Calling Jabsco Pump Experts - Please Help

[uwhusky]

I had a Jabsco 18670-6127. It came with the boat but I had to remove it for various reasons. The other two ballast pumps still on the boat are this same model and they work great.

I thought I bought a replacement but they sent me a 18660-0121.
Two issues I've noticed with this pump compared to the 1867 are...
1. It is much slower and
2. it struggles to fill or drain. I have to press the button multiple times, sometimes as many as 20 before it will start to drain or fill. Each time it doesn't work it throws an error (picture below).

I have available to me an 18220-5127.

Should I use the 18220, the 18660 or try to make the 18670 work?

My main confusion is in why the one throws circuit faults. I am confused by the features that say it'll switch directions automatically (or they are reversible) and some imply you have to switch the directions yourself with a rocker switch. I would assume all three of these pumps are reversible but maybe I'm wrong. Obviously, with my Nautique, I want it to do whatever I tell it to do at the helm (drain or fill).

Please help if you can!

[jpwhit]

The 18660-0121 is not the right pump for your boat. It's only a 6.3 GPM pump. Intended more as a bilge pump rather than a ballast pump.

The 18670-6127 and 18220-5127 are essentially the same pump. Only difference may be the connector or bare wires from the factory. They are both a 10 gpm Ballast Puppy pumps.

All of these pumps are reversible, which just means the rubber impeller will flip when you change polarity on the motor, which changes the direction of rotation on the motor.

[uwhusky]

jpwhit thank you!!

Couple questions for you, if you don't mind.
The 18660 is throwing a circuit breaker error. Is that to be expected or do you think something is messed up in the wiring? Maybe the wires are not large enough, maybe I messed up the wire connections? I used wire crimps. It just seems odd that it'll work some of the time and not others.

Do you think if I install the 18220 I should be good to go?

[jpwhit]

Those pumps are driver by an electronic Power Distribution Module (PDM) that also handles electrical circuit protection instead of having to have fuses or circuit breakers. The screen software tells the PDM what the upper and lower current limits are. If you go to the PDM diagnostic screen, you'll get more info on why it's generating that error. But, you may only see the additional info when it occurs.

My guess would be that you're actually getting an under current error because that pump isn't drawing nearly as much power as the system would expect.

If it were me, I would just go ahead and install the right pump. If you're still getting an error, it'll be just as easy to figure it out, and more than likely it is related to having the wrong pump.

[uwhusky]

jpwhit! Thanks I really appreciate it.

I have an 18220 I could install today and may just go that direction. If it doesn't work, I can try and put my 18670 back together or buy a new one.

Do you think the 18220 is going to work?

[jpwhit]

If there's nothing wrong with that pump, I think it'll work. Since you already have it, I would try it. If it doesn't have an impeller that you know is good, and you have one, changing that while it's out is so much easier than once the pump is installed. If you have any doubt about that pump being good, put some water in the inlet and outlet so the impeller isn't completely dry, and hook it up to 12v for just a few seconds to make sure it runs.

You may know this tip already, but using a heat gun to get the rubber hoses quite hot makes them 100x easier to get on an off.

[uwhusky]

Thanks jpwhit!

The 18220 is brand new still in the box. So it should be fine. I'll maybe give it a try on a 12V battery like you said before installing it in the boat.

I wasn't aware of the heat gun trick but I'll give it a try. My main issue is connecting the wires. I use crimp connectors but I'm always worried I don't have a solid connection.

[jpwhit]

There should be a Deutsch connector in the wiring harness for the pumps. And if the pump doesn't have the right Deutsch connector on it, you can get them off Amazon. I'm not near my parts at the moment, so unfortunately I can't tell you the exact part number of the connectors. Maybe someone else has it handy.....

[uwhusky]

jpwhit I just decided to hardwire as I don't have the time to find and replace with a Deutsch harness and I have a lot to learn about how to install them.

So something weird just happened. I installed the pump. Everything went great. The battery was in the off position the whole time. But when I was done installing it and it's all hooked up I decide to give it a little test. So I go to the battery switch (pictured) and instead of clicking into positions 1 or 2 or 1&2 it doesn't click. It spins super easy. Something is clearly wrong with it. And even if I smoothly spin it to position 1 or 2 and enter the code to power the boat up, nothing happens. I must've done something but have no idea how to trouble shoot this.

[jpwhit]

My guess is it's just a coincidence. Those switches are known weak spots.

[uwhusky]

Agreed. I think it's a coincidence but at first thought they were related. Working on the battery switch now but the pump is in and went off without a hitch. Just hoping it works once I get the switch back and working.

[uwhusky]

Final update on this one. I installed the Jabsco 18220. It works. No errors. It is slower than the 18670 by a pretty good margin but I'll live with it for now.