Winnebago Warrior - Water pump not getting water to taps or toilet

[Kitty]

Hi! I've just bought a Winnie Warrior 19ft and I'm going through what needs repair work. So the water pump is making a noise like it's working but there's no water coming out of faucets. The water tank is full but it won't flow outta there. Has anyone else had similar issues and if so what was the solution? Not sure if there's a blockage or if I need a new motor for the pump. It's a 1989 model Warrior, and has been standing for a while before I purchased it.
Also I need batteries if anyone has suggestions for what are good to get! : )

[mikf]

Take the inlet hose off of the pump and see if you can siphon water from the tank. If you get the siphon going screw it back on the pump and try it again. Try to keep that line full of water when putting it back on. Are the old batteries still installed? Try to get the same size and make sure they are marine ( deep cycle ) type. Then shop for the best price.

[Morich]

Two big things getin the way of doingthebest job on suggestions for you! One is theage puts it out of those which are well supported online and then trailers never did get the best, so we have to make a few more guesses?
Some questions as to what you see? Do you have a setup with a valve to change from filling the tank to using the pressure water normally? Often in the area we call the wet bay where the water hose might be connected---if you have that rather than the type where you stick the hose in a port to fill.
IF you have that valve and it gets left in the tank fill position, it often will leave a path for water to come out of the tank to the pump and back to the tank as the easy path of less resistance than going inside to the faucets! Maybe look for that valve and change it if in the fill position?

However, it may just be a case of the pump diaphagm getting too brittle while setting and it may need to be changed. Normally a somewhat easy job to pull the head of the pump off and put in a new diaphragm.

If needing repair, it is pretty simple with no parts to spring out and go hide, etc but just mostly a rubber gizmo. Here is one brand which is common inRV but you would need to look at your pump model number on the label (usually?). Item 5 on this drawing:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Shurflo-V...E&gclsrc=aw.ds

[Kitty]

Hi, many thanks for the suggestions.. so I think the pump is actually working by the sounds it's making. I found the little pull-up valve and released it but no water came through to sinks. i can't include photos here can I? It looks like the original Shurflo pump from 88/89. I'll try to see where the water pipe runs later today! It's a little tricky to get to.
For the batteries, I would like to have solar panel/s, is it possible to run solar panels from any deep cycle battery?

[creativepart]

Originally Posted by Kitty

i can't include photos here can I?

How to add photos to a post

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[Morich]

I need a memory update on a few things?
Does the tank and pump set somewhat on the same level, so that water in the tank would normally flow out and not actually have to be siphoned to get flow started to the pump? I think of it as being on the same platform, but wanted to check that.
If there has to be a siphon to get the pump to pull water UP, the pump is a self priming pump in most cases and should be up to doing that. But if there is an air leak letting air into the pump,like a cracked tubing, it will just keep pulling more air in and never get the water up to the pump.

Some other small thoughts, ideas?
Do you have pressure water and get the same nothing at the faucets as trying the pump? Do any of the faucets work or have you tried the stool? Any chance it is just the faucet aerators are stopped up after setting for a while? Assuming you are not frozen !!

If you can get to a hose to hook up and you don't have water coming out, like a drain open or a broken line, that might lead me to thinking the plumbinglines are good and then might be time to get the pump out to take a look at how it acts and if the diaphragm is totally bad.

On first look at one of these it may seem it is really bent up bad inside but is the way it works. There are 3 or 4 chambers in the daiphragm and it works somewhat like a heart does. The part that looks like it is crooked and moves funny, makes one chamber open and another close to make the water move through. Harder to explain but it squeezes and releases each in turn, either to pull or pull water?? That is why the pump seems to set there and vibrate more than a normal motor does, because it is built CROOKED!
But if you get a really old rubber, it may have almost totally blown out and will be easy to spot. One way to know that has happened is if you find bits of rubber collected at the faucet strainers!

If you can get to the right spot to read, there is usually a label on the pump to ID it. You don't have to know for a new pump as they are kind of generic and lots of RV use the same pump but if you want/need parts, then you will need to know thw brand and model. A good old boy at an RV parts shop may know that off the top of his head. --NOT ME!

This is a common one. Yours look like it?
https://www.rvpartscountry.com/Shurf...UaAjMlEALw_wcB

[DavidMorton]

One possibility is the strainer is filled up with gunk. Did you completely remove and clean it?. This is usually what happens with me, as soon as I clean that out it runs fine.

[Russ2018]

KITTY,
is it possible to disconnect outlet hose from pump , then turn pump on , this should tell you if pump is pumping or some other obstruction downline . just a suggestion . good luck!

[Kitty]

Hi! So an update on the water pump - It is Working! I thought the water tank was full but this was not the case! So the pump IS doing its job but now the issue is there's a leak under the sink between the two release valves, so I think I need some plumbing hose and connectors or new valve fittings. I'm assuming there's rubber stoppers that may have worn out as the Winnie is over 30 years old. Anyne know where to get replacement pipe/valves?

[Kitty]

Thanks Russ! My friend looked at it and helped me understand the plumbing!

[Kitty]

Ah thanks for that link I hope they have the plumbing parts i require!

[Morich]

Depending on what parts are needed, it is often cheaper/easier to get supplies from the local hardware type places as they are not RV specific.