OK. So I've had no complaints with the AirDog-100 I installed this time last year (See the Airdog questions and observations thread below).

That changed last week when the AirDog started getting loud. It now has a healthy growl to it, the truck is down on power and starts hard when it used to take just a blip of the key.

I crawled up underneath the truck to find all the fittings rusted solid but apparently tight (i can't get them to budge in either direction). The only fitting I could get loose was on the return line at the filler neck. I ran that hose into a milk jug and turned on the ignition without starting the truck. The flow was much less than I expected it to be, as the return is designed to return any fuel not needed by the engine. Since the engine wasn't running, I expected to see 100 GPM pouring out of there at 15psi and it wasn't there. (i didn't think to time how long it took to fill the jug but i'm guessing about a gallon a minute)

Another thing I noticed was the fuel was as foamy as a shaken-up Mountain Dew.

I called Pure Flow twice last week to talk to a tech about it. Both times I sent to their voice mail, where I explained the problem. I never got a return phone call back either time.

So what should my next course of action be? This truck is the only vehicle I have to drive and I can't be having it out of service. I understand things go bad but when the manufacturer ignores my calls for help, I start getting concerned.

 

I apologize for the delay in getting back with you. Could you please provide me with your name and phone number and I will get back to you immediately. You may email me this information to areams@pureflowairdog.com or you may call me on my cell 573-694-5155 as well. Please leave a message and I will call you back. Thank you.

 

I was informed by Jason Long that I will be receiving pump tower #2 around this time tomorrow. My truck has been down since December. It started with the 1st pump losing pressure as it warmed up on the 1st cranking of the day. Starting with 18 psi and dropping lower with each use of the accelerator pedal. Instead of dropping and returning to a higher pressure when the truck went back to idle speed, the pressure wouldn't rebound. It just kept stair-stepping down till it would idle at 2 psi and I would shut the truck off and leave it sitting where-ever I happened to be and find a ride. This is my only truck too, and everyone is kinda wearing thin on getting and giving rides. But the next pump wouldn't build any pressure at all right from the start. I've tried removing the cage and checking for a blockage, which there wasn't one, no loose fitting for it to be sucking in air, but with the pump removed from the truck, drawing fuel direct from a 5 gal container sitting next to the pump, it won't pump 48 oz in 3 cycles of the ignition switch. I'm going to give this AirDog pump one more go with the shipment tomorrow. After that...

 

I got a phone call from Pure Flow just 10 minutes after emailing them my phone number. Anthony (i think that was his name) explained the day I called and left my messages, he was the only tech there due to a large number of call-offs that day and apologized profusely for not getting back with me.

I then explained my problems, to which he had me perform a simple test. After the truck failed miserably, he said the problem is with the motor seal. The old-style seals go bad and the the pump pulls air through the seal and into the fuel. The growl I'm hearing is air-cavitation inside the pump.

He is overnighting the new-style motor/seal free of charge, Supposed to be here this afternoon. I sure hope so. The truck is getting to the point it wants to stall and I can hear the damn thing running over the engine, tire noise and radio!

 

 

The guys at Pure Flow made good so far. The new pump motor and tower assembly just showed up. I gotta head to bed now so I can go to work tonight and I'll throw it on in the morning. Keep yer fingers crossed!

 

I got my new pump/base/filters today as well. I'll be putting mine on in the morning after I test it while it's still off of the truck.

 

Any updates?

 

Got everything swapped out yesterday. Because of the small parts involved (o-rings, a couple dowel pins and a Viton ball), instructions said to remove entire pump from truck. Thanks to living in the friggin' Rust Belt, the fittings and bolts were pretty crusty. After 4-hours of fighting rust and bathing in diesel fuel, I did finally manage to get everything swapped out and put back together and all I can say now is.....

PROBLEM FIXED!

This new motor/tower assembly is so quiet, I had to put my hand on it to feel it running. Couldn't hear it, even with the engine off! Hell, the grid heater ticking is way louder than this pump.

Truck starts instantaneously now and the power is back where it's supposed to be.

Thanks Pure Flow!