Replacing the Water Pump

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On a mid-winter desert camping trip, the temperature got down to 12°F, and the electric switch below the water pump cracked and started leaking. (We have no furnace.) I also took this opportunity to replace the original noisy water pump with a quieter model.

Heres the original water pump, a Shurflow 2088-403-144 2.5 GPM unit. The first photo shows how Sportsmobile put the pump on its own mounting panel in a way that should avoid vibrating the rest of the van, but for some reason this panel itself rattled noisily.

Old Water Pump, Shurflow 2088-403-144, in Sportsmobile Old Water Pump, Shurflow 2088-403-144, on its own small mounting panel (from above)

Here's the new pump, a Shurflow 2093-204-413 "Whisper King" 2.0 GPM unit. Wow, it is much quieter! I didn't notice the water flow being significantly slower in my Sportsmobile sink — but then again with only 10 gallons in my fresh water tank I'm usually concerned with trying to slow down the water flow!

New Water Pump, Shurflow 2093-204-413 "Whisper King", in Sportsmobile Both Water Pumps - Shurflow 2088-403-144 and Shurflow 2093-204-413 "Whisper King", in Sportsmobile New Water Pump, Shurflow 2093-204-413 "Whisper King", in Sportsmobile New Water Pump, Shurflow 2093-204-413 "Whisper King", in Sportsmobile

Now, the next question is — how can I prevent the pump from freezing again the next time I'm winter camping?

Installation notes:

The install was pretty easy — a couple hours' job. The two water pumps were almost identical in dimensions, so the new pump went in without rearranging any plumbing. The new pump came with all the screws, etc., needed for the install. The hardest part was figuring out how to get to the screws for pump removal.

  • Drain the water tank.
  • Remove old pump: The 2 plumbing connections unscrew, and removing the pump itself required some awkward screwdriver work, with extensions on my ratcheting screwdriver. I ended up unscrewing the mounting board from the Sportsmobile floor and taking it out with the pump attached. Two wires: one wire to cut (crimp connection), and one connection to pull off.
  • Install the new pump: Again, screwdriver work, screwing in plumbing connections, crimping a wire, plugging in the other. There's an inline coarse water filter (screen mesh) before the pump to catch large dirt, which just like the old pump had.