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My fathers irrigation pump has lost its prime and all the tricks I know have failed. Its a above ground "jet" stlye pump. with a backflow valve on it. the pump draws cold air (should be from underground as its warm out.) but it dosent draw water. I tried again today and noticed that 2 of the "ears" on the motor are cracked. both on the same side of the pup motor

My thoughts are that:

A0 the cracked motor case is somhow letting the motor flex and allowing the pump body to draw air from the motor side(dosn't explain the cold air as the motor does get warm)

B) the well spike has failed someplace above the gorund water level allowing it to draw air down the well caseing and up into the pump (I don't have the room inside his pump shed to pull the spike)

C) the ground water level has dropped below the spike......dad assures me this os not the case but I'm not sure he says its down 18 feet and I'm fairly sure at his place ground water can be found @7-11 feet

anybody have any thoughts/tips/tricks

Does it have a foot valve or just a check at the pump?

it has a manual valve (only gets closed it the winter when the pumps off the well) at the top of the well spike below the elbow that turns in to the pump and it has a check valve in the pump inlet

I hoped it had a foot valve and you could fill the pipe with a hose, but that is not going to help.

You might need to build a tool. A vacuum primer is easy to build.
If you have an old Fuel water separator around you can use that. Just adapt it down to some smaller hoses. If not you can build one from a mason jar. Two holes in the top with fittings for 3/8" hose. Inlet hose goes to the bottom of the jar. This is the inlet from the pump. (You will have to add a 3/8" fitting and valve to attach to, but it will be handy to have in the future.) The other at the lid. This you attach to the brake booster hose on your truck. this is the outlet.
The vacuum from your intake manifold pulls vacuum raising water from the pump. Watch the jar. When it starts to fill with water kink the hose and disconnect it. You don't want to suck water into your engine.

This sort of vacuum pump primer will prime a big 10" pipe and pump pretty quickly.

Hopefully you get the idea I am trying to relay. This is a great way to pull a prime quickly and easily. If that doesn't pull water, there is something else wrong.

If it keeps losing it. You have leaks to fix.

I'm picturing the catch can/jar thats part of most of the power/preassure bleed brake fluid systems.


where the vac system has a "catch can" so it dosn't just draw H2O into the manifold.........i coudn't explain my way out of a papersac...I'm going to bed

That's it. Just a bigger version of the hand bleeder pump used for brake bleeding. The hose for the power brake booster does all the pulling in this case.

Great tool. I have put together a couple for local farmers. There is a hand priming pump. I am sure you have seen one. It has a handle like the old hand fuel pumps that works a diaphragm up and down to pull the prime. Those work Ok. The engine powered vacuum works lots better.