[AL]

Does it pump and then not shut off, or won’t pump anything? If you have verified that the inlet is open and you have water in the tank, then it sounds like an electrical issue. Could be a sensor or board internal to the unit. I had a similar issue with mine last year and they replaced it and gave me a discount since my original one fell into a certain time period where they had some problems.

They are pretty good at diagnosing problems over the phone, and will ship overnight if you want to pay for that.

[Andy]

Hi Mark, Yes it pumps water but just won’t turn off for a long time like 10 minutes or so. I can recycle it at the breaker and it will run again so I’m ok for now. It’s not running hot and there’s plenty of water getting to it. I’ll give Headhunter a call on Monday. Do you know if there is a contact number or someone at Headhunter that I should get a hold of directly?

Thanks for your reply and help.

Fred

[Gerald]

Mine was doing something very similar recently. The pump would not shut off. When it first came on the light would come on indicating it was running. After pressure was built up the light would go off and the pump should have shut off but it didnt. Headhunter, and others told me it was probably an internal pressure switch malfunction. I ordered a new pump, almost $1200 (they will credit you back for half the cost if you have a sticker with serial number on it from your current pump that you can send them). By the time I got the new pump, my other one started working just fine. Still have the new one in the box. I think Jeff Rowe is going to buy it from me the next time I stop by there.

[Fred]

Fred,

Try this… Kill the power to the pump, then open every faucet on the bus wide open. Then turn the pump back on and let it run for 2 -3 minutes. Then start turning off faucets and see if it finally shut off. That’s the procedure Headhunter told me to do that removes any air that may be in the system and it works. If that doesn’t help, like others have said, you can get a new pump for about half the price. Headhunter

PS – Tell Dave you use the Truckstop shower:)

[Dick]

Thanks for the tip Tom! I’ll try that and see what happens.

[Andy]

Isn’t the mach 5 the model that needs the external accumulator tank? I may be confused.

[Archived]

Yep, the Mach 5 does not have an internal.

[Corey]

OK then!

FRED: If I understand your original post, you do not have an external accumulator tank. The Mach 5 does not have a built-in accumulator tank and will overheat in many applications without one.

[Andre]

A lack of some form of accumulator tank makes the pump an on demand pump. The minute you crack a faucet the pump turns on, and the minute you close the faucet the pump turns off.

You need an accumulator tank for two very important reasons. The first is the tank tends to level the water flow so you deliver water where needed instantly and there is no lag while the pump kicks on. The accumulator holds a gallon or two under air pressure so you can draw a little water before the pump kicks on. The pump runs as long as necessary to recharge the accumulator tank. As Joel points out if you treat the pump as an on-demand it is hard on the pump because you are not cycling based on a pneumatic bladder which absorbs pressure gradually, but based on trying to compress water which is not going to happen. The pump will kick on and almost immediately after the faucet or valve closes the hydraulic pressure in the system ramps up instantly and hits the pump and pressure switch with an uncushioned bang.

But the most important reason is it absorbs the expansion of water due to heating in the HW tank. Water grows when it gets hot. If there is no air cushion in the system like you get with an accumulator tank the volume of water expands to exceed the system volume and the HW tank safety relief valve pops open. Do that enough and the valve which was never intended to cycle on and off becomes a leaker.

Even the smallest of expansion or accumulator tanks will benefit the system. The bigger the expansion tank the longer the pump will run but the longer water will flow before the pump kicks on.

[Archived]

I have a call into Headhunter hopefully
they can figure it out. This pump has never had an accumulator tank connected
with it and it was working fine for years. I did try what Tom suggested but
it still stays on as I originally posted. I don’t think that there’s any air in
the lines. I think it may be an internal issue because everything else seems
fine.

Fred

[Archived]

Hi Fred , did you ever replace your gen, air bags , hope you get the pump figured out , I have never had a pump fail yet , guess I always jump the gun and put new one in , can’t help you buddy

[Dick]

Fred – if you are unable to repair the pump, Headhunter offers a pretty good trade in program to receive a discount on a new pump.

[Larry & Diane]

Ok I got a call back from Wilson at Headhunter
954-462-2850, a very nice and knowledgeable guy. He had me try to bleed the
lines again like Tom said with one exception take out the in line carbon
filter. I thought that was interesting because I had just changed that out not
to long ago. He said that if its clogged or dirty it could cause an issue as well.
So I took the filter out all together and opened up all the faucets and let her
rip. Still no joy. I also noticed that my hot water line running to my external
faucet in the water bay was crimped. So I massaged that out and tried
everything again. No go. So then Wilson told me that he thought is was probably
a problem with the pump itself and to send in the sticker on the pump
and he will send me a new pump for essentially half price. $6030. My pump is
an 2003 so I figure that’s not a bad run for a pump and the price seems ok
considering how well these Mach 5’s are made. The install should be easy too because
its mounted close to the door of my water bay. It’s funny how all at one once things
can start breaking down. I’m replacing my washer/dryer now too this time with
a vented dryer. You should have seen my 19 year old son basically lifting that
thing down the steps! He had it up on his shoulder like Atlas! Boy it’s good
to have help when you need it! Am I getting to old to own a bus? Never! I have 5 kids!

Thanks agian for everybodys input on this.

Fred

[Archived]

Let those young guys do the heavy lifting Fred. My Headhunter was a 2002 and still going, I changed it out just to hopefully eliminate a problem on the road.

[AL]

Pump started leaking, so I called Headhunter and they asked to send it to them so they could trouble shoot it. A day later they sent an email with an estimate for a replacement. They still have the program for 1/2 price on the replacement as long they get the core back. Pump was shipped on Monday and had back on Thursday, ready for install. Good customer service.