Noisy solid state fuel pump

[bighealeysource]

Hey all,
I have a facet solid state fuel pump on my 58 BN6 and
normally it is quiet as a mouse except when first starting
up. Lately after I have been driving around for awhile,
it will start to click away for a bit, stop, and then
start back up again, click for a bit, then stop again.
No set time between, very sporadic. I also have a fuel
pressure regulator that was installed by the previous
owner but it had a pretty high pressure Bendix pump on
it then. Since replaced that with the facet. Should
I get rid of the pressure regulator as maybe that has
something to do with the pump or any other thoughts, advice
etc ?
Thanks,
Mike

 

[Keoke]

Well Mike, since you are not apparently having any real performance issues and that is pretty much what a stock SU pump would do. I would let it alone and plan on replacing the Facet with an electronic SU some time in the future and ditching the pressure regulator too.Course that is just me--Keoke :laugh:

 

[bighealeysource]

Hey Keoke,
Good to hear from you ! I will probably replace the facet down the
road with an electronic SU but not right away since I just put on the
facet. Should I just get rid of the pressure regulator since the facet
is one selected to provide the proper fuel flow for the Healey ? I
was going to put an inline fuel filter in its place.
Thanks,
Mike

 

[Keoke]

Sure Mike, why not that seems like a viable option to me.--Keoke- :thumbsup:

 

[66healey]

I had a facet in my race car and it was always noisy/clicking. It was like that for the five years I raced it, and was working fine when I sold it.

 

[Keoke]

Yes 66HLY, I am a ware of the noise problem associated with the Facet in many cases reported here on the forum special rubber mountings were required to quiet them down.---Keoke

 

[Genos2]

I agree with Keoke, I've always used rubber mounts, similar to ones used on vw's, bimmers, stud w/metal plate bonded to rubber. Plus make sure metal lines don't have contact with anything. cheers Genos2

 

[Healeysince59]

My experience with Facet pumps is they click all the time. If your clicking is intermittent, I suspect there is something wrong. Most likely, I would guess, you have a loose electrical connection.

Marv J

 

[Michael Oritt]

My experience with Facet pumps is that while they are small, cheap and convenient to install they are liable to break at any time. That said I have one on my 100 as a backup pump (only) to my SU which I have mounted on rubber vibration isolators and it is still noisy. You should not need a fuel pressure regulator for a Facet IF it is the low-pressure model (2-4 psi as SU's like).

On my Elva race car (MGA engine) I always had problems with fuel supply coming out of turns, esp. right handers, or at the end of long straights which I finally solved by putting in a high-pressure Ble Holly along with a pressure regulator to bring the psi down to about 4-1/2 to 5 which has worked great and has never overpoweed the floats. Go figure....

 

[bighealeysource]

Thanks y'all for the advice and info ! I double checked all the
wiring connections, shrink wrapped them, and got rid of the pressure
regulator. Put in a standard in line fuel filter which is in addition
to the facet inline filter coming from the tank to the pump. Will just
watch the noise and see if it continues. Still going to look into the electronic SU pump - maybe wait until Moss has their 20% off sale they have very summer.
Thanks,
Mike

 

[Johnny]

Mike, I've used with good success a Facet fuel pump on a MGB I owned some years ago. It's normal for electric fuel pumps to only turn on when fuel is required. They are noisier than SU's but that is easily fixed. I used 2 muffler body attachments bolts for MGB. They have a stud at each end of a hour glass figure piece of rubber. They will easily attach to the facet and the Healey bulk head without modifying anything.

Good luck.

 

[Michael Oritt]

I agree with Marve--Facets when running correctly click all the time, at least in the two applications (Healey 100 and Elva Courier) where I have used them. It is when they stop clicking that we must worry....

 

[RonMacPherson]

Someone on this forum listed about a year ago, a source for aircraft fuel pumps... AirSpruce??? something like that.. Hopefully someone can remember and put the url up. I mention that because the facet pump they sell for airplanes is at a better price than most auto parts houses, and the fuel pressure is more apropro for lbc's... I would think that the quality of a facet pump that is going into an airplane would be inspected to be of very good condition.

 

[Bob_Spidell]

https://www.aircraftspruce.com

 

[bighealeysource]

Update- I checked the website Bob suggested and some of their aircraft fuel
pumps are from Facet. That being said, I called Facet, got hold of one of their
tech guys and he agreed it did sound too noisy - was clacking, not just clicking.
I called Pegasus Racing where I got my facet pump from and to their great credit
they sent me a replacement at no charge immediately - this being 4 months after I got it from them. Got it mounted and now just a nice gentle hum. Also figured
that if Facet makes pumps that are almost identical for aircraft engines, then
I should feel pretty good about one in my LBC. Hats off to Pegasus Racing for
the way they handled it.
Regards,
Mike

 

[Bob_Spidell]

... Also figured
that if Facet makes pumps that are almost identical for aircraft engines, then
I should feel pretty good about one in my LBC...

Don't put too much stock in this. The pumps sold by Aircraft Spruce are likely for Experimental class ('homebuilt') aircraft, not for certificated aircraft (Beechcraft, Cessna, Piper, etc.). You can use just about anything in an Experimental class aircraft (that's partly why they're called 'Experimental'). Doesn't mean the pumps aren't good, just that they haven't gone through the testing and other requirements for use on certificated aircraft.

Many homebuilders use automotive parts and equipment in their aircraft, with mixed results. I wouldn't be surprised if the pumps sold by AS are made for automobiles.