My lift pump quit last night and I was wondering how many hours are normal before failure. My engine is a M35B with 300 hours and the Universal pump P/N is 039275 (Facet P/N 40185).
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Bob Wilson
S/V Morning Breeze
2003 Catalina 36, Hull 2122
York River Yacht Club
Williamsburg, VA
Bob
I don't think hours are the problem. It's how hard the pump is working. I have read that using a 2 micron filter on your primary is the biggest killer. Also having a plugged up filter can make the pump work much harder. I think Mainsail has a write up about this? I did find one about changing the filter on the pump. I use a vacuum gage on my boat to tell me how hard the pump is working. If I see the vacuum go up I change the filter
http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/facet_fuel_pump_filter
Chuck Lennox
97 MKii Ventura Ca
Island Girl Hull #1611
The primary filter is a 30 micron Racor filter. The pump itself is the cube style pump and mounts to the top of the engine on the back side. I was wondering if a Gold-flo style mount on the bulkhead might be a better configuration.
Bob Wilson
S/V Morning Breeze
2003 Catalina 36, Hull 2122
York River Yacht Club
Williamsburg, VA
I would think one of the things that would determine the life of a fuel pump is the cleanliness of the fuel. I just changed my Fuel pump with over 1,800 hours on it because the gasket at the bottom was leaking. I could have just replaced the gasket, but after over 1,800 hrs I figured it was due for a change anyway so I purchased a new one at NAPA Auto parts. Part number 6101076. The fuel system has a 2 micron Racor primary and a 10 micron at the engine. I change the filters every 200 hours. I know this sounds like over kill with a 2 micron Racor, but this is the way it was when I bought the boat in 2003 and it has been working for me so this is the way I replaced the filters and pump. I buy almost all my fuel at our Yacht Club which treats the fuel with Biobor and a good filter system.
__/)__/)__/)__Capt Mike__/)__/)__/)__
Punta Gorda Florida
1990 Std WK M35 Hull #1050
I replaced the pump last year at about 1750 hours. It had been run with a 2 micron primary and 10 micron on the engine filter. This year I replaced the Racor with a 200 series since the bowl and other plastic parts were looking tired. Went with a 30 micron rating this time. Also used the Napa pump Mike mentions above.
Gary Smith
93 MK I, Hull #1231
Std rig; wing keel
M35A Oberdorfer conversion
My engine is a M35B and they come the cube style fuel pump mounted on the backside of the engine. I have owned the boat for the past 2 seasons and I believe that the pump has been replaced before. That is why I’m wondering about what the service life of the cube style fuel pumps is.
Bob Wilson
S/V Morning Breeze
2003 Catalina 36, Hull 2122
York River Yacht Club
Williamsburg, VA
David S. Power
Two If By Sea #1687
Burnt Store Marina
Punta Gorda, FL
Seems the pump itself wasn’t the issue. I started changing it out yesterday and after removing the zip-ties and hoses I noticed that the red positive lead wasn’t was hanging loose and missing the connector that attached it to the wiring harness. Seems the wire had broken where it entered the connector and the zip-tie used to bundle the wires was holding the wire in place. I put on a new connector and the pump is working fine.
Bob Wilson
S/V Morning Breeze
2003 Catalina 36, Hull 2122
York River Yacht Club
Williamsburg, VA
I installed a second fuel pump which I use to bleed the system from the engine room and which can be used if the engine mounted lift fails. The bypass and pump was an easy and inexpensive install. Al
Al Fricke
S/V Jubilee San Francisco Bay
Catalina 36' MkII #1867
Universal 35-B