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nb Tanya Louise Heating Upgrades – The Pumps

 

Pierburg WUP1
Pierburg WUP1

With some recent upgrades to the boat’s heating system, the hot water circulation pumps we’ve been using are becoming far too small for the job. After the original Johnson Marine circulation pump died of old age (the brushes wore down so far the springs ate the commutator) some time ago, it was replaced with a Pierburg WUP1 circulation pump from a BMW. (As we’re moored next to a BMW garage, these are easily obtainable & much cheaper than the marine pumps).

WUP1 Cutaway
WUP1 Cutaway

These are also brushless, where as the standard Johnson ones are brushed PM motors – the result here is a much longer working life, due to fewer moving parts.

The rated flow & pressure on these pumps is pretty pathetic, at 13L/min at 0.1bar head pressure. As the boat’s heating system is plumbed in 15mm pipe instead of 22mm this low pressure doesn’t translate to a decent flow rate. Turns out it’s pretty difficult to shove lots of water through ~110ft of 15mm pipe ;). Oddly enough, the very low flow rate of the system was never a problem for the “high output” back boiler on the stove – I suspect the “high output” specification is a bit optimistic.
This issue was recently made worse with the addition of a Webasto Thermo Top C 5kW diesel-fired water heater, which does have it’s own circulation pump but the system flow rate was still far too low to allow the heater to operate properly. The result was a rapidly cycling heater as it couldn’t dump the generated hot water into the rest of the system fast enough.

The easiest solution to the problem here is a larger pump with a higher head pressure capability. (The more difficult route would be completely re-piping the system in 22mm to lower the flow resistance). Luckily Pierburg produce a few pumps in the range that would fit the job.

Pierburg CWA-50
Pierburg CWA-50

Here’s the next size up from the original WUP1 pump, the CWA50. These are rated at a much more sensible 25L/min at 0.6bar head pressure. It’s physically a bit larger, but the connector sizes are the same, which makes the install onto the existing hoses easier. (For those that are interested, the hose connectors used on BMW vehicles for the cooling system components are NormaQuick PS3 type. These snap into place with an O-Ring & are retained by a spring clip).
The CWA50 draws considerably more power than the WUP1 (4.5A vs 1.5A), and are controllable with a PWM signal on the connector, but I haven’t used this feature. The PWM pin is simply tied to the positive supply to keep the pump running at maximum speed.

Once this pump was installed the head pressure immediately increased on the gauge from the 1 bar static pressure to 1.5 bar, indicating the pump is running at about it’s highest efficiency point. The higher water flow has so far kept the Webasto happy, there will be more to come with further improvements!

CWA-50 Pump Teardown

CWA50 Cutaway
CWA50 Cutaway

Above is a cutaway drawing of the new pump. These have a drilling through the shaft allows water to pass from the high pressure outlet fitting, through the internals of the pump & returns through the shaft to the inlet. This keeps the bearings cool & lubricated. The control & power drive circuitry for the 3-phase brushless motor is attached to the back & uses the water flowing through the rotor chamber as a heatsink. Overall these are very well made pumps.

Impeller
Impeller

Here’s the impeller of the pump, which is very small considering the amount of power this unit has. The return port for the lubricating water can be seen in the centre of the impeller face.

3-Phase Driver
3-Phase Driver

Inside the back of the pump is the control module. The main microcontroller is hiding under the plastic frame which holds the large power chokes & the main filter electrolytic.

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Simple Dishwasher Repair

Earlier today, one of my neighbours put their dishwasher out for the scrap man. After asking if I could appropriate it in the interest of recycling the Ham Way™, I was told it wasn’t draining. The engineer called out to fix it had claimed it was beyond economical repair.

A quick test showed that indeed the drain pump wasn’t operating correctly – very poor pumping capacity & a horrid grinding noise.

Drain Pump
Drain Pump

Here is the drain pump on the bottom of the machine. Strangely for a dishwasher, everything underneath is very clean & free from corrosion.

Pump Rotor
Pump Rotor

On removing the securing screw & unlatching the pump from it’s bayonet mount, the impeller instantly tried to make a break for freedom – it has come off the splines of the rotor shaft.

In the past I’ve tried to remove these rotors manually – and totally destroyed the pump in the process. They are usually so well secure that replacement is the only option. This particular one must have vibrated off the shaft somehow.

This repair was easy – removing the rotor from the main pump body & gently drifting the impeller back onto the splines.

Repaired Pump
Repaired Pump

Here the pump is reassembled & ready for reinstallation.

On test the pump sounds normal, & works as expected.

Engineer 1 : 0 Throwaway Society

 

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Fluval 203 Canister Filter

Assembly
Assembly

Here is an old fish tank external filter & a few pics of the insides.

Label
Label

Label on the front of the pump head. Fittings on either side of the motor are water I/O.

Pump
Pump

Underside of the pump head, inlet is on the right, outlet from the pump is on the left. Pump intake in centre.

Pump Parts
Pump Parts

Pump disassembled. This pump requires no shaft seals as the impeller is driven magnetically with a synchronous motor.

Filter Stack
Filter Stack

Filter stack removed from the unit. From left: foam media, activated charcoal/gravel & ceramic pellets.