BX Water Pump

BlackforestBill · Jun 30, 2007

I was reading something interesting in the owners manual. It says if you over heat the engine to not shut it off. You're to "stop in a safe place and keep the engine idling unloaded." "Don't stop the engine suddenly, but stop it after about 5 minutes of unloaded idling."

That's on page 51 in the Checking Radiator Hose and Clamp section.

That may have been a contributing factor on the first one. I did over heat the engine a couple of times and immediately shut it down. That was before I figured out how to really clean the radiator (thanks TBN!!). But I don't remember over heating it since replacing the water pump.

I'm thinking next oil change will be to synthetics, I'll add something to the cooling system to help lower temps and if it still runs hot (it always has) I may add an electric fan.

ribchord · Jun 30, 2007

i dont know the rpm's for that tractor but lets say its 3500, try running at 2800. it may still have enough power to do everything you need. mine is supposed to run at 2100 rpm, i never need any more than 1800 rpm for shredding and run at 1200rpm for post hole digging. this may cure your heat problem.

BlackforestBill · Jun 30, 2007

ribchord said:
i dont know the rpm's for that tractor but lets say its 3500, try running at 2800. it may still have enough power to do everything you need. mine is supposed to run at 2100 rpm, i never need any more than 1800 rpm for shredding and run at 1200rpm for post hole digging. this may cure your heat problem.

I thought about that. There's a couple of issues with the idea. First is I live at 7660 feet above sea level. At this altitude my 23 HP is closer to 19. That's why I went with the 54" deck instead of the 60". Also, lower RPMs bog the engine down whenever I hit a high patch of weeds and at the lower speed I don't get near as clean a cut.

I may have to sharpen the blades and mow more often to make it work. But it sure would beat the over heating problem. I'll have to give it a try once I get it back running.

bx23barry · Jun 30, 2007

There is also such a thing as a defective new pump, but it wouldn't hurt to take a good look at the fan/pulley for balance/alinement/dents/bends/cracks.

BlackforestBill · Jul 2, 2007

It's looking more and more like a defective pump. I ordered the replacement today. The part number has changed due to a change in suppliers. Now I wonder why they'd do that? I know, it could be a cheaper supplier, the other company may have gone a different direction, etc, etc. Lots of reasons companies change part suppliers. But one of them is because the previous supplier's products had a high incident of failures.

Here's hoping that the new one lasts a good long time.

On another note, I've decided to replace the fan belt while I have it apart. It was only $12 for the replacement. The old one looks pretty good, but there are a few small nicks in it. Any thing special I need to be aware of when making the change?

ribchord · Jul 2, 2007

i got my 70 year old father in law a 16 hp diesel yanmar with a 4 foot shredder, we use it at 2000 rpm's, when it starts to bog down we just give it a little foot throttle and its fine, i mow small trees with this thing, 3 inch diameter trunks like its nothing, and big patches of sunflowers just as big. its not hydrostat but if it was i would use hand throttle when i hit the big stuff, ill bet your tractor can handle it at a lower rpm.

Skip G · Apr 27, 2009

I have had the same problem.
My water pump has gone out for a 2nd time. The first time the engine was overheated after mowing extremely long grass.
It was replaced in Sept. 06.
It just went out again. I pulled several loads of firewood in a utility cart on a cool day, and the engine was nowhere near overheating.
Doesn't seem like a water pump should go out that frequently.
Not looking forward to replacing it again as it's difficult gettng that fan out.