Pool pump quit working (already posted in that forum) and when I pulled the plug from the pump and found this:



It also fried the electrical connection as can be seen here:



I guess my question would be did the pump cause this problem and is now dead or did the electrical box cause it and by replacing these two items will the pump work again? Thanks

 

It could have been caused by dirt or corrosion. If the plug and socket are shiny and clean the metal parts make good contact and contact over a large enough area that the large amount of current can flow with little resistance. If there is corrosion, dirt or anything else it increases the resistance at the connection. The same amount of current tries to flow but it has to work to cross the resistance which generates heat. Over time it can get worse and worse until it gets hot enough to melt the plastic housing. Keep in mind that there are connections inside the plug and socket where the wire meets the metal contact blades. These too can suffer the same problem.

I'm guessing that the resistance through the plug can become severe enough to cause a voltage drop which could cause problems with the motor. The motor also could have been dying and pulling too much current which put more strain on the plug. So, your pump and plug problem could be related.

 

A loose connection would also cause the same issue.

 

Thanks guys. I went to the pool place and showed them these fried parts and they were all about it being a blown pump! This was before I had seen your responses. Well as soon as they got all hyped about selling me a new pump for $265 I came back home and read your answers.

I went up to Lowes and purchased two replacements for these and the pump is working wonderfully again.

About a week ago the pump shut off and I determined it was a loose connection. Fiddled with it for awhile and the pump came back on. It must have been a precursor of what was to come.

Thanks for all the great advice

 

Glad you got it working and saved some money. Thanks for the followup.

 

Just as a follow-up, if you haven't already checked might be a good idea to check the terminals at the pump end of the supply. Had that issue once.

 

Well, I'm back!

Since about noon today the pump has shut off three times. It's not tripping the breaker when it does this. After I notice it's tripped I go back down and it starts right up again. Maybe it's the pump afterall. Thoughts? Thanks.

 

Sounds like the motor is developing a bad bearing, or a winding is dead, which makes it have to work harder - thus drawing more power and creating more heat.. If it's not tripping the actual breaker, it's most likely got a self-resetting thermal cutout that trips when the motor gets too hot.

Looks like you're gonna spend the extra money anyway...

 

Back to the original question - water ?

Before you replace the pump , borrow an amp meter and check how much the pump is pulling .

As someone said , bad bearings ? Is it making a " bearing noise " ? Is it getting very hot ? Does the motor have a capacitor ( bad capacitor ) ? Can you hear a centrifugal switch click when the motor starts ( may be stuck in start mode ) ? How long does it run before it turns itself off ?

God bless
Wyr

 

Is the filter clogged and causing the pump to work harder?