I have just disassembled , descaled, replaced gaskets etc and reassembled my 1998 tank model Junior ; before that it had several minor problems, one being the pump running dry (and noisy) quite often. Since putting it back together it worked like a dream for about a week but now the pump ( i believe that's what it is) is again making that terrible sound and not actually sucking any water from the tank into the boiler which is running increasingly empty.

I understand that this a rather common problem and have seen it mentioned here several times yet i have not been able to find an answer to the problem.

I would appreciate any leads as to where to start looking at the problem and provide more info if necessary. I would be inclined to think that the pump itself might be busted were it not for the fact that this does seem to be a common problem and vibe pumps are supposed to be , ehm, indestructible.

another thing that concerns me is how strong is the heating element if running above the water level. does it burn out easily ? ( well, it hasn't been the case here so far , but still i'm concerned whether it is meant to run dry at all )

thank you

Hello:

A heating coil in a boiler going towards empty is not a good combination.

In my experience, when an Ulka pump makes a loud noise it is a sure sign that for whatever reason, no water is going in ie: it's pumping 'on empty', so to speak.

If I were you, I'd stop and check to see if there's a possibility of something blocking the water input, from the tank into the pump.

To do this, isolate the pump by taking it out of the C. Junior, connect it to mains and have it pump from a bucket to a sink to see how it behaves. The usual caveats apply, of course ... (ie: be careful, electricity and water don't mix well).

If it does not pump properly, check out this site:

http://ulkapumprepair.blogspot.com/

It has a quite a bit of information (how to take it apart, put it back together, test it, etc.) with respect to fixing Ulka pump problems.

Hopefully, you'll get things working in a jiffy.

Cheers,

CIV

Thanks Carlos

very useful information. having had the machine turned off for a couple of days now it seems to be working ok-ish. meanwhile having read all i could i do feel psychologically prepared to take the pump apart in the next few days ; judging by the ammount of dirt and scale i found in the rest of the machine i'm sure there'll be something funny inside there.

Hello again:

akabe wrote:Thanks Carlos

You're welcome. =-)

A word of advise if I may: once you extract the pump, test it and before you proceed to take it apart, do take the time to read up the whole blog.

The Ulka is relatively simple but has it's nuances and more than anything, small parts that can get damaged or lost easily if proper care is not taken during the take-apart / put-together procedure.

I know of no source for spares, so if a part is damaged or lost you either buy a new one or get a used one with a burnt coil for extra parts (provided you can find one).

I know, I've been there ... =^|

Cheers,

CIV