Whenever I put a thermostat in, I always boil it on the stove to make sure
it opens. If it opens before the water boils, I can assume it's good. I
actually blew up a pickup truck once with a brand spanking new, and bad,
thermostat.
But, the main reason I posted... I have a question.
Instead of putting the motor in a barrel, could you put a set of 'ears' on
it? Would that show you if you have a blockage or not? If you put the ears
on and turn on the hose and water comes out the pee hole, will that tell you
the impeller is not working?
More of a question than an answer, I'm afraid.
Ron