Faulty shower pump

[Chris]

I have a shower pump that has packed up and I'm trying to fix it (before I get too smelly..).

It's a Stewart Turner Showermate 1.2 bar single and I've traced the problem to the fact that when the reed switch is activated only the starter coil of the motor operates, so the impeller only rotates very slowly. I've metered both motor coils, starter and main and each has a sensible resistance (between 50 and 100 ohms), so I don't think they're burned out. I'm a bit lost for ideas now.. The manual is at:

it doesn't give many clues really. Anyone an expert on these..? Ta

[Bob Minchin]

Is the capacitor ok?

Bob

[Chris]

I think so - don't really have the means to test it properly but metering its resistance it steadily rises, after which measuring DC volts across it shows 2.5 V declining towards zero, so it seems to be acting as a capacitor should.

[Andy Hall]

Yes. Stuart Turner are.

Give their service department in Henley a call.

I've found them excellent. I had a problem with the relay board in my ST pump after a few years of operation.

I called them up and described the problem. I could have sent the pump in for repair but they are only about 20mins drive from me so I went over there instead.

By the time I got there, they had the part organised from their stores complete with a sheet of fitting instructions. The guy even explained what to check and suggested that in a 7 year old pump it's probably an idea to replace the O rings and seals. At a cost of a couple of pounds for these, it was sensible to do this while the unit was out for repair.

This is what good service is all about.

[Chris]

Thanks Andy, I can try that if I haven't nailed this by Monday. By then however I could be distinctly whiffy...

I share your faith in the integrity of the ST brand, which is one of the reasons I'm trying to repair this pump as I think that probably replacing one dodgy part will allow the rest of the unit to go on for a long while. On a less well made unit I'd probably bin it.

[Andrew Gabriel]

Connect the capacitor in series with a 100W filament lamp. The lamp should come on at half brightness. Full brighness or nothing indicates failure of the capacitor. What value is the capacitor?

[Chris]

Will try that - it's a 4 micro farad cap. Ta