Specifications

1
APPLICATION NOTE NO. 75 August 2004
Maintenance of SBE 5T and 5M Pumps
This application note is intended to assist you in maintaining your SBE 5T or SBE 5M pump. A properly maintained
pump will provide constant flow for your CTD and any pumped auxiliary sensors, resulting in high quality data. The
main symptom of a non-functioning or poorly functioning pump is bad conductivity data, because the pump is not
pulling water through the conductivity cell.
CAUTION: Do not run the pump dry. The pump is water lubricated; running it without water will damage it. If
testing your system in dry conditions, remove the Tygon tubing from the hose barb at the top of the pump head, and fill
the inside of the pump head with water. This will provide enough lubrication to prevent pump damage during testing.
The application note is organized as follows:
Routine rinsing after recovery (applies to both 5T and 5M)
SBE 5T -
Periodic cleaning for SBE 5T
Yearly maintenance for SBE 5T
Non-functioning or poorly functioning SBE 5T
SBE 5M -
Periodic cleaning for SBE 5M
Yearly maintenance for SBE 5M
Non-functioning or poorly functioning SBE 5M
Routine Rinsing after Recovery (applies to both 5T and 5M)
At the end of a day of taking casts:
1. Remove the Tygon tubing from the pump heads hose barbs.
2. Leaving the pump head on the housing, thoroughly rinse the inside of the pump head, pouring clean, fresh water
through a hose barb. If the pump head is not rinsed between uses, salt crystals may form on the impeller. Over
time, this may freeze the impeller in place, preventing the pump from working.
3. Replace the Tygon tubing on the hose barbs.
4. Unscrew the cable locking sleeve from the bulkhead connector, and slide it up the
cable. Thoroughly rinse the cable connection (still mated) with clean, fresh water.
This will prevent premature cable failure.
5. Slide the locking sleeve back into place, and screw it back onto the bulkhead
connector. Do not use a wrench or pliers to tighten the locking sleeve.
Sea-Bird Electronics, Inc.
1808 136th Place NE
Bellevue, WA 98005
US
A
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]
Web: www.seabird.com
Bulkhead
connecto
r
End cap
retaining
ring
(5T only)
Pump
head
SBE
5T
Hose
barb
Hose
barb
Locking sleeve
SBE
5M
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