Cat pumps: expencive paper weights
- Thread starter AshleyMckendree
- Start date
Mike Draper
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- Joined
- Jan 13, 2008
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my friend owns a car wash. His cat pump finally died, 22 years old. It' s a cat pump 290 or similar. Never did anything to it, didn't even change the oil. It's a piston pump though.
Duane Oxley
Moon Unit
Ashley,
The 430, according to Cat, is a piston (not plunger) pump that delivers 4 GPM up to 1,200 PSI. That being the case, it sounds very much like a Cat 290 (3.5 GPM, piston, up to 1,200 PSI). From the picture, it looks very much like one, too.
The most you'd need to do to it is replace the cups, unless you ran it out of oil, or seriously overheated it (in which case the spring retainers could melt, resulting in new springs and retainers needed as well).
But it all points at something wrong in the way it's installed in your system. Someone above pointed out that it has a low RPM range. At slightly over 1,000 RPM, they could be right. If you're overdriving the pump more than 100 RPM or so, then that's likely to be the problem. Also, how is your bypass connected? If it's back to the pump from the regulator, then the size and length (i.e. internal capacity) of the hose is more critical. If it bypasses to the tank, then it's not so much a factor. Either way, you need a temperature sensor (a thermostat) to monitor the bypass temperature and prevent heat build- up in the bypass line- or, you do run a risk of overheating the pump.
That pump is rated at 4 GPM @ 1,050 RPM =/- 10 RPM or thereabout. So, if you're turning it at 1,500 RPM, it's pumping 6 GPM. And it's always bypassing whatever fluid you're not using to clean with. So, it could be bypassing as much as 6 GPM when the wand isn't keyed. And that amount of bypass creates more friction, which in turn, creates more friction and heats up more quickly.
So, check the RPM first.
Also, check to be sure that your bypass is set up correctly.
And check to see if the inlet hose to the pump is large enough. (It should be at least 3/8"... probably more like 1/2".)
Duane
The 430, according to Cat, is a piston (not plunger) pump that delivers 4 GPM up to 1,200 PSI. That being the case, it sounds very much like a Cat 290 (3.5 GPM, piston, up to 1,200 PSI). From the picture, it looks very much like one, too.
The most you'd need to do to it is replace the cups, unless you ran it out of oil, or seriously overheated it (in which case the spring retainers could melt, resulting in new springs and retainers needed as well).
But it all points at something wrong in the way it's installed in your system. Someone above pointed out that it has a low RPM range. At slightly over 1,000 RPM, they could be right. If you're overdriving the pump more than 100 RPM or so, then that's likely to be the problem. Also, how is your bypass connected? If it's back to the pump from the regulator, then the size and length (i.e. internal capacity) of the hose is more critical. If it bypasses to the tank, then it's not so much a factor. Either way, you need a temperature sensor (a thermostat) to monitor the bypass temperature and prevent heat build- up in the bypass line- or, you do run a risk of overheating the pump.
That pump is rated at 4 GPM @ 1,050 RPM =/- 10 RPM or thereabout. So, if you're turning it at 1,500 RPM, it's pumping 6 GPM. And it's always bypassing whatever fluid you're not using to clean with. So, it could be bypassing as much as 6 GPM when the wand isn't keyed. And that amount of bypass creates more friction, which in turn, creates more friction and heats up more quickly.
So, check the RPM first.
Also, check to be sure that your bypass is set up correctly.
And check to see if the inlet hose to the pump is large enough. (It should be at least 3/8"... probably more like 1/2".)
Duane
