Waterpump trouble :(

Dutch Guy

Dutch Guy

Dutch Guy

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I am in the process of upgrading my computer.

I have the system built just waiting for a CPU, so I am leak testing at the moment but even after a couple of hours my Eheim waterpump still makes noise :mad:

There are almost no visible airbubbles going round so i'm stumped, could it be trapped ait in the pump?

Sometimes when I cut the power and put the plug back in the noise is less only to appear again later :confused:

Only thing I did different this time was add a UV reactive additive to the water, but surely that can't be the cause, can it?
 
Dutch Guy said:
I only have one waterblock and a 120mm radiator :(

I di however notice that the UV additive has anti corrosive properties and I added it to a mix that was already anti corrosive, but that shouldn't matter, should it?
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Na, additives should make no difference. Has the pump position changed? What kind of res?
 
The pump oulet is now on the side, it was at the top before, but this is also a recommended position.

I have just closed the case and it's a lot less intrusive and I doubt I will hear it over the PSU fan and harddisks but I still find it strange as it was nearly silent in the beginning when I bought it.
 
Two things. It can rattle if the main ceramic bearing gets dirty or worn. You could take it all to bits and give the insides a good clean. The other option is just air in the water which can take a long time to go if you use additives. Funnily enough pure water gets much less air trapped in it than if you put anything else in with it.


When initially filling the system, it is best to only use water until the system is bled, then put in your additives slowly.
 
I think it's the additive as well, I left it running for 5 hours now and the noise is a lot less now, this is strange though as there weren't any visible airbubbles before.

I will leave it running overnight and se how it is in the morning but even if it stays like this it's fine as it will be quieter than other components.

Another thought, is the cold water temperature and ambient temperature a factor?
The computer is in the loft that has no heating yet so the room is 15C now and off course the computer is still off.
 
The water won't go below ambient so no, there is no reason to worry. The Eheims are rated for cold water aquaria and so 15C won't worry the pump. On the other hand, if it hasn't leaked yet, it probably won't. Why not fire up the computer and just make sure it still works?
 
MikeTimbers said:
The water won't go below ambient so no, there is no reason to worry. The Eheims are rated for cold water aquaria and so 15C won't worry the pump. On the other hand, if it hasn't leaked yet, it probably won't. Why not fire up the computer and just make sure it still works?
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I can't use the computer as I am still waiting for a CPU, it should be delivered today or tomorrow :o but the pump is working fine, I can see the waterflow in my small res and the flow is fine.

I let it run last night and this morning it was making a lot of noise again, this pump is beginning to irritate me :mad:

Can the pump trap air inside it that could cause the noise and can the fact the outlet is now on the side have a bad effect on trapped air?
 
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I run my 1250 with the outlet on the side and the inlet at the top - the pump is basically standing on its motor end. It would be unusual for the pump to trap air. Try flicking the pump power off and see if any air comes out of it if you move the case around.

The only way to be certain the pump doesn't do this even when fully bled is to dump it in a bucket of water and see if it still makes any noise (obviously hard to hear if the pump is submerged).
 
Changed the outlet so it's at the top, not surprising this hasn't made a difference.

I was also looking closely at the water in my res to see if any airbubbles go into the pump and i'll try to descrivbe what I saw :o

There were not much big bubbles and the big ones that are sucked into the pump are directly sent into the loop again but I did see a lot of small bubbles being generated inside the res as the pump is sucking they are created at the surface of the water and sucked into the pump, could it be the additive that is responsible for creating the small bubbles in the res?

I will try tonight with tap water to see if I get the same or should I avoid tap water as I have a copper block and a aluminium radiator?
 
This is getting stranger by the minute, the moment I come home and want to change the water the pump is running a lot more quiet :confused:

So 9 hours running and no change and a lot of noise but 20 hours and it's better, so I guess this rules out the pump being broken and it is the bubbles that are causing it?
 
you will have to lower the water surface tension to stop foaming or air bubbles, isopranal alcohol is perfect for this, add 15% to your water and it will cure your air bubbles, you can use a hydrometer to measure the alcohol content of the water.
 
vapor matt said:
you will have to lower the water surface tension to stop foaming or air bubbles, isopranal alcohol is perfect for this, add 15% to your water and it will cure your air bubbles, you can use a hydrometer to measure the alcohol content of the water.
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Good tip, I have some 97% Isopropanol somewhere, I will find that and add it to the water.

I know I'm getting close to solving this, sometimes the pump is silent and 15 minutes later it starts to make noise again
 
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