How much oil goes in after repacking bearings on a little giant pump

[Jyetman]

I followed the directions as to this guy's link and he never says how much oil to refill the pump with. Can anyone help me out on this? I put 10 drops in total after reassembly is that enough?

[Jyetman]

How long should I test run this pump before putting it into operation? I took the propeller assembly out so to run it dry.

[uncleof6]

Line 1 of the service instructions reads:

"The motor's sleeve bearings should be lubricated every six month's with two to three drops of S.A.E. 20 weight non-detergent oil. The oil holes are located on top at each end of the motor."

Before that, up at the very top, the instructions read:

"RETAIN THESE INSTRUCTIONS FOR FUTURE REFERENCE."

To that end, here are the instructions:

http://www.plumbersurplus.com/pdf/08023.pdf

If the pump had been oiled regularly, the pump would most likely not have required any repairs. I have a 30 something year old pump that has been maintained, and the only repairs to it have been to replace the volute and impeller, and replacing the cord.

There are no internal parts of the motors, aside from the volute, impeller, ceramic shaft, etc. that should be serviced by the end user. That being the case, there is no official information published on how you should proceed now, to ensure the pump does not fail next week, or the week after. At the top of the instructions is the phone number with which you can reach Franklin Electric. It is my suggestion that you call them and ask them. :)

[Jyetman]

I been running this pump with the new packed bearings today for over 2.5 hours pushing water and 2 hours yesterday should this be enough testing? Though like all three it runs very hot to the touch. It runs smooth no clanking noises very quiet and I can still turn the shaft with little effort is it safe to say it can now be used on my system sometime in the future?
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/44432146/IMG_1253.JPG

[slief]

Little Giants run hot to the touch. That is very normal. I've used several 4MD's over the years and they were all that way. I still use a 4MDSC for my mixing pump and have a few in my storage as well.

I think you are good to go. These pumps are pretty much bullet proof with minimal maintenance. Your luck with them is likely due to a lack of maintenance from the previous owners.

[Jyetman]

Little Giants run hot to the touch. That is very normal. I've used several 4MD's over the years and they were all that way. I still use a 4MDSC for my mixing pump and have a few in my storage as well.

I think you are good to go. These pumps are pretty much bullet proof with minimal maintenance. Your luck with them is likely due to a lack of maintenance from the previous owners.

Thanks for the info feel little more secure about them now. One thing that is puzzling is the first pump I had running for nearly four years quit after shutting it off for maintenance. After it was replaced I fiddled with it for a months time and a total of 20 drops of oil it finally came back to life. When it spun up again for several seconds at full speed it suddenly spun down for a few seconds then spun back up at full speed hasn't done that again since. Have been run testing it for almost an hour now. It runs way hotter then the other two but the shaft spins easy with little effort. Does this sound like a problem is it safe to run?

[Jyetman]

After running it for over an hour I shut it off and the entire motor housing suddenly got way super hot even down by the fan area couldn't leave my hand on it. Its just pushing water in a bucket something doesn't seem right but it starts back up every time? Maybe I'll just use it for mixing up water not risking it.

[slief]

After running it for over an hour I shut it off and the entire motor housing suddenly got way super hot even down by the fan area couldn't leave my hand on it. Its just pushing water in a bucket something doesn't seem right but it starts back up every time? Maybe I'll just use it for mixing up water not risking it.

That doesn't sound good. My guess is all the years of abuse and lack of maintenance have caused an issue with the motor coils or something. They get hot but not burn your hands hot. As a mixing pump, you should be fine but I'd replace it if it's going to be used in your tank. I got away from using those pumps in my tank because of heat transfer. There are a lot of reliable pumps out there with less heat transfer which in my case, eliminated my dependancy on a chiller. Granted, I had a couple little giants, Iwaki's and Lim Wave Pond Pumps running on my system at once time. A switch to a couple Reeflo pumps cut my power usage by 80% and reduced my ambient temps by several degrees or more.

[Jyetman]

That doesn't sound good. My guess is all the years of abuse and lack of maintenance have caused an issue with the motor coils or something. They get hot but not burn your hands hot. As a mixing pump, you should be fine but I'd replace it if it's going to be used in your tank. I got away from using those pumps in my tank because of heat transfer. There are a lot of reliable pumps out there with less heat transfer which in my case, eliminated my dependancy on a chiller. Granted, I had a couple little giants, Iwaki's and Lim Wave Pond Pumps running on my system at once time. A switch to a couple Reeflo pumps cut my power usage by 80% and reduced my ambient temps by several degrees or more.

Yikes Reeflo pumps are double in price. Are they really worth that?

[uncleof6]

Yikes Reeflo pumps are double in price. Are they really worth that?

Call Franklin on Monday, and talk to them about the LG, they can get a bit warm, but even my TE-5 does not get hot enough that I have to take my hand off it. Yes Reeflos are worth the money, I run many of them. I think you will find that RLSS Wavelines are also worth the money, if one fits your needs.... They can be run external with the seal kit, and use less energy...

[slief]

Yikes Reeflo pumps are double in price. Are they really worth that?

That just depends on the size of your tank. For a big tank or in really high flow situations, I would say absolutely yes. I've run them for several years now and really like their output, noise level and efficiency. I've run a lot of big Iwaki's, Little Giants, Pond Type Pumps and the Reeflo's have compared very favorably for my application and saved me a fortune on power consumption. They are not perfect as some have had seal issues. While I have not had those issues myself, I keep a Spare Dart and a Spare Hammerhead that are all ready setup with unions in place for fast swaps. I also keep spare seals as well just in case I need to service a pump. Unlike the DC Pumps, the Reeflo's don't die and their motors don't need any mainenance like the Little Giant. Their Baldor motors are as good as they get. For you, the Reeflo's would probably be way overkill and on a smaller system, I would have no issues running a Little Giant or Iwaki if just for their reliability. For efficiency and even reliability, I would probably lean towards an Laguna Maxflo, ATB Flowstar or an Eheim 1262. All of which are pretty much silent, super efficient and extremely reliable with little to no heat transfer.

Call Franklin on Monday, and talk to them about the LG, they can get a bit warm, but even my TE-5 does not get hot enough that I have to take my hand off it. Yes Reeflos are worth the money, I run many of them. I think you will find that RLSS Wavelines are also worth the money, if one fits your needs.... They can be run external with the seal kit, and use less energy...

After all the rust issues, power supply and controller failures with the RLSS and the other DC pumps, you would really recommend them? Given the past and their history, I'd say that is kind of scary. The DC pumps are very quiet and very efficient but I wouldn't trust them enough to use them for a return pump. In fact, I personally wouldn't trust them enough to use them for anything on my system. All the DC pumps have a history of hard failures and when they fail (not if), they fail dead. Kaput. For some their quite and efficient nature may be worth the risk for I'd take reliability and track record any day over a little less noise or power savings.

[uncleof6]

Yep. Bean and I both run them. Bean did a review in 2012, and has not had problems with his, nor have I had problems with mine. If either of us had an issue with these pumps, you can bet it would be documented, posted, with "...8 x 10 colored glossy pictures with the circles and arrows..." (Alice's Restaurant, Arlo Guthrie, 1967.) :rollface::hammer:

Most of the problems with the Gen 2 controllers were due to end user error, blocking the cooling fan... that has been redesigned to eliminate the fan. RLSS replaced a good portion of the Gen I pumps with Gen 2 pumps; of the several hundred Gen I (I suspect he meant Gen 2) pumps sold, they have only had to send out parts for a dozen or so pumps. Most of that was due to the controller. Good company, with good support. (Why I recommend RLSS, not Jebao.)

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=23236206&postcount=311

Any pump, of any brand, can fail at any time. 1 year old, 2 years old, 30 years old, 1 day old. I have back up pumps, does anyone else? I even have backups for my Reeflos. I have more pumps running than most, so it is not cheap to have backups.

I don't write reviews and neither does Bean, however, Bean wrote a review for the RLSS DC-5000 in 2012.

http://www.beananimal.com/other/waveline-dc5000-variable-speed-dc-pump.aspx

[zachfishman]

Yikes Reeflo pumps are double in price. Are they really worth that?

Not anymore IMO. They were an excellent brand in the past, but of the 4 pumps I've installed recently (2 tiger sharks, 2 hammerheads), two of them needed replacement within a year (bearing replacement). One of them required replacement twice in two years!