@kjam If you send me your email address I can send you pics.
Audio Desk Systeme - Vinyl Cleaner – Repair of Water Pump Failure
After the water pump of my beloved Vinyl Cleaner from Audio Desk Systeme stopped working I searched the web and found that I’m not the only one with this problem. But nowhere did I find a blog or post that would describe a repair procedure – other than to mail the machine back to Germany for an expensive repair.
If your machine is still under warranty you should of course send it back for warranty repair. But if your machine is out of warranty (like mine) and your only option is to spend lots of money to get it fixed, you might want to consider repairing it yourself.
The way the vinyl cleaner is designed does not allow any maintenance or replacement of any component located inside the machine without destroying something. The whole machine is glued together! Something I have not seen before to this extent – especially not on a high dollar item like this. Only the components in the upper compartment where the white cleaning rollers are located can be accessed thru the opening in the top cover.
To get started you need to separate the bottom PVC plate from the bottom of the tank. Both plates are glued together. I used a flat pry-bar to carefully separate the bottom plate without breaking it. Shining a flash light thru the water sight glass you can see the blue water pump thru the drain hole of the tank.
To get to the water pump you need to remove the bottom of the tank (or parts of it) which is glued to the recessed side walls.
Use a permanent marker to draw straight lines on the tank bottom – 5 mm inbound from the side walls. The PVC side walls are 5 mm thick. Try to cut slightly inside that line to not cut into the recessed side walls. I used a Dremel with a cut-off wheel.
Once the bottom of the tank is removed you have access to the water pump and all other internal components. To disconnect the pump wires from the main board you need to remove the front panel with on/off switch. Follow the pump cable from the tank and disconnect both wires from the terminal.
In my case it turned out that the pump actually did not fail - it was simply seized up. Once I rotated the little impeller by hand and hooked it up to the 24 V DC power supply in the sink it started to pump fine again.
In case you find your pump to be dead and need a replacement look for “Barwig Tauchpumpe Typ 3 24 V DC”. Price is around 18 EUR (appr. 20 USD) at amazon.de or conrad.com. Unfortunately I was not able to find a supplier who would ship to the U.S.. You may need to be creative – or plan your next vacation in Germany ...
If you use aquarium grade silicone adhesive instead of strong PVC adhesive to put it all together you will be able to undo everything easier in case you need to access the inside of the machine again.
Feel free to email me if you have questions or need pictures.
Decibell
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- 147 posts total
I have completed my pump replacement and in the spirit of this thread would like to contribute back some tips and advice. First, thanks go the @decibell and @fred_s for their contributions that were of great assistance! To begin, I have the Pro version; however, I do not believe any of this advice changes across the other versions. I experienced a pump failure after about 300 records mostly washed for 5min cycles and I started with a used machine that was claimed to have washed less than 200 records. This cannot be confirmed but in my case, I have installed a digital counter that I use to keep track of my use. TROUBLESHOOTING If your pump stops working, it can be for one of 3 causes: 1. The pump is not getting 24v, 2. The pump is electrically shorted or open, 3. The pump is jammed or physically stuck. Now the first two can be checked without any disassembly except for 4 screws to remove the control panel as seen in this picture: https://imgur.com/S7KfXK7. To test for #1, use a multimeter set on DC Volts and measure across the Red/Black or Blue/Brown wires with them still plugged in and the machine starting its wash cycle. You can insert probe tips between the square release buttons and the inserted connector. If you get 24v DC then you know the board is doing the right thing. To test for #2, unplug the machine and using the tip of your probe remove one of the pump wires by pressing it on the associated square button. Then change your meter setting to Ohms and measure between the free connector and the still attached one. You should see a reading between 20 and 100 ohms. In my case it was >100K ohms indicating that the pump had electrically failed. It is also possible you will read <1 ohms which indicates a short. In both cases the pump heeds replacing. For #3 there is a possibility that this can be handled externally depending on the pump style installed. The intake of the pump is on the same side as the drain hole. If you have a pump that has its impeller on the bottom such as this Comet one: https://imgur.com/WExNAOb, then you may be able to clean it out using a small bottle brush working it under the raised intake. On the other hand, if you have a pump like this: https://imgur.com/J3uTwTw, (which I had) this is not likely to work as it needs to be disassembled to get to the impeller. PUMP REPLACEMENT I used the same technique that was described in this thread. Note that the glue holding the bottom of my unit was not flexible, and I needed a stiff putty knife whose blade was part of the handle so that I could use a hammer/mallet to break through the bonds. Once I had the bottom cut open, I noticed a significant accumulation of gunk on it. This informed me that as part of my change water task, I should use a drain-hole inserted brush to keep this from building up. The Comet pump I used was the one in the picture above as I could not find a replacement for the original one and it had no identifiable markings. I feel its important not to use one whose flow is too great for two reasons. First, it may pull too much current which could cause the driver circuit to fail on the board. Second, its important that the pump rate is not so great that it evacuates the water quicker than it can be returned via the filter. Therefore 10 l/m appears to be a good target. To connect the pump I cut about an inch off the existing hose which allowed the pump to be mount vertically and attach to the side with DAP Gutter Sealant. I was not able to source the specialized connectors so I soldered a splice of the original ones as you see in the first picture. Make sure the colors align. To re-glue the tank bottom, I used a marine 2-part epoxy which has great fill properties and allowed for sanding https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BO0YQU?th=1. Finally, I used the sealant to attach the bottom plate. OPERATIONAL TIPS Having gone through this experience and now fully understanding how this machine works, I am modifying my use of it as follows: 1. Recognizing that the pump runs the entire washing cycle time, I am ensuring that I keep to a 50% duty cycle. during any 30 minute session. 2. I pay particular attention to not overfilling as the underside is not totally sealed. For example, the fan wiring holes are open to liquid. 3. When changing the water, I will also do a brush out of the bottom as preventative maintenance. I hope the above is found useful. |
As an update, my original “pro” pump is from China as ZKSJ DC40A-2440 and supposedly is rated for 30K hours. It does have a ceramic shaft, but mine never came close to that figure. I have only been able to find the 2460 model in individual quantities and the current draw is 1.2A versus .65 as well as rate is 13 l/m versus 10 l/m. Without seeing the circuit diagram I would not be comfortable doubling the current. This pump is OEM’d by many brands but if someone finds a source for single purchase it would be great if you could post it. |
One further item regarding this black pump. It is not self-priming. So give that its impeller is not near the bottom as on the other pumps, you need to make sure that there is at least 2” of water in the tank for it to start pumping. Now presumedly the low water level interlock triggered by the float distance will prevent it from starting but its worth noting anyway. |
- 147 posts total