What's that noise? Is it normal?

[TaftCoach]

It seems that a good topic for noobies like myself are the noises in a rv. I'll start.

DW and I were surprised at the loudness and vibrations of the water pump in our new TT. It was a not so subtle announcement that someone was awake in the middle of the night and had flushed and washed their hands. I got home, searched the forums and proudly announced it was normal and added a few items to my to do list to quiet it down. Then DW asked, well is there a point when the noise means there is a problem?

That I did not find an easy answer to. What are the normal and abnormal sounds a water pump makes?

[Grumpy]

They make a pump silencing kit. Problem is lines are rigid and connected directly to pump.

Pump Silencing Kit | RV Products

[North of 49°]

Some people have had a little success in wrapping the lines to and from the pump with foam pipe insulation, the cheap stuff you can get at the home store. They also mount the pump on a "vibration pad" (aka 99 cent mouse pad). These help to mitigate some of the vibration noises.

FWIW, I don't mind if I hear the pump. If the pump is running for no good reason, then that tells me there's a leak somewhere. But I do agree that excessive noise can be annoying.

[Danno]

Adding a small accumulator would be a good idea to reduce pump cycle frequency, and wouldn't wake up the whole trailer if someone uses the toilet. I guess it may be an issue when it comes to winterizing because it may be a bit more difficult to flush out.

[Crabman]

My solution.


Before

This is a pic of my waterpump before I did the silencing mod. It is mounted directly to the wall that separates the kitchen from the front bedroom and is located under the sink. It vibrated through the wall, short cycled and was VERY LOUD. Even sitting at my friends campsite 50 feet away it sounded like a mini jack hammer or saw when DW rinsed dishes, etc.




After
I glued together the foam and luan plywood and mounted it to the floor. I went with the small accumulator tank instead of the large one to save space and mounted it beside the pump. The small tank is a big help in reducing short cycling, but of course not as good as the 2 gallon tank. I also installed the flex lines on the pump and wrapped foam around pex pipe on the pressure side that contacts the floor or bulkheads. Much quieter! But not so quiet that I can`t hear it at all to detect a leak.

[TaftCoach]

Thank you

[JEFF1963]

TaftC - as one grows older, those noises will subside - A LOT! It's encouraging to learn you can still hear those things. Most of us will try to live vicariously through you.

[RPreeb]

Originally Posted by JEFF1963

TaftC - as one grows older, those noises will subside - A LOT! It's encouraging to learn you can still hear those things. Most of us will try to live vicariously through you.

LOL - Everything gets quieter for me at night when I take out my hearing aids. It's sometimes an issue for my wife, who I am certain has rabbit somewhere in her genetic heritage.

[Sundancer330]

The best way I found to cut down on the noise is get rid of the cheap diaphragm pump and add a Jabsco marine water pump with an impeller. Also Jayco installs the pump wrong by connecting the rigid PEX line to the pump transferring the vibrations everywhere, it is spelled out in the install guide to use flexible lines, not rigid. The small accumulator tank helps but it doesn't hold much water so the pump still cycles often, always in the middle of the night.

[TaftCoach]

Thank you