What's wrong with my Rio Powerhead??

brvheart · 08/01/2013, 07:19 PM

Well, I'm one of the lucky ones who just hasn't really had pumps fail me over the years. In other words, I don't know how to troubleshoot this.

My Rio HyperFlow 10 HF has been rattling for the last day. It used to only rattle when I turned it on or off. Now it's constant. I took it apart, inspected it, and cleaned it up a bit (looked good and wasn't too dirty) and it's still doing the same thing.

One thing I've noticed while playing with it in a bucket of water: If I lift the intake up just out of the water to the point where it starts sucking air, it knocks the impeller inline and functions perfectly after that. But if I turn it off then back on again fully submersed, back to the rattling. I can repeat this as many times as I want. Same results.

Does anybody have any suggestions??

I'm planning a vinegar soak and another cleaning I guess. What else can I do?
Thanks. And here's the model in question:

08/01/2013, 07:19 PM	#1
brvheart Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Boise, ID Posts: 524	What's wrong with my Rio Powerhead?? Well, I'm one of the lucky ones who just hasn't really had pumps fail me over the years. In other words, I don't know how to troubleshoot this. My Rio HyperFlow 10 HF has been rattling for the last day. It used to only rattle when I turned it on or off. Now it's constant. I took it apart, inspected it, and cleaned it up a bit (looked good and wasn't too dirty) and it's still doing the same thing. One thing I've noticed while playing with it in a bucket of water: If I lift the intake up just out of the water to the point where it starts sucking air, it knocks the impeller inline and functions perfectly after that. But if I turn it off then back on again fully submersed, back to the rattling. I can repeat this as many times as I want. Same results. Does anybody have any suggestions?? I'm planning a vinegar soak and another cleaning I guess. What else can I do? Thanks. And here's the model in question: