# Chapin Sprayer Question (won't start/prime)



## mrigney (Jun 6, 2017)

Ok, so got my Chapin backpack sprayer....go to test it out today so I can spray Prodiamine....battery is charged.

Battery in, water in tank (for my practice run). I push the switch to on...I think...the switch has a rubber gasket around it (for lack of a better word). There isn't a satisfying "click" or anything when I turn the power to on. Anyway, push the switch to on, nothing happens. Should the pump come on? When the instruction manual says "spray back into the tank" to prime the pump, does it mean spray w/the wand? Or from an external source? What should I do if the pump doesn't turn on when I turn the switch to on?

Not an auspicious start to my backpack spraying career:-/


----------



## vnephologist (Aug 4, 2017)

The pump should come on when you hit the trigger on the wand. Mine sometimes sputters a bit when the switch is turned on if there's no liquid left in the pump, but otherwise it doesn't do anything until you hit the trigger. I think spraying back I to the tank is about filling the hose/wand with product. Any chance you have a multimeter to check the battery?


----------



## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

I know this is going to sound super obvious, but make sure the battery is pushed in all the way. Mine was a little difficult to get it to click in all the way.


----------



## mrigney (Jun 6, 2017)

I'll check on the battery again... Did check it but never hurts to really push it in there

So pump comes on when want trigger is pulled. interesting. Am I doing something won't with the wand? How does the pump know when your squeezing the wand (maybe a stupid question, but doesn't seem to be a mechanical or electrical link between the two?)?


----------



## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

mrigney said:


> I'll check on the battery again... Did check it but never hurts to really push it in there
> 
> So pump comes on when want trigger is pulled. interesting. Am I doing something won't with the wand? How does the pump know when your squeezing the wand (maybe a stupid question, but doesn't seem to be a mechanical or electrical link between the two?)?


If the pump comes on when trigger pulled and turns off when trigger released it is working as intended


----------



## mrigney (Jun 6, 2017)

@gatormac my pump never comes on (at this point). I'll message with it more today when I get home from work. Will also check the battery with a multimeter to rule that out.


----------



## mrigney (Jun 6, 2017)

So I'm going to bump this and ask one more time before I go return my pump...in theory, after charging the battery on a new Chapin, I should be able to out the battery in, turn the power switch to on, pull the trigger on the wand, and have it spray. Correct?I'm not missing something am I?


----------



## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

If it's not working like it should, give Chapin a call. I had to send in my 24V push sprayer for repairs(they paid for the return shipping) and they sent me a new one. The pressure switch failed, and I got a call that they were sending me a new unit. It arrived today.


----------



## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

I had to send my unit in as well, they have it right now. My pump wasn't shutting off when the wand wasn't depressed, it was on the whole time. The OCD in me made me send it in even though it was spraying.

Give customer service a call and they will take care of you.


----------



## Killbuzz (Apr 30, 2017)

mrigney said:


> So I'm going to bump this and ask one more time before I go return my pump...in theory, after charging the battery on a new Chapin, I should be able to out the battery in, turn the power switch to on, pull the trigger on the wand, and have it spray. Correct?I'm not missing something am I?


Did you make sure the top is screwed on to create a tight seal?


----------



## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

Killbuzz said:


> mrigney said:
> 
> 
> > So I'm going to bump this and ask one more time before I go return my pump...in theory, after charging the battery on a new Chapin, I should be able to out the battery in, turn the power switch to on, pull the trigger on the wand, and have it spray. Correct?I'm not missing something am I?
> ...


The top doesn't actually need to be on for it to spray


----------



## Killbuzz (Apr 30, 2017)

gatormac2112 said:


> The top doesn't actually need to be on for it to spray


To have spray correctly it does. After messing with mine it would actually be best for him to leave it off. If the pump is actually working it will kick on and continuously try to pump. So if it doesn't it's either the pump, the battery or the switch.


----------



## mrigney (Jun 6, 2017)

Right now I'm guessing the power switch is screwed up. Having no reference, I can't be sure...but it feels...not like I would expect. It's as if you can't really turn it from off to on (and vice versa). I'll give Chapin a call tomorrow.


----------



## Killbuzz (Apr 30, 2017)

mrigney said:


> Right now I'm guessing the power switch is screwed up. Having no reference, I can't be sure...but it feels...not like I would expect. It's as if you can't really turn it from off to on (and vice versa). I'll give Chapin a call tomorrow.


Yeah, it should have a click.


----------



## Movingshrub (Jun 12, 2017)

mrigney said:


> Right now I'm guessing the power switch is screwed up. Having no reference, I can't be sure...but it feels...not like I would expect. It's as if you can't really turn it from off to on (and vice versa). I'll give Chapin a call tomorrow.


Did you check the battery with a multimeter? If you've got voltage, with the battery in-place, try jumping the connectors. That should isolate the switch from the circuit. If it runs, you know it's the switch, the connection itself, or the wiring to/from the switch.


----------



## Killsocket (Mar 16, 2018)

I just started to test mine. Not happy.

I charged battery. Put it in all the way. Flip switch and a motor sounds like it is running. I squeeze the handle and absolutely nothing happens. I look in the manual. I see "Unit runs but does not spray". Possible reason: Pump not primed. Correction: Activate shut off handle until liquid sprays out. Release handle and pump will shut off.

So. After sitting for five minutes waiting for liquid to come out.... Ready to return it and try something else.


----------



## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

Killsocket said:


> I just started to test mine. Not happy.
> 
> I charged battery. Put it in all the way. Flip switch and a motor sounds like it is running. I squeeze the handle and absolutely nothing happens. I look in the manual. I see "Unit runs but does not spray". Possible reason: Pump not primed. Correction: Activate shut off handle until liquid sprays out. Release handle and pump will shut off.
> 
> So. After sitting for five minutes waiting for liquid to come out.... Ready to return it and try something else.


So you have it turned on and it's making a sound the entire time but nothing sprays out?

Try tilting the unit about 30 degrees and spray for 
10 seconds.


----------



## Killsocket (Mar 16, 2018)

gatormac2112 said:


> Killsocket said:
> 
> 
> > I just started to test mine. Not happy.
> ...


Well, I have egg on my face. So, the story above is true. But went inside and started the return process through Amazon. Meanwhile, the unit is on my workbench full of about a gallon of water the whole time. After lunch, I figured I better dump the water and start drying it to send back. But first, I decide to plug the battery in again and try just one more time just in case, thinking I will just get the same result.

Well, now it sprays water and shuts off when the trigger isn't pulled and starts again when it is. I don't know much about how long it takes to priming the pump and I couldn't find any literature in the manual about it. But sitting with a gallon on my bench did something. 
Now. About to go kill some weeds!


----------



## gatormac2112 (Sep 14, 2017)

Killsocket said:


> gatormac2112 said:
> 
> 
> > Killsocket said:
> ...


Just so long as it's working! :thumbup:

If the pump ever doesn't stop when letting go of the trigger just tilt it while spraying and it will fix it. That rarely happens and only does right after filling it.

Happy spraying!


----------



## Killsocket (Mar 16, 2018)

@gatormac2112 Thanks for the tip. It's been a long week for me with almost nothing working right. Basement flood from cheap water connections, Echo trimmer strung backwards, then this. How happy I was that it worked and sprayed like a champ!


----------



## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

Now just wait until the pressure switch on the pump craps out with 10 gallons of Prodiamine mixed up... then you'll be ready to return it again. I just bypassed the switch completely, so I have to turn the switch on and off if I want to use the wand, but that's not big deal.

Be sure to keep the pickup screen clean, otherwise you'll lose pressure that way too.


----------



## chrismar (May 25, 2017)

I had the exact same problem with mine a couple of weeks ago. I got it all set up (even moved over my dfw_wand and better straps and padded back from my old sprayer) just to have it sit there and make noise with nothing coming out of the nozzle. I was mulling around trying to figure out the best way to deal with it since I had already moved over my wand, and I decided to try it "one last time", and viola, it worked!


----------



## jwz200 (Jan 17, 2019)

@Killsocket I had the same issue with my brand new out of the box Chapin 20 volt sprayer. Battery fully charged, filled with water, switch on, pump ran when handle pressed but nothing...tried for 10 minutes. Walked away and came back 20 minutes later a the thing magically started working...same process you went through.

Has your been working ok since you went through that? Trying to decide if this thing had/has a problem or not. Thanks


----------



## Killsocket (Mar 16, 2018)

@jwz200 It has been working like a champ without issues. I couldn't be happier with it so far. I used it pretty extensively as well. I put down blanket app weed killers, spot spray weed killer, fungicide twice, and multiple apps of N-Ext products. 
Very happy so far.


----------



## lawndoctor512 (Apr 21, 2019)

I have 7 or 8 of these sprayers at this point, and I have had trouble getting the pump primed on at least half of them. Until yesterday, the issue has always resolved itself by some combination of waiting (with trigger pulled), tilting, putting the backpack on and doing a jig, etc. Yesterday, I had one that didn't respond to any of those things. But I finally found a solution that should always work.

After trying all of the above with no success, I ended up removing the entire wand, including the shut-off valve. With the pump running, I created negative pressure in the hose (i.e. I sucked on it) until it became clear the pump was primed (the pump sound changed) and shortly after water was coming out of the hose.

I should probably preface this with: I learned long ago to get the sprayer operating with a couple of gallons of water only fearing that I would end up with a tank full of chem in a unit with a pump I couldn't get primed.


----------

