Becker Vacuum Pump on the decline

[BoilermakerAndy]

Hi everyone.

I bought a used 2016 PRSAlpha ATC back in mid April, which came with a Becker vacuum pump. In April/May, it was pulling about 10-12" of vacuum for a sheet of plywood, and about 15" for acrylic.

We've probably run the vacuum table about 20-30 hours per week since. Now, it's only giving me 5-6" vacuum on plywood, maybe 8-10" on acrylic.

If this is a maintenance/wear issue, would the performance deteriorate this quickly? Yes, I clean the filter.

[Red F]

Only thing that springs to mind, is I get alot of leakage around the perimeter of my spoilboard, and if it hasn't been surfaced in a while I see a drop in pressure.

Also when we are running cabinet grade plywood we get a better vacuum than when we run construction grade CDX

[coryatjohn]

Lots of seals in those pumps. I suspect one or more seals has given up the ghost and now is leaking prodigiously. I suggest running the pump and with a mechanic stethoscope ($15 on Amazon), listen for the leak. It will probably be obvious.

If you live in a decent size city, you should be able to find a place that can maintain that pump locally.