Running Jabsco ballast puppy without water

[loudsubz]

I havn't put back the bags from winter yet, and I guess someone didn't know they were missing, so after wakeboarding today when I went to turn off the boat I noticed all the ballast switches set to drain even though nothing is connected right now. I don't even have the impellers installed, just the shaft spinning free.

Why I am asking this question is right after I noticed someone had turned them down to empty, I flicked the switches off and back to fill to see if they would kick on (the timer had shut them off in empty mode already) and noticed that the front sac pump was not working. I flipped it back to empty and same thing, no sound at all.

Do the pumps burn out of run dry or is it only to protect the impeller from running dry? If its not working do you think its a motor issue or something needs to be reset on the module?

[mmandley]

Running dry is only a concern for the impellers. Running the pump while dry wont hurt it due to no load. You might have poped a fuse, or just need to reset the timmers. I dont have timmers so cant help you there.

[loudsubz]

Ok I did some testing today and it was definitely the pump that was not working.

Took it out, opened it up and this is what I find





No wonder it wasn't working, it was full of rust and corrosion. Do you think this is a flaw in the design or an issue with manufacturer not sealing the pump properly?

[MLA]

Looks like the shaft seal leaked water into the motor. Was the pump mounted horizontally or vertically with motor down and the pump head up?

[jmvotto]

It certainly should not look like that. Not sure what the warranty on those are but you are gonna need a new one.. Ouch.

[loudsubz]

It was mounted horizontally. If your looking at the pump layout on the back, it was the top left pump. Motor on the left side, impeller on the right.



I was able to clean it up with a dremel and its running but barely. It is noisy and will definitely need replacing.

[loudsubz]

Does jabsco have a website or email address for customer support? I did a quick search online but found a UK website, not sure if thats them or not.