Morris Minor Owners Club

Hello again,
Is there any way I can test if my screenwash pump is working, there is liquid in the bottle but as i press the button on the dash no water. Can it be repaired or is it just a case of fitting a replacement.
Yours

Mark

Here are some possible causes.
If the pump has not been used for a long time the system dries out. Pumping it lots and lots and lots of times may get it to work.
The water container may contain some sludge which is blocking up the system. Try washing out the container.
Some pumps have a little valve on the end of the tube that goes in the water container. This may be dirty, faulty or it may have fallen off and be lying at the bottom of the container.
One of the little tubes that connect the pump, the water container and the two jets together may have fallen off.
The water bottle should contain screenwash of sufficient concentration not to freeze in the winter. If you tried the pump today was the water frozen?
It is most unusual for the pump itself to fail.

Having just carried out this job...... test the pump direct through the battery, if it works, then check the fuse (bulb, wire job) then check the switch, if that all works then you have a break in your wiring (my problem) so rewire, took about 1 hour total.

Sorry Daddsie but the method Newagetraveller suggests is the correct route to take as the standard washer pump is manual not a later electric conversion like yours

Regards

Kevin

Doh!!

Neweagetraveller has put up a good list of things to check.
Having owned 7 cheap Minors I've seen those fault at least once - and also another fault...
Weld repairs on the inner wing can burn a hole in the pipe (usually where the pipe is hidden over the top of the bump stop) This gives a similar fault to a pipe falling off as air is sucked into the pipe as the pump tried to suck water up from the bottle.
It can easily be missed as you need to pull the pipe out from behind the inner wing strengthener to see it (which they should have done before welding it....)
My first Minor had that fault when I got it and so did Gayle's Minor that I bought this year. It starts as a mix of air/water but as you look at the pipework the movement makes the hole bigger and you end up with no water at all.

If you press the pump 20 or 30 times in quick succession and you don't feel any resistance then it's more than likely one of the pipework faults.
If water runs out of the dashboard then it is a faulty pipe by the pump or between the pump and the jets.
If you get water through after 10 to 20 pumps, it is likely to be a faulty non return valve letting the water drain out of the pipe when you stop pumping (or a small leak somewhere low down)
If the pump goes hard but you don't get any water out of the jets, then the jets are both blocked.
Or to really confuse the process if the water is frozen you could get any of the symptoms.
Failing that it could of course be the pump, but pump faults are reasonably rare.

Ray,

I usually have to pump about 10 times before I get water (after being left overnight), but once I have done this, it usually only takes 0-3 pumps to get water again.

Do you think that my non-return valve is a bit dodgy, or is this normal?

Hi Cam,
Depends what you mean by normal

However when the system is fault free, you will get a some water out of the jets on your first pump and even after a few days it should not take more than 1 or 2 pumps. It sounds like you have either a slow leak or a poor NRV.
Many people end up fitting an electric pump to avoid pressing the pump 10 times without realising that there is an 'easily' curable fault.


The pipes should be transparent (although the engine bay ones may need a good clean before you can see though them) , so have a look to see if there are air bubbles in the water during continuous pumping. If you remove a glovebox you can also look at the pump end of the system.
If there is air in the water during continuous pumping then I'd bet you have a leak.
If there is no air, then it is more likely to be just the NRV.

Cheers Ray,

I'll check for leaks.

I prefer the hand pump to the electric - more Moggy like!!

it's not too bad as it is, I can live with it, but it could be better!!