Bubble King 160 about 2 years old

[jasonssandiego]

I'll admit I did let my tank go to hell and I'm trying to get it going again after a year now. I cleaned everything up and it's a 90 gallon with a 30 gallon sump. Now I cleaned everything and for some reason my bubble King will shut off if I put the collector cup on. Could there be a breathing issue going on? Thanks for your time in this matter.

[slief]

Originally Posted by jasonssandiego

I'll admit I did let my tank go to hell and I'm trying to get it going again after a year now. I cleaned everything up and it's a 90 gallon with a 30 gallon sump. Now I cleaned everything and for some reason my bubble King will shut off if I put the collector cup on. Could there be a breathing issue going on? Thanks for your time in this matter.

Royal Exclusiv now has a dedicated forum here. You can access that through my signature. Not sure why the skimmer shuts off when you put the collection cup on but I am sure we can figure it out easily. When you say it shuts off, does the pump completely shut off or is it just the airflow that stops?

If the pump is actually shutting off, here is what I would check. Dissasemble the pump. Remove the impeller. There is a bearing that sits in the bottom of the impeller magnet cavity that is held in place with an o-ring. Remove that and make sure it spins on the back of the magnet shaft smoothly. If when you remove the impeller, that bearing is attached to your impeller shaft at the base of the magnet, that is your issue. When the pumps sit with salt water in them and or when they aren't cleaned properly inside and out with vinegar, the bearing will bind itself to the impeller shaft which causes the motor to overload and go into thermal protection mode. If the motor, impeller and bearing aren't maintained properly, this can lead to premature failure of the motor block so it's something you do want to pay attention to by doing routine maintenance. I will also point out that if the bearing isn't installed into the block properly and it's not seated into the groove that the 0-ring is captured in, it could sit in their at a slight angle which will cause it to bind on the shaft. This too can cause it go into thermal protection/shut down mode. As such, pay close attention to the bearing when you put it back in making sure to get it installed correctly.

Page 7 of this manual covers the bearing I am talking about.
http://royalexclusiv.net/images/cont...enance_eng.pdf

If the pump is still flowing water but not air, I would remove the pump, dissasemble it and check for salt creep in the venturi/air inlet on the pumps volute. Any obstructions in the air inlet port will restrict the airflow but this typically results in the skimmer overflowing.

[slief]

One other thing I would inspect when you take the pump apart is the magnet. Make sure it's not swollen and make sure it doesn't spin on the shaft. The magnet should be bonded to the shaft. Both swollen magnets and magnets that spin on the shaft are rare. I'd lean towards calcification as the root cause. Make sure the inside of the pump is clean and calcium and other deposit free. If you didn't clean the pump inside and out with vinegar and give it a thorough cleaning inside and out, I would suggest doing so as that could also be part of your issue.

[jasonssandiego]

Thanks I'll look into the bearing. I was always worried about messing with that. I'll clean it tonight thanks for your time

[slief]

Originally Posted by jasonssandiego

Thanks I'll look into the bearing. I was always worried about messing with that. I'll clean it tonight thanks for your time

Glad to help. Make sure you clean the inside of the pump and impeller thoroughly in a vinegar bath if you haven't already done so. I will keep an eye out for your update.

[jasonssandiego]

Yes it looks like the bearing did bind with the shaft. I am unable to get it out and yes the motor was failing. I have it in a vinegar bath right now. Any tips on taking it out? Thanks for all your help.

[slief]

Originally Posted by jasonssandiego

Yes it looks like the bearing did bind with the shaft. I am unable to get it out and yes the motor was failing. I have it in a vinegar bath right now. Any tips on taking it out? Thanks for all your help.

Figured as much.. Now at least we are getting somewhere. Hopefully the motor isn't toast. I assume you pulled the impeller out and the bearing was stuck to the bottom of the impeller?

Heating the vinegar up will help speed up it's effect. I would put some vinegar in a pot and heat up up. Not to the point where it's boiling or even scalding but instead to the point where it's uncomfortably hot. Then soak the impeller in it (not the whole pump). Like I said, you don't need it boiling but heat it up to the point that you aren't burning yourself badly when you put you finger in it. Then let the impeller soak in it for a couple hours. If you have an old heavy disposable fork, bend one of the prongs out of the way. Then slip the fork over the shaft between the gap between the bearing and magnet and see if you carefully can pry the bearing off the shaft. The bearing should seperate from the shaft with minimal effort using the fork to apply force. If the fork doesn't work, you can find a socket that is just larger than then the shaft diameter. Place the impeller upside down with the needle wheel on the carpet. Then place the socket on the back of the bearing with it aligned over the shaft so the shaft can go into the socket. Take a butter knife and gently smack the top of the socket with the handle of the knife. The idea isn't to apply much force onto the bearing. Instead the sharp shock from the knife hitting it should free the calcification enough to pop the bearing off. The socket will prevent damage to the bearing. Doing it on the carpet should prevent damage to the needle wheel.

Once you get the bearing separated, use a scotch Brite type of pad to clean any calcification of the end of the shaft. If that doesn't remove it all, soak it a bit more in vinegar and repeat. If you have to resort to steel wool, you can use that but be careful not to remove any of the coating on the shaft. Also, once the bearing is removed, soak it as well in vinegar and then use a something like a wood tooth pick to clean inside the little hole. When you are done, it's very important that the bearing spin smoothly on the shaft.

Let me know how it goes. I will be keeping an eye out for your response.

[jasonssandiego]

I wrote that wrong the shaft came out but the bearing did not want to come out. I was able to get it with a bent metal stick. There was a little build up, but it's going smoothly with the shaft. Could it be that the build up caused friction with the shaft over time? Trying to figure it out and it was not that dirty.

[slief]

Originally Posted by jasonssandiego

I wrote that wrong the shaft came out but the bearing did not want to come out. I was able to get it with a bent metal stick. There was a little build up, but it's going smoothly with the shaft. Could it be that the build up caused friction with the shaft over time? Trying to figure it out and it was not that dirty.

OK.. So you did get it out and it wasn't stuck to the shaft? Give it a thorough cleaning and make sure the shaft and the bearing orifphis are clean. The bearing doesn't spin in the block. It's there to support the base of the impeller and the end of the impeller needs to spin smoothly in the bearing. It could be that there was some calcification that caused resistance on the shaft. That is the number one reason for these blocks failing prematurely. Lack of improper maintenance is a pump killer. Be careful to get the bearing installed into the block correctly. You can use some silicone grease or even water to help it go into the place. There is a little groove down in the cavity that the o-ring seats into. It needs to be aligned properly which should be pretty straight forward. When I had a Red Dragon 1 powered skimmer, I used a piece of PVC pipe to pop the bearing into place. The ID of the pipe needs to be smaller than the OD of the bearing. It makes for a great tool to insert the bearings. The instruction manual also covers installing the bearing. Also, as mentioned before, inspect the magnet for swelling and make sure the magnet isn't spinning on the shaft.

[jasonssandiego]

Thanks that's good to know. I got it cleaned and back in running status. I noticed that it's still going to engine protection cut off.

[slief]

Originally Posted by jasonssandiego

Thanks that's good to know. I got it cleaned and back in running status. I noticed that it's still going to engine protection cut off.

That's not good. I'm guess that the block has gone bad. I will send you a PM.

[jasonssandiego]

It stopped a couple times like a burp then just quit all together. The pump is clean with no deposits and in getting to the end of my rope with this thing. This is the 4th bath in the past 5 days.

[jasonssandiego]

Thanks for your help

[slief]

Originally Posted by jasonssandiego

Thanks for your help

Glad to help. Like I said, I am guessing you just need a new block. From what I can tell, it looks like you got this early to mid 2010? We have the replacement blocks in stock in Ft. Myers. While Germany is closed for the holidays as are we, I can see to it that we get one out to you this week if you decide to order one. I sent you a PM and we can figure out what you want to do.

[rburns24]

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Bubble King got a bonus when they hired you, Scott .
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