Champ Job Maker heater runs and dies

‘fuel seems OK’?
Maybe wrong fuel?

I have an old "Master" heater and does the same thing with a "Webster" pump. I borrowed a low pressure gauge and the pump on mine is shot. It will pull fuel for just a short bit but will not consistently. Pressure falls off and flame extinguishes although the burner nozzle "spits" unburned fuel as the electrodes are too distant.

I don't know that brand but i've seen several that have a pencil size nylon type filter inside the brass fuel line coming up out of the tank. You have to break the line and pull the tube out of the tank.

Should also be a Flame Sensor on these, most can start as the electronics will set the flame but the sensor not see the Heat for the electronics will shut the pump down.

Codger wrote: I have an old "Master" heater and does the same thing with a "Webster" pump. I borrowed a low pressure gauge and the pump on mine is shot. It will pull fuel for just a short bit but will not consistently. Pressure falls off and flame extinguishes although the burner nozzle "spits" unburned fuel as the electrodes are too distant. Your pump is worn out. It will pull fuel for the short bit till fluid friction of filling the discharge line and pressurizing it. Once the pump begins to cavitate, the heater shuts down. Unable to further supply pressure or flow, the flame extinguishes until the heater is allowed to dwell and pressure bleeds down on the discharge side of the pump.

Did you replace the pump and get it running afterwards? The pump is pricey. The heater is well worth it but I want to be sure.

Think an air gauge would do at least once?

That cavitation you mentioned. Looking back, the pump makes a noise that puts me in mind of that when it does out.

I was wondering if I could mix in 10%-20% hydro oil with the fuel and have it run. I have a LOT of hydro oil.

I still don't get how I can have good flow out the bleeder the entire time.

Edited by Heliarc - 01 Jun 2025 at 5:55am

Codger wrote: Have you taken the nozzle itself apart? If it is a "Delavan", (sp) nozzle these have an internal screen. I assume you know this but many times on the "Webster" pumps there is an inlet screen inside the suction port and this is quite tiny. The discharge of the fuel oil should be angular and if pressure is not developed by the pump, (usually only about 30psi) the flame pattern cannot be developed. Yes the pump is expensive. You can replace it with a "Suntec" variant but would need to match pressure and flow requirements which can be done if you know the original values.  If your pump is proven weak, you can thicken the fuel oil with hydraulic fluid and it will possibly work; how well is anyone's guess. The heater if it does work will require periodic cleaning as you are now buring waste oil which does not burn near as clean as fuel oil, or diesel fuel. Free flow through the bleeder indicates fuel is being pulled from the tank. The bleeder however is offering no restriction to the flow internal to the pump. A clogged, or partially clogged discharge nozzle will offer the symptoms you are experiencing.

Gotcha. I really know nothing about even furnace pumps in general besides they pump fuel oil. I have not taken the nozzle apart. I saw no need as the fuel from the gun line keeps dying out, figured no need to go further but if you figure I ought to I'll give it a shot.

Codger wrote: Remove the discharge line feeding the nozzle from the pump. Check for fuel flow discharge and if present, block the port with a finger and see if pressure built is enough to push your finger away.  If you are making pressure, and the line is restricted, temporarily replace the line with a section of automotive rubber hose rated for fuel injection service and brass barbed fittings from a hardware store. Those burners are better than anything you can get these days for sure. A photo would help to guide you. What is the BTU rating of the heater?

I do have fuel flowing out the end of the nozzle feed line. I've been calling that the gun line. I don't think I've tried blocking that off with my finger. I tried that on the bleeder and I can stop the flow pretty easily but I guess that doesn't mean anything. That will be a quick test though and I'll let you know how it goes. I'd think I should not be able to block the flow from the discharge end of the pump with a finger correct?

Not sure of the BTU on this furnace but I know it's a monster. I'll jot it down when I go out today.

I'm going to smell like a Lot Lizard that got confused about what sort of nozzle she wants...

Codger wrote: No, you should not be able to stop the flow if the pump is making much pressure at all.  My wife calls diesel fuel "Man's Perfume". She swears I soak in it to promote soft skin.

My Father was always out under the hood of a VW diesel. I swear he loved to bathe in it! He loved wrenching on the VW IDI diesels.

I removed the discharge/nozzle/gun line from the discharge of the pump. I put my thumb over the hole and it's tough but I can stop it completely. I let a little pressure bleed out and in 2-3 seconds there was no more flow. I've had the pump stripped down to pretty well nothing and hit everything with compressed air before this. It acted exactly the same prior to and after stripping and blowing it out. I also removed the discharge fitting from the pump, removed the bleeder and blew down into the bleeder port. A little cylinder, looks like the inside of a spool valve shot out. There was a spring behind that. Fortunately I found everything, re-assembled, but same thing.

I'd like to put a gauge to this thing but I don't have a real furnace gauge. Think an air gauge would do for a few times? I use an air gauge for the oil pressure on a flathead Ford V-8. I'm starting to feel like the pump is kaput but I also wonder if someone before me might have been messing with that adjuster on the pump. I don't know how these things work though. Id think if someone somehow set it to just 20PSI messing with that, it still ought to hold 20PSI. After a few seconds I might get a few drips. Pressure starts out alright but drops to nothing. Sticking a finger over the hole might be a quick and dirty thing but I didn't think to do that and now I guess I know a little something more.

I'm feeling the pump as well. I don't understand why it would have decent pressure and then drop out but I don't think a good pump ought to do that. So I'm cranking that adjuster one way, test with thumb over the hole, move it the other way, test again. Cavitating. Now that you mention cavitating, right before the heater dies I can hear a sort of grindy noise but I think it's the pump cavitating.

Parts are getting pretty tough for the IDI anymore. Any precision parts such as injector nozzles don't pay enough so they'll be coming from India. If you need four, better order twelve. The guys who knew the injection pumps are either retired or dead. Bulletproof engines. I drove a lot of them. Not a darn thing for acceleration but they'd get you there come hell or high water, just in their own time. I overheated one to the point it seized up. Came back the next day ready to tow it home and the thing fired up like nothing was wrong. I inadvertently starved it for oil once. It was knocking like hell after that but it still ran alright for a few months until a Friend ran it out of oil again. Simple engines and with a tiny bit of maintenance it was nothing for them to go 260K and well over. Just the injection pumps scare me.

This isn't carrying on like an empty hydro pump, more of a slight buzzing and it does out. I figure that's the cavitation you're talking about. I hear that every time and in a split second afterwards the flame dies. Inside the pump you wouldn't really think anything is wrong but that's probably where feeler gauges come in to play. Not sure where I can even find this pump. It wants to run at 1725 or 1750 RPM and all the ones I've seen are around 3K RPM.

Yea the IDI NA diesel was not built with any kind of performance in mind. They were thrifty, had one that would run at 51MPG, tough little things, and simple, but acceleration was miserable. Top speed of about 80MPH, good enough. I still managed to get speeding tickets with them. I've heard of governor mods that will give you more fuel into the meat of the powerband and turn them into something completely different. It's not like a tractor governor. It'll still rev to destruction, I guess it cuts the fuel down a lot when you hit a certain RPM for fuel economy. Now even the factory turbo diesel setup on an IDI, there you're getting somewhere. Still not a hot rod but going from NA to TD was huge for me. Then I got behind the wheel of a TDI once, Jeepers! Barring an Audi Coupe with the 5 cylinder, that TDI was the fastest thing I drove up a mountain around here that I sort of used as a dyno. The TDI hit 64MPH, the 5 cylinder managed 67MPH. I never got into the wizardry you did though. Was the TD setup in the Scirocco?

You turned that engine on it's head. It wanted a good spanking at that point!

I found a pump on E-bay. Used, about $60. Seller says it works fine but I'm waiting to see if he personally saw it run and I want to know why it was removed. No returns on it so at least I want the guys word that it's good. It's a Webster 1725RPM but it has fittings in different places. The return is blocked off with a plug. I figure I can use it if I make lines. I don't think I can use my originals as they are. Likely came out when someone converted to propane or pellets or something. We'll see if the guy replies.