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An old timer in Galveston showed me his trick for checking pump wear
We were working on a harbor cleanup job about five years back, and our suction was dropping off. This guy, Frank, who'd been running dredges since the 70s, came over and didn't even look at the gauges. He just put his hand flat on the pump casing and said, 'Listen with your fingers, kid. The hum tells you more than the screen.' He was right. I felt a new, rough vibration. We pulled it and found the impeller was starting to cavitate on one side. Anyone else have a simple, hands-on check they swear by?
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hunt.rowan2mo ago
Oh man, that's some real old-school wisdom right there.
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taylor9292mo ago
Sometimes that old wisdom just holds people back from new ideas.
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jennifer_west1mo ago
A buddy of mine works on tugboats and he always taps the fuel lines with a wrench before starting a cold engine. He says the pitch of the knock tells him if there's water or air in the system, saved him from a bad injector once. Frank's trick with the pump casing is exactly the kind of feel thing you just can't get from a sensor.
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