Sorry, I posted this in the IDI 7.3 section on accident, so this is kinda a repost

Truck started running bad while driving, like it was running out of fuel. I pulled over and the fuel pump was super hot and not turning on. Made sure it was bad by opening bowl valve and cycling key, got no fuel.
Got a new pump from autozone (airtex) hooked it up wrong (neg/pos cables backwards) didn't work, put test hoses on each side of it to try and suck fuel from a glass and that didn't work so I took it back, went to o reilys and got another (airtex again), got home hooked it up the same way (backwards, still didn't realize), this time I tried the test hoses first, didn't work. Took it back went to another place, got yet again an airtex, this time before hooking it up I noticed the +/- symbols I had missed before, thought my problems were solved, hooked it up straight to the truck fuel lines this time thinking I was golden, nothing.
Disconnected and hooked my test hoses back up, put the tank side into a glass of fuel and the other in a bucket, cycled key 4 times and didn't suck a drop, only thing it did was bubbled back when it shut off.
I then put hose from the outlet side into the glass of fuel, it was bubbling air the whole time running, as if it would work with fuel, but it doesn't.

It seems like these things need to be gravity fed, but thats impossible given our trucks have a tube from the top of the fuel tank to the bottom to "pick up" or "suck" the fuel from, this thing should suck right!?
What is going on here!? I'm going crazy, please help

EDIT: I also checked the power, once yesterday and once just now, got good power

 

Did you hear the Airtex pumps running? Not sure you said. If its not running its not pumping.

Have you done the intank mods in the fuel tank? Its hard to believe that three new pumps failed one after the other.

I replaced my OEM fuel pump, with an Airtex pump, a month or so ago. No problems with it so far.

Have you got it running yet?

 

They all ran, well made noise like they are running but just none of them will actually suck fuel from one end and deliver it out the other. I am using test tubes at this point, not even connected to truck fuel lines, but no I have not done any in tank mods, but thats not the problem here
I don't know what to do next besides somehow setting up a way to gravity feed the pump (funnel into end of line going to tank side of pump) and see if it works that way, but then again i don't know what good that would do cause the pumps in our trucks need to be able to suck fuel up the pick up tube and like I said these are not sucking a drop, none of them.
I was thinking maybe it needs gravity fed just to get started, but no way I can fill the fuel line going to the pump from the tank with fuel, thats nearly impossible, and no way that is how it is suppose to be done, the book doesn't mention anything about doing that either.

 

That's weird. Any chance you can post a pic of your test setup?

 

I am using the trucks power since I already know its good, but without hooking the trucks fuel lines up, instead I'm hooking up my own short lines just long enough for the tank side to run to a glass of diesel and the other one to an empty bucket. Here are some pictures
I have the hose on the right going to a bucket and the hose on the left going to the glass of fuel.

 

After I did my in-tank mods, my old crusty OEM pump easily sucked the fuel up through my new hoses, fittings, and filter and quickly filled the bowl in the engine compartment - so any fuel pump you have should be able to do this.

If your pump cannot suck fuel 1' high out of a test bucket of diesel, then there's something wrong with the pump, or you are confusing the input and output of the pump (no insult intended - this stuff happens under trucks!)

 

no insult taken, I did confuse the positive and negative on the first couple pumps so I can definately screw up, but nope I tried sucking the other direction as well, it just blows

I just called airtex, they say if its running it should be sucking flat out unless polarity is reversed (pos/negative).
he suggested reversing polarity and see what that does cause it should be pumping, I didn't want to tell him Im an idiot and accidentally already did that but ya I did that on the first two pumps and they ran but didn't suck any fluid.

I think I'm going try a different brand

 

Isn't there an fuel pump relay involved here?

 

The first two pumps may have been good but you wouldn't know if they were wired reversed. Just the third one is bad.

 

Remember this is a fuel pump not an air pump. Prime the pump and hoses with fuel first, then see if it will suck the fuel out of your container. Things designed to pump a liquid don't pump air that well.

 

They will self prime quite easy. No need to prime anything.

To the OP. You do understand that if the truck is not running the fuel pump will only stay on for about 20 seconds at best. Then it turns off.

Other then that I would say you got one bad pump, and lots of experance swapping pumps.

I run Walbros without issue.

 

ya they need to prime themselves...after taking your fuel pump out you don't have fuel in the tank line...how would you fill that line?
yes i realize it shuts off, very easily heard.
anyways
whoever said third times the charm was wrong, 4th fuel pump was the charm, ended up with napa's and runs like new
ya probably right, first two might have been ok, but
What a lesson, Airtex sucks (but not literally)