This post contains affiliate links (I get a commission at no extra cost to you for purchases made through links in this post).
Many wonders if they should turn off their water pump at night. The response will differ depending on what type of water system you have. I will explain it in this article with easily understandable diagrams.
Turn off your motorhome, RV, or caravan water pump at night if it automatically starts when the pressure in the water system drops. In this case, the pump doesn’t know the difference between a leak and an open faucet. With a water pump that starts when a faucet opens, you don’t need to turn it off at night.
The main reason is if you have a pump that starts automatically when the pressure drops, and you get a leak somewhere, the pump will pump out the whole fresh water tank via that leak, and you can get water damage. But if you have a pump that only starts when a faucet is opened, it can’t automatically start pumping out water via a leak when the taps are closed.
We are afraid of having a water pump that is constantly running at night or when we leave the motorhome since this could have a catastrophic outcome in terms of water damage.
Why Is The Water Pump In My RV Running Constantly? – BE AWARE OF LEAKS!
If you have a water pump constantly running in your motorhome, RV, or caravan, you most likely have a water leak; Turn off your water pump immediately. A water pump that starts automatically when the water pressure drops will only stop when it has built up pressure in the system or is turned off.
Just as you can see in the picture above, this could be the case if you have a water pump that is constantly running. And you should immediately turn it off and start looking for a leak.
This is only the case if your water pump is pressure operated and starts when it notices a loss of pressure, then it will run until it has built up the pressure again. Another common way the water pump can work is that it only starts when you open a faucet.
A constantly running water pump could result from simply being out of fresh water. Since the pressure-operated water pumps will keep running until they sense an increase in pressure, but if they can’t pump any water because there is none, they will never get a pressure increase and turn off.
A constantly running water pump could also be a result of simply being out of fresh water.
If your water pump is only supposed to start when you open a faucet, it could be connected like this picture below.
If your water pump is connected like that and you have a leak, the water pump won’t keep running automatically due to the low pressure in the system; it will only start pumping water when you open a faucet.
If a water pump that is connected this way keeps running even when the faucets are closed, there is a high chance of a shortcut on the wiring somewhere, probably where they are connected to the taps. This would also create an issue where this type of water pump would run all the time.
You can also get water damage if you get a leak with the faucet-operated water pump. In this case, it won’t empty the whole fresh water tank, only the water in the water pipes, until you start the water pump again by opening a faucet, as illustrated in my diagram below.
How To Notice Water Leaks With Faucet-Operated Water Pump
With the faucet-operated water pumps, it could be a bit more challenging to notice leaks compared to a pressure-operated pump since you don’t have a massive tell from a continuously running water pump. But, on the other hand, you will see if your water pipes have drained out through a leak if it takes a while until water comes out from the tap when you open a faucet.
A faucet water pump will start as soon as you open a faucet and turn it off when you close it. When you turn it off, it already has pressure built up in the water lines and the pipes filled with water, and there should be no reason for those pipes to get empty unless there is a leak somewhere or if you have drained them by opening a drain valve.
If you havent drained anything in your water system since the last time you used the faucet but when you open it there is no water coming immidiatly you could have a leak and you should serach through your water system to locate why the water pipes have been emptied inbetween the usage.
Here is an example of how it should look with a faucet-operated water pump. Afterward is an example with a simulated leak where I drained one water pipe to simulate how it can look when you open the faucet when the water in the pipes has drained out via a leak.
Final thoughts
Turn off your water pump at night or when you leave the motorhome if it is a pressure-operated pump since if you have a leak, it will keep running and drain out the whole fresh water tank via the leak unless you turn off the water pump before that.
If you have a faucet-operated pump, you don’t need to turn off your water pump since it will only start when a faucet is open, so there won’t be the same risk of a big water leak. On the other hand, it might be more difficult to notice a water leak with a faucet-operated pump, so be aware if it seems like the water pipes have been emptied via a leak, and it takes a while until you get water through the tap.
Constantly running water pumps can be because of water leaks, wire shortcuts, or simply because you are out of fresh water and the pump can’t build up pressure without water; hence it will just keep running if it is pressure operated.
If you have a new motorhome, RV, or caravan with a good and new water system, maybe you are not so afraid of leaks from old and dry water pipes, or maybe you still are covered by a warranty. In those cases, you don’t need to turn off your water pump either way since there is a low probability of something happening, although, at the same time, it is an easy measure to take.
Now you know why many choose to turn off their water pumps at night, and you can create a good routine for whether you should do it or not.
