Shallow well jet pump wont turn

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Plott hound

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Innisfil,ontario
So my 25 year old 1/2 hp gsw pump gas decided not to work.when powered up it will only hum then it trips the breaker. I tried to help it along bu turning the shaft with a screw driver but it still wont spin. There is quite a bit of resistance when i try to turn it over with a screwdriver. Im gonna try to get it pulled apart this weekend but was looking for some possible reasons as to why it malfunctioned before i do.Thanks
 
Probably need to take it apart, might have an accumulation of scale inside. Another possibility is dirty start switch or bad capacitor, but clean out the pump first if it turns hard.
 
So my 25 year old 1/2 hp gsw pump gas decided not to work.when powered up it will only hum then it trips the breaker. I tried to help it along bu turning the shaft with a screw driver but it still wont spin. There is quite a bit of resistance when i try to turn it over with a screwdriver. Im gonna try to get it pulled apart this weekend but was looking for some possible reasons as to why it malfunctioned before i do.Thanks

Yeah if it won't turn the bearings in the motor are probably locked up. Sealed bearings have a finite life in hours. One shot of grease every year and they would last forever, which is why they don't have a grease zerk.
 
Yeah if it won't turn the bearings in the motor are probably locked up. Sealed bearings have a finite life in hours. One shot of grease every year and they would last forever, which is why they don't have a grease zerk.
The reason they don't have zerks is that some people would over grease them and they would fail faster than without any additional grease. pump motors run 3600 rpm, too much grease will destroy the bearings.
 
The reason they don't have zerks is that some people would over grease them and they would fail faster than without any additional grease. pump motors run 3600 rpm, too much grease will destroy the bearings.
You are correct that over-greasing is not a good thing. I see that once in a while on municipal systems where somebody comes around and greases everything once a month no matter if it needs it or not. Lol!. But most bearings I have pulled have just run dry from being the sealed kind of bearing that can't be greased. Sealed bearings are made for a certain number of hours and that is about it. They can say it is about not over-greasing or even that it makes them maintenance free. But the reason anything like that is done is to plan a certain life expectancy in a product so they can sell a replacement. Things are made to not be able to grease or work on for a reason, and it is not to make them last longer.
 
Thanks for everyones input. The parts for this pump are no longer available but my local pump rebuilder can get the motor bearings.so i dropped it iff to see what they can do. In the mean time ive been pricing pumps and so far a 1/2 hp myers pump seems to be good value. Just hope their at least built on thus continent. Been trying to steer clear of chinese crap. Thanks again.
 
Thanks for everyones input. The parts for this pump are no longer available but my local pump rebuilder can get the motor bearings.so i dropped it iff to see what they can do. In the mean time ive been pricing pumps and so far a 1/2 hp myers pump seems to be good value. Just hope their at least built on thus continent. Been trying to steer clear of chinese crap. Thanks again.

I appreciate your efforts. But anything that is not made in China, Mexico, or Asia somewhere either has parts made there, the raw material came from there, the machines it is made with came from there, or all of the above. Nearly anything that needs to be assembled is made over there. Americans have been shopping for the lowest price, regardless of the quality, until there is basically no manufacturers left in the US. Very few things are made with quality to last a long time anymore anyway. Planned obsolescence with cheap throw away products not made in the US is all we have left anymore. It seems now, especially with the cost of fuel, just getting products from the other side of the world is an issue. Lately a lot of people are having to settle for whatever pump they can find. Can't get or afford help in the US to flip burgers, much less something technical and boring like assembling motors. Add in the extra regulations and taxes we pay and it is a wonder anything is still manufactured in the US. Sorry to rant. But if you can get something made or cast in the US it would be about 6 times the price.
 
Yeah if it won't turn the bearings in the motor are probably locked up. Sealed bearings have a finite life in hours. One shot of grease every year and they would last forever, which is why they don't have a grease zerk.
I remember back in the day when automobiles had Zerk fittings on ball joints and tie rod ends, etc. When I go to my local service station, they still sell a package deal that includeds a "chassis lubrication". When I ask the tech or franchaise operator what they do, they look up and to the left and say it's done "as needed".
 
Thanks again, is a meyers pump a decent brand? I think they are partially made in the. USA.
Meyers is just one of many brands made by Pentair. Not a nickel worth of difference in any of the common brands of pumps these days. Most are probably made in the same factory in China, they just paint them different colors and sell them under many different names. Meyers is an old name and as good as any available today.
 
I use Meyers sewage pumps. I’ve have good service out of them.
 

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