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Shoutout to the guy who showed me his dredge pump wear plates after 200 hours
I used to run my pump till it started losing pressure, then swap parts. Saw a guy at the yard in Mobile with plates that had maybe 1/8 inch left on them after 200 hours, but his discharge was still strong. He showed me how he checks gap every week with a feeler gauge and rotates the plates at 100 hours. That little habit kept his pump running clean twice as long as mine. Has anyone else found a simple maintenance check that pays off way more than you'd think?
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scott.jana1mo ago
Oh man, that's such a good point. I had a buddy who ran a little irrigation pump for his farm, and he never once checked the impeller or any of that stuff. Just ran it until it sounded funny and then wondered why it died every single season. He finally let me take a look at it and the wear ring was basically gone, like smooth metal on metal. After he started checking it every couple weeks and keeping a log, that same pump made it three years before he had to touch it. It's wild how just a few minutes of attention can save you all that downtime and money.
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davis.ruby1mo agoTop Commenter
Ran it until it sounded funny" - that's exactly how most people treat everything until it's too late. It's not just pumps and trucks though, think about how many people treat their homes the same way. They ignore a leaky faucet until the cabinet underneath is rotted, or skip cleaning the gutters until water's pouring into the basement. I've got a buddy who does HVAC and he says 90% of his calls in summer are people who didn't change their filter for two years. A $5 part turns into a $2000 coil replacement real quick. It's like we're all just waiting for the expensive lesson to teach us what regular maintenance costs.
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See the same thing with engine oil. People wait for the light to come on before they check it. By then it's already too late. Little things like that add up across everything you own. I've got a neighbor who replaces his air filter every spring like clockwork on his truck. His 2005 truck runs better than most 2015 trucks around here. The difference between wearing stuff out early and getting the full life out of it is just paying attention on a regular schedule.
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