The pump repairs are completed! Now the pump needs to be tested. This presentation discusses the procedures for the basic tests that can be performed on pumps that have been repaired in the service center.

Final testing of pumps can include:

• Operational tests
• Seal leakage test
• Motor chamber leakage test (submersibles)
• Casing pressure test

While some of these tests are not difficult to perform, knowing the methods and limits will help service centers to confidently deliver quality pump repairs.

The repair of the various types of pumps represents an important segment of the service center repair market. Electric motors and pumps are the two most widely used industrial machine components.

Although there are two principle pump types (dynamic and positive displacement), this manual focuses on dynamic pumps and the fundamentals of dynamic pump repair. The information it contains will be helpful to both novice and experienced pump repair technicians, to supervisors and managers of pump repair operations, and to customer service and sales personnel who communicate with customers about pump repair issues.

Section 2 covers repair concerns and techniques common to most pumps, while the following sections focus on specific pump types and the unique concerns associated with repairing them. These sections include submersible pumps, vertical turbine pumps, end suction pumps and split case pumps. Where appropriate, these sections may reference the general repair information in Section 2.

Table of Contents- (Download the complete Table of Contents)

1. Nomenclature
2. General Pump Repair Procedures
3. Submersible Pumps
4. Vertical Turbine Pumps
5. End Suction Radial Split Pumps
6. Axial Split-Case Pumps
7. Seals
8. Pump Reliability
9. Glossary and Standards Organizations

Gene Vogel
EASA Pump & Vibration Specialist

Service centers that provide field service for equipment removal and installation have little trouble handling most common horizontal pumps. However, vertical turbine pumps (and similarly mounted vertical pumps) present some additional challenges. Vertical pumps of this style use the discharge column to suspend the pump below grade from a grade mounted discharge casing. The casing provides the support for the pump, the pedestal for the vertical drive motor, and a 90 degree discharge elbow. The discharge elbow may be above or below grade.

The initial challenge for pump removal is presented by the length of the pump. Short set pumps range to about 50 ft. (15 meters) in overall length, minus the drive motor. Deep set pumps can extend hundreds of feet (or meters) into a well or sump. The designation as short set or deep set is somewhat arbitrary, depending on the working height of the available crane to lift the machine. A short set pump could be handled as a single piece (again, less the motor). But if the length of the pump exceeds the working height of the crane, then field disassembly is necessary – usually referred to as a deep set pump.

Topics covered include:

• Documenting the condition of the machine
• Overhead clearances
• Reinstalling the pump
• Tests

Doug Moore
Kentucky Service Co., Inc.

Many EASA members perform service on pumps of some type and have had the customer return the pump or call back to say it leaks or it still will not pump. We solved this by making a very inexpensive test center for all types of pumps: flooded suction, immersion lube, submersible, centrifugal, deep well and many others.

Gene Vogel
EASA Pump & Vibration Specialist
and
Walter Barringer
Mobius Institute, Knoxville, TN

Temperature is hot or cold, pressure may be high or low and a tank may be full or empty. But vibration cannot be adequately described by a single parameter. Vibration is composed of amplitude, frequency and phase. Overall amplitude may be used as a simplistic indicator of machinery condition; much like a noise could be described as loud or soft, even though there is a big difference between the scream of a siren and the roar of a train. And so it is with vibration.

The siren sounds different than the train because they are different frequencies. In the same way, the vibration from a failing rolling element bearing can be distinguished from coupling misalignment. This combination of vibration amplitude and frequency is the most common and useful vibration data for determining machinery condition, and analyzing machinery vibration problems. The phase angle of the vibration plays an important role in dynamic balancing and advanced analysis. The analysis of vibration amplitude and frequency as represented in the vibration spectrum, is the topic of this paper.

This paper covers how to get the vibration spectrum and what it means, including:

• Wave form
• Displacement
• Velocity
• Demodulation

8 presentations

$40 for EASA members

 

A special discounted collection of 8 webinar recordings focusing on various aspects of pump repair.

Once purchased, all 8 recordings will be available on your "Downloadable products purchased" page in your online account.

Downloadable recordings in this bundle include:

Troubleshooting Pump Performance Problems
Presented May 2017

This presentation covers:

• Not enough pressure (head) or not enough flow – how do you respond?
• How to determine if a pump is operating properly
• Differentiating a pump problem from a system problem
• Determining pump load and power requirements
• The effect of fluid parameters and cavitation on pump performance. 

Target audience: This will be most useful for service center technicians and engineers. The content will also be beneficial for supervisors and managers who are responsible for pump failure analysis and testing. 

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Pump Failure Case Study
Presented December 2013

This presentation covers:

• Brief overview of disassembly and evidence of failure
• Discussion of possible failure scenarios
• Review of actual repairs, modification and reassembly
• Update of machine's present operation

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Repair Tips for Submersible Pumps
Presented February 2013

This presentation focuses on:

• Types of submersible pumps
• Tips on seal arrangements
• Common repair procedures
• Cables and cable entries
• Testing submersibles in the service center

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Assessing Impeller Damage
Presented May 2019

The impeller is generally the most difficult pump component to repair and the most expensive to replace. This session will look at case histories of failed pumps and the steps to determine the cause of failure. Topics covered include:

• Erosion, corrosion, cavitation or wear: What happened to this impeller?
• How to spot the tell-tale signs
• What operational conditions led to impeller damage

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Repairing Impeller Damage
Presented May 2016

We’ve covered how to assess impeller damage. Now learn how to fix that damage. This presentation covers: 

• Replacing/repairing wear rings
• Repairing cavitation damage
• Impeller replacement options
• Dynamic balancing impellers

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Techniques for Straightening Pump Shafts
Presented March 2011

The slender dimensions of many pump shafts make them susceptible to distortion, which affects pump performance and reliability. This recording presents a methodical approach and effective techniques for measuring and correcting shafts which are bent or twisted.

Target audience: This presentation is intended for service center supervisors, managers and machine shop technicians.

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Vertical Turbine Pump Repair Tips
Presented February 2012

Vertical turbine pumps are used extensively in every segment of industry. Although they are not complex, repairing them in the service center can present a few challenges. This presentation gives some approaches and procedures that experience has shown will make the job easier.

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Final Testing for Pumps - An Overview
Presented November 2014

The pump repairs are completed! Now the pump needs to be tested. This presentation discusses the procedures for the basic tests that can be performed on pumps that have been repaired in the service center.

Final testing of pumps can include:

• Operational tests
• Seal leakage test
• Motor chamber leakage test (submersibles)
• Casing pressure test

While some of these tests are not difficult to perform, knowing the methods and limits will help service centers to confidently deliver quality pump repairs.

This presentation focuses on:

• Types of submersible pumps
• Tips on seal arrangements
• Common repair procedures
• Cables and cable entries
• Testing submersibles in the service center

By Gene Vogel
EASA Pump & Vibration Specialist

High vibration is a common problem for motors that are installed on top of vertical pumps. Its source can be a mechanical issue with the pump, motor or coupling or even hydraulic forces from the pump. Structural issues involving “reed frequency” resonance often amplify the problem, but effective diagnosis must begin with an understanding of the underlying vibratory forces. Although the general vertical pump category includes submersibles, this article focuses solely on the ones that most commonly exhibit high-vibration conditions: surface-mounted pumps with the motor bolted to a pedestal on top.

Topics covered in this article include:

• Mass unbalance
• Coupling type and alignment
• Mechanical action of pump shaft & impeller
• Hydraulic action of fluid
• Resonant frequencies
• Basic frequency analysis
• Trim balancing
• Other possibilities
• Vertical pump troubleshooting checklist

READ THE ARTICLE

This presentation covers:

• Head & flow = volts & amps for pumps
• Testing pumps to their performance curves
• Troubleshooting pump performance
• What the pump curve tells you about cavitation 

This presentation covers:

• Not enough pressure (head) or not enough flow – how do you respond?
• How to determine if a pump is operating properly
• Differentiating a pump problem from a system problem
• Determining pump load and power requirements
• The effect of fluid parameters and cavitation on pump performance. 

Target audience: This will be most useful for service center technicians and engineers. The content will also be beneficial for supervisors and managers who are responsible for pump failure analysis and testing.