Accusump assistance please!

[snakeeyes]

I originally, accidentally posted this in the FE forum but have re-posted it here:

After I got my Lister running I hooked up a 3-quart Accumsump. It has the solenoid-operated valve (as opposed to the manual one). Initially I plumbed the line from the Accusump to the engine into a 1/2" NPT hole in the block, just above the oil filter (it is a Rodeck aluminum block). The hole had been filled with a pipe plug, which I took out and installed a 1/2" NPT to -10 AN fitting in.

As the Accusump instructions say to do, I pressurized the Accusump to about 50 psi on the unit's gauge, then bled it down to 7 psi. I then started the engine, let it run a bit, shut it down and checked the oil on the dipstick. It was way down, indicating the Accumsump had filled itself. I topped off the oil and took the car for a drive but noticed no difference in the way the oil pressure gauge in the car fluctuates in hard cornering. Also, when I turned on the ignition and activated the solenoid manually by the switch in the cockpit, there was no activity on the oil pressure gauge, i.e., no indication that the Accusump was pre-oiling the engine. I double-checked all the lines and fittings to make sure there were no leaks.

I suspected that maybe it was not a good idea to use the threaded hole in the block, so I re-plumbed the line into a "sandwich" adaptor I bought from the Accusump people. It has two 1/2" NPT holes in it and goes between the oil filter and block. I plugged one of the holes, installed my 1/2" NPT to -10 AN fitting in the other, and hooked everything back up. Again I ran the engine and again the Accusump does not seem to be doing anything. It does not create any oil pressure when energized before start-up.

I have not checked the switch and solenoid to make sure they are working, but I did check both of them when I hooked everything up the first time, and they were both operating. I know the Accusump was working in some fashion initially, as it sucked about three quarts out of the oil pan when first installed. Any thoughts on what to do at this point?

Thanks,
Bob

[Roscoe]

YES! Call Accusump tech at 203 481 9943

http://www.accusump.com/

Roscoe

[snakeeyes]

Roscoe,

I've called their tech line twice before, with questions about the sandwich adapter. Maybe I caught them at a bad time but the responses were dominated by phrases like "I'm not sure on that one" and "yeah, that will probably work". At one point I was told I had been sent the wrong adapter and waited for a replacement, only to open the box and find the same one I already had. I'm not trying to be disparaging of them, but I felt that the numerous people here who had experience with Accusumps might be able to offer some advice on the problem (which may very well be the intelligence level of the installer).

[Lynn Johnson]

Bob - after reading your post, my first thought was like Roscoe's, call the tech guys.

My system is the 2-quart model. I run 20 psi air pressure charge and get a good and quick oiling before starting engine, up to about 30 psi oil pressure.

Follow the same procedue, pump up to about 50 psi, and then bleed down to 20 or a little less. My guess is the 7psi is not enough to pump 3 quarts under pressure.

Make sure the cylinder is empty before you start playing with the air pressure.

This might work for you. It does on my 2 quart system. Let me know.

Lynn

[750hp]

Bob - I have the manual 3qt, so I can't be of any assistance if it's a wiring related problem. I believe though, that the elec valve allows the oil to return to the Accusump even with the unit switched off. This sounds like your situation where the unit has filled itself but is not discharging.

In any case, when empty your Accusump showed 7psi.
What does it show with the engine switched off?
What does it show after you have activated the solenoid?
Can you hear oil "gurgling" in the oil galleries when you switch the solenoid on?

My car has a 7psi air pressure, and it's enough to drain the whole 3qt cylinder.

One more thing - my Autometer Ultralight 0-100psi oil pressure gauge fluctuates very slightly in corners. I know this to be a fault with the gauge rather than the engine because I have a separate oil pressure sensor feeding info to my Motec Data Aquisition system. I believe the Motec before I believe the Autometer gauge.

What brand / style of oil pan are you using?

[Zderf]

The gage that comes intalled on the Accusmp is of very low quality, and way too high of a pressure range to accurately determine the state of charge on the accumulator. I changed the gage to a 0 -125 psi liquid filled 2.5" gage with max pressure indicator needle.

Questions:

1. What is the pressure showing in the accumulator prior to opening the solenoid (assuming it was pre charged)?

2. When you open your solenoid valve to pre-oil, can you watch the Accusump gage pressure? Does it decay?

3. Have you checked the 12V source for your valve? Is it switched?

4. Is your oil pressure gage in the dash electronic? (Mine is hydraulic so I can watch system pressure build to about 35psi without the key on... decays to about 15psi before starting).

5. Where is your oil pressure pickup located?

6. Does the sandwich adapter have a check valve to prevent backwashing the filter? (I plumbed in the Accusmump using the remote oil filter adapter... which has a built in check valve.)

Comments:

1. Even if the solenoid valve is off (normally closed W/O power) oil will bleed into the Accumsump. It cannot bleed out however unless opened.

2. Leave the valve open for about 60 -120 seconds after start... and always remeber to shut it off if your use is pre-oiling... lest you'll have 8 quarts of oil in your pan at the next cold start and no pre-oiling.

3. Check your plumbing methodolgy closely to assure you are not dead-heading the Accusump. Schematic:

http://www.clubcobra.com/photopost/s...t=1&thecat=500

4. At hot idle at say 30psi oil pressure, you should be able to open the valve and see an immediate increase in oil pressure until the accumulator equalizes (my base charge is usually about 75 psi).

5. Make sure that the sandwich adapter is totally matched to the ports on your block / filter.....

Hope some of this works.....

A shot of my 3 quart installation with thermostat:

http://www.clubcobra.com/photopost/s...t=1&thecat=500

Respectfully,

Zderf

[Hal Copple]

good suggestions above. I use the 2 quart model. I did have the first solenoid on the electric valve go bad, i had inadvertently wired it to always on, not just on with the switch i put in, so it burned out in a month or so.

Are you sure you have the valve pointed the right way? the little tiny arrow points away from the A'sump. I bled mine when new down to about 7 psi, then it will fill to read about the same as my engine's oil pressure mechanical gage does. When i turn on the switch to pre-oil, i can hear a gurgling sound as it pushes oil into my motor, at my filter block adaptor. My pressure rises to about 20 psi, and slowly bleeds down.

Are you using a check valve, it may be in wrong way, i don't use one. You might slighly loosen a fitting, and see if it leaks oil when discharging at pre-oil, and try running a power line directly from the battery to the switch on the Asump. , in case you are not accurately powered, i wasn't for several months at first.

My guess is that you are not actually powering the switch, so it fills but won't discharge.

please report back.

[Ibr8k4vetts]

My electric valve had a bad diaphragm

[snakeeyes]

Wow, thank you, one and all. You've given me a lot of food for thought. I am going to print this thread and do some looking out in the garage tonight.

The pressure gauge on the A'sump seems to read the same--about 50 psi--regardless of what I do. As I mentioned initially, I did bleed it down to around 7 psi, and it initially accepted the charge of oil. I know I have the valve pointed the right way, as I had read an earlier post about your "adventure", Hal, and took it to heart. The solenoid is wired such that it is only on with the switch. Regardless, I use a battery cutoff when I'm not driving the car, and I've only put about 10 miles on it since I hooked up the A'sump, so I'd be surprised to find that the solenoid had gone bad from that. Not to say there's not some other problem with it. I will recheck all of the wiring tonight and look around with a test light to see if there is some electrical fault (highly likely since Yours Truly did the wiring ).

Thanks again for the replies, photos, schematic, etc. This is the forum at its best.

Bob

[snakeeyes]

Well, this thread is ancient but I'll update it since I finally found the problem two months after my initial post. I'm embarrassed to admit it but in the interests of maybe helping out some other Electrical Genius I'll swallow my pride.

I have checked the dash-mounted switch, and the power wire to the Accusump solenoid, probably a dozen times. They always lit up my test light so I assumed the wiring was fine and it was some other problem. Well, last night in a fit of brain activity I put the probe for my test light on the ground wire at the solenoid. Surprise--it lit the test light, as well. I moved the ground wire to a bolt on the chassis, lit up the ignition, switched on the Accusump, and voila--instant oil pressure appeared on my gauge.

Inside the housing for the Accusump solenoid there is a hole drilled, with a screw screwed into it. The screw head is painted green and for whatever reason I've always assumed it was intended for the ground wire. Whether it is or not, it obviously did not work, at least in my case. Grounding the solenoid to the chassis has cured the problem and finally, four months after installation, I am able to pre-lube my engine. Better late than never, I suppose.

Thanks to all for their suggestions.

Bob