Hi, I have roughly a 5-7000 gallon pond (not sure, I inherited the pond when I bought my house in September) and it has two pumps. One is very small, and is humming along nicely. The other is a large Alita AUP-400 that pumps 5500gph. A couple weeks ago, not long after having issues with my filter clogging too much (which you can read about here: https://www.gardenpondforum.com/threads/pump-filter-suddenly-clogging-quickly.14262/ ) my pump started making a whining noise. It's not that loud, it's like the hum of a motor, but it can be heard over the waterfalls, where before the waterfalls would drown the noise out. I had turned my pump off at night because my filter had clogged and I just didn't have the energy to spray it off that night, and when I went to turn the pump back on in the morning, it was making that noise. It's been doing it steady for two weeks now, not getting any quieter or louder.
I called the manufacturer. The service rep recommended taking the pump apart and inspecting the bearings and the mechanical seal. He also noted that the pump should have its oil replaced every two years as it gets water mixed in with it. Before I take my pump apart, I will need oil ready to re-fill it as I don't want to put dirty oil back in it. So when I asked him where to buy the oil, he gave me the manufacturer's website (http://www.bioblend.com/) but the re-sellers it lists are business-to-business, not for small consumer quantities. He said he didn't know where to find a re-seller for consumers.
Well, this is great. I have a pump, which needs the oil replaced every two years (which also happens to be the warantee period) but they won't sell me the oil, and I can't buy the oil! What is this, a $389 throw-away pump?
The oil is Bio Flo FG 32/46, from the Bioblend website it looks like they use it as a lubricant for fracking that's (supposedly) safe to get into drinking water. At this point, I'm about ready to put any kind of oil in it made for pumps that is also safe for fish. Does anyone have a brand they can recommend that I can actually purchase without having a fracking business?
I called the manufacturer. The service rep recommended taking the pump apart and inspecting the bearings and the mechanical seal. He also noted that the pump should have its oil replaced every two years as it gets water mixed in with it. Before I take my pump apart, I will need oil ready to re-fill it as I don't want to put dirty oil back in it. So when I asked him where to buy the oil, he gave me the manufacturer's website (http://www.bioblend.com/) but the re-sellers it lists are business-to-business, not for small consumer quantities. He said he didn't know where to find a re-seller for consumers.
Well, this is great. I have a pump, which needs the oil replaced every two years (which also happens to be the warantee period) but they won't sell me the oil, and I can't buy the oil! What is this, a $389 throw-away pump?
The oil is Bio Flo FG 32/46, from the Bioblend website it looks like they use it as a lubricant for fracking that's (supposedly) safe to get into drinking water. At this point, I'm about ready to put any kind of oil in it made for pumps that is also safe for fish. Does anyone have a brand they can recommend that I can actually purchase without having a fracking business?
