water through and fill the rest of the system I would tend to follow Pascals ideas and have a look at the pump itself.

    If the suction line is easy to access then adding a priming fitting should also be an easy job, you should be able to turn the hose on with the suction in the hull closed and fill the whole system as what you are really doing in mimicking the operation of the pump just using the hose water as the motive force instead of the pump.

    One little gem I discovered once with a wire reinforced rubber hose was the detachment of the inner lining from the rubber casing, this let plenty of water through when the hose was pulled off but quickly stopped the flow to the pump when the engine it was serving was started. Pretty similar to how a plastic bag in the line is described above.
  2. Pascal, Apr 13, 2012
    #22
    Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    Based on your description the pump should self prime and then force the water out of the coils and hoses downstream of the pump. The only thing I could think of besides something clogging the intake under suction would be that the pump doesn't produce enough flow to get air out of all those units.

    My boat has 5 units running off one pump. They are stacked in the ER, and even the highest one never had any issue with air remaining in the lines

    When is the last time you had the coils and hoses flushed with acid? There could be growth in there which on its own should not affect priming but add other debris and you never know...

    What I d do is undo the outlet side of the pump, hook a hose to it, flush all those lines and check for flow at each coil. Does each unit have its own discharge outlet or do they go into a sea chest making it impossible to view each?

    Another common issue is the manifold which splits the flow to the multiple units. Some designs may leave one unit with less flow. Again you d think builders would get this right but...
  3. Beau, Apr 13, 2012
    #23
    Beau

    Beau Senior Member

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    Each time I short haul, I have the same problem as the OP with my master and forward A/C units. I really think he doesn't have a major problem, just needs to get that intial prime. What I do, is take my boat for a little run, (the water pressure against the thru hull increases) when I get back all the AC units are working fine. Don't have to tear apart my bunks or cut my fingers with wire hose.
  4. K1W1, Apr 13, 2012
    #24
    K1W1

    K1W1 Senior Member

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    Hi,

    I am sure a simple way to reduce the problems would be to close the thru hull when hauling thereby keeping the system full of water - this might not be the best if you are hauling out for the winter in the Arctic though but should take care of any short term haulout things.
  5. Beau, Apr 13, 2012
    #25
    Beau

    Beau Senior Member

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    K1W1

    Such a simple, but elegant solution! Thanks
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