Fire season feels a long way off in early November. That’s exactly why now is the time to look after your pump. Most pump failures I’ve seen weren’t bad machines. They were good machines that sat all winter with water in the housing and old gas in the tank.
Here’s a simple fall routine for any gas-powered wildfire pump, whatever brand it is.
Get the water out
Water expands when it freezes, and a cracked pump housing or split fitting is an expensive way to find that out. Central Oregon nights are already dropping below freezing, so don’t wait.
- Open the drain plug on the pump and let it empty completely. Tip it if you need to.
- Disconnect and drain every hose. Hang them or lay them out so they run dry, then coil them loosely.
- Check the suction strainer and foot valve. Pull out any needles, sand, and pond gunk.
- If your pump is plumbed to a tank or standpipe, drain the low points and any exposed pipe or valves.
- Leave drain plugs and valves open, or tag them so you remember to close them in spring.
If the pump lives in an unheated shed, a cheap thermometer on the wall tells you what it really goes through in January.
Deal with the fuel
Gas goes stale. Ethanol blends pull moisture and can gum up a carburetor in a few months. You have two reasonable choices:
- Store it full with stabilizer. Add fuel stabilizer to fresh gas, run the engine a few minutes so the treated fuel gets through the system, then shut it down. A full tank leaves less room for condensation.
- Run it dry. Shut the fuel valve and let the engine burn out the carburetor bowl. Some folks prefer this for long storage.
Whichever you pick, store spare gas in approved cans, out of the sun, and away from the house. Date the can with a marker. If it’s more than a few months old and wasn’t stabilized, use it in a truck and buy fresh for the pump.
While you’re at it, check the oil, look at the air filter, and make sure the spark plug is clean and tight. Your owner’s manual has the intervals. Follow it.
Test it before you put it away
A pump you haven’t started since June is a pump you’re guessing about. Run it once this fall with real water, check for leaks at every fitting, and make sure it holds prime and builds pressure. Then drain it as above.
If you have a battery or electric start, put it on a maintainer or bring it inside. Cold drains batteries fast, and a dead battery is the most common reason a pump won’t start when you need it.
Also confirm your water supply. A pond that’s low or a tank that’s leaking is a problem better found in November than in August. Walk the intake, check the level, and make sure the access road to it isn’t going to be buried or washed out.
Where remote monitoring helps
A lot of rural places sit empty part of the year, or the owner is at work an hour away when something goes wrong. That’s why we built the Dry Lightning 3000, our remote-start wildfire pump. It runs on a Honda iGX390, moves up to 150 GPM, and you start and stop it from a phone app from anywhere. It also alerts you if the pump stops running (like when it runs out of gas) or the water tank runs low, which is the kind of thing that otherwise goes unnoticed until you need it. It doesn’t replace the fall routine above. Any pump needs to be drained, fueled, and tested.
Do this week
Pick one afternoon before the next hard freeze. Run your pump with water, check for leaks, drain the housing and hoses completely, treat or empty the fuel, and write the date on a piece of tape on the pump. Then put a reminder on your phone for April to do a spring start-up. It’s about an hour of work, and it’s what makes the pump ready on the day you need it.