rgano
Guru
- Joined
- Oct 8, 2007
- Messages
- 4,995
- Location
- USA
- Vessel Name
- FROLIC
- Vessel Make
- Mainship 30 Pilot II since 2015. GB-42 1986-2015. Former Unlimited Tonnage Master
I have finally had it with the flexible impeller used in the X-Chang-R oil change system. I have put up with the fragile impellers for over a quarter of a century, having to clean out the broken up pieces of "nitrile" or whatever other marvelous plastic they make them from at least every other oil change. I recently took the advice of my local marine parts supplier, a fellow I have know to be in the marine maintenance game for at least thirty years, and ran soapy water through the pump after the last oil change to prevent the impeller's early demise. Yesterday I tried to run the oil out of the main engine and found the pump stuck. I ran through a couple of fuses before I finally broke it free, but it was obvious from the lack of pumping action that the impeller was shredded. Rather than continuing to throw 35-dollar impellers at this thing, I have taken steps to use the good advice I got here sometime back about installing a gear pump. I had initially rejected the idea based on the perception I had of the cost, but after a conversation with Depco Pump's expert, I have a 0.8 GPM Marco model M164-220-12 gear pump on order to replace the X-Chang-R impeller pump. It looks to be about the same size as the original pump and thus will not add bulk to my small engine compartment. Based on the fact that I was about to buy two 35-dollar impellers for the OEM pump in order to have a spare on hand for the inevitable impeller breakdown, I am saving about 40% of the cost of the Marco and a lot of effort to change the sort of inaccessible impeller every year or so for a permanent fix to this mess.