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Accusump advice?
-matt - 18/5/13 at 11:18 AM

Im in the progress of fitting a 3qt accusump to my 08 R1 Indy.

It's got the standard electric valve, which I will have wired to a switch on dash, which I will only really have turned on while on track.

Now I don't 100% understand how these things work, from my understanding of how they work is it right that if I was on throttle and oil pressure was around 80psi, then I take the foot off the gas to slow down and pressure goes to around 40psi, would it then start discharging oil?

Or at what point will it discharge?

As don't want to find that as the oil pressure changes that it's constantly discharging oil?


My other thought is to fit a oil pressure switch, connected to a relay, so it only turned the accusump on below this pressure? Similar to the EPC valve?


Can anyone give me any advice on how I should run it?

Cheers

richiekuk - 18/5/13 at 01:44 PM

http://cantonracing.blogspot.co.uk/2010/04/how-accusump-works.html

This is quite a good explanation

deezee - 18/5/13 at 02:00 PM

The Accusump is pressurised (by you) to a pressure of your choice. You just follow the install instructions, its easy. When the pressure in the engine is lower than the accusump it pushes oil into the engine. When the pressure in the engine is greater than the accusump, it is refilled.

Jon Ison - 18/5/13 at 04:10 PM

I use the electric valve also on mine, prefer it to manual, why ?

It only (in my case) discharges if/when the oil pressure drops below 30psi, with a permanently open manual valve it will constantly match the engine oil pressure, I also use it to pre oil the engine prior to starting up, got to be a good thing ?

deezee - 18/5/13 at 04:42 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Jon Ison
I use the electric valve also on mine, prefer it to manual, why ?

It only (in my case) discharges if/when the oil pressure drops below 30psi, with a permanently open manual valve it will constantly match the engine oil pressure, I also use it to pre oil the engine prior to starting up, got to be a good thing ?


I don't think you understand how the system works. You set a precharge on the reservoir. No oil leaves the accusump until the engine pressure drops below this precharge. The electric valve just saves you forgetting the valve s open and turning off he engine. Obviously the engine pressure will fall to zero and the accusump will discharge.

If you follow the instructions it is very easy. Remember that even Canton only recommend an electric valve for light road use. For track days/racing, they recommend manual valve. The electric valve is slow for refilling and isn't recommended for track use.

Jon Ison - 18/5/13 at 05:09 PM

Fully understand how it works, the "pre charge" I set mine at 7psi ensures the accusump fully discharges all its charge and nothing more.

The later electric valve think they call it EPC (I have a 30psi one) only allows flow into the accusump when engine oil pressure is above 30psi, and only allows flow back to the engine when pressure engine side drops below 30psi, you can specify different valves that open at lower or higher pressures. Now the old simple open/closed electric valve is a different story and you are correct slower to fill than a manual valve which isn't the end of the world as it allows engine oil pressure to build more quickly than a wide open manual valve, discharge is not restricted.

If you put for example 40psi "pre charge" pressure into the accusump and the engine generated no more than 40psi then no oil would ever enter it and you may as well not bother with one at all, it's never going fill even if engine oil pressure gets up to 80psi as the first 40psi is lost just getting equal pressure each side.

[Edited on 18/5/13 by Jon Ison]

deezee - 18/5/13 at 05:40 PM

LOL, I'm quite clearly teaching you to suck eggs!

Jon Ison - 18/5/13 at 05:53 PM

Not only that if you read my reply you may want to adjust your pre charge

bigfoot4616 - 18/5/13 at 06:02 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Jon Ison

The later electric valve think they call it EPC (I have a 30psi one) only allows flow into the accusump when engine oil pressure is above 30psi


i'm sure i read in the instructions for the EPC valve that it slow filled below the pressure switch psi and then rapid filled above it.

when i first fired my system up last week the accusump pressure went up and so i guess filling with oil at idle pressure.

bi22le - 18/5/13 at 09:07 PM

I have an accusump with a manual valve and never turn it off. Its on and only fiddle with it during oil changes.

mark chandler - 18/5/13 at 10:04 PM

^^^^

Same here, only use the tap to lock it when full so I can set the correct oil level in the engine, after that its open full time.

Got fed up faffing about and forgetting to turn it on.

[Edited on 18/5/13 by mark chandler]

-matt - 18/5/13 at 11:56 PM

Thanks guys, I'm thinking I might aswell ditch the electric valve and just install a manual one. I've read that the electric ones are very slow at filling aswell.

I'm guessing there is nothing special about the canton manual valve? And I can just fit any ball valve?


As for just leaving it on constantly, would it not be quite bad to start the engine with an extra 3 qts of oil in the sump?

The alternative I'm thinking would be to fit the valve inside the car with accusump under bonnet?

mark chandler - 19/5/13 at 07:38 AM

It's just a simple 1/2" ball valve, if you want a remote then make something with a choke cable.

Yes engine starts heavily overfilled and the pump has to work hard to fill both the journals and the accusump but at least you discharge the accusump fully so the oil fill is replenished.

I know mine works and is doing something as it gets very hot on the track

bigfoot4616 - 19/5/13 at 03:49 PM

quote:
Originally posted by -matt
I've read that the electric ones are very slow at filling aswell.



which is why canton state the basic electric valve is only for pre-oiling not surge protection, you need the EPC valve for that as that will fast fill above the pressure your switch is at.