Water Pumps

[Hornell]

I want to pump water from my large pond at the back of my property some 140 metres to a large concrete tank in the walled and raised part of it, from where I will pipe the water to the places I need it - this latter part is not the problem. I do not want to situate the pump by the pond because a) it will get nicked and I would have to run a power cable up there. I therefore want to put the pump behind my wall beside the water tank and adjacent to a power point. Question: I need a pump that sucks water rather than pushes it. Suggestions gratefully received.

[steveG]

I recon the best thing to do is to build a secure enclosure for the pump near to the pond and just run the electric to it even if you have to use a flexible cable and just connect it when pumping is required and then remove it once pumping has been done.

If you want to do as you suggest the key questions which need to be answered are:-

What is the level difference between the pump location and pond lowest level.

What is the distance between pond and pump

What flow rate is required

Only then will you be able to determine the type and specification of the pump.

[Hornell]

Thanks steveG; to answer the qs: a) probably no more than 2 m, as stated, some 140 m, c) don't care as I am only topping up/filling a 15,000 l concrete tank situated at ground level.

yes, I have considered putting the pump by the pond, but am reluctant to do so for the reasons I mentioned. May have to if I can't get a good 'sucker' pump!

[nev]

You can get portable pumps that run on fuel that they use on farms, we have a couple, you could get the pump out fill up your tank and them take back to the shed, another way is having a long hose from the pump that is situated so not to be stolen, we have a bore pump and we can pump to 100 meters quiet easily.

[kamalabob2]

You could buy a solar pump for a pond that is portable. You could ask in person to the Mitsubishi technical representative who speaks and understands English at the Buriram Home and Garden show starting next Friday at the Buriram Builders Merchants. Certainly the owner of most any "pump shop" could answer your questions in person and show you pumps to meet you rneeds and in your budget.

[ksamuiguy]

We have many locations using wells that are as far as 300 meters away from the tank.

We use a pump that cost 2,200 baht, never had one fail because of the application, low voltage, yes the Cap blows, Foot valve fails the pump seal goes.

Also need to be covered (loosely) to keep sun off and rain out!

The key is the closer to the water source you are the better the operation will be. A suction line of many meters is asking for problems.

"The Little Red Pump" buy 2 keep one around for emergencies.

If you put the pump other than at the source you won't have to worry about theft, you will be replacing it often anyway.

[tom21]

pump with a suction of 140 meters. the words that come to mind are (you must be joking). run the pipe and cable underground to the pond. you can get pumps that will do the job from about 1200thb < remember you get what you pay for. if you are worried about loosing the pump you can set it up so you can remove it when not in use. the big cost is the cable and pipe the pumps are quite cheap

[farmerjo]

Google up suction head to find the pump you require.

140 metres of suction hose will be expensive unless you can find a roll of thick walled poly pipe suitable.

Probably need access to a small sumbmercible to prime it.

I made the mistake of setting up a 3/2 centrifugal pump on a dam bank with no head to pump,but the suction head was 12 mteres and after lots of buckets of water priming found out the pump was only good for 6 metres suction head.

[LennyW]

Google "self priming suction pump" loads of info out there.

[gerry123]

to sum it up PUSH easy suck/pull not so easy if your overall plan is reaching the boundaries of pumping water consider the plan again and

explore the opportunities of getting a water source nearer the the intended destination pushing the limits will end in poor performance

[Daffy D]

Friend of the wife has a smallholding and uses a small petrol powered pump to suck from a 6mt deep well and about 100Mts along the ground to a small tank.

A couple of points with a long suck.

The pump and all the piping needs to be primed. This can be tricky over the distance as it takes a lot of water to fill all the pipes.

Be sure to use a good reliable non return valve at well bottom or you'll be forever priming the pump.

Be sure to use quality pipe for the suction. The flexible pipe with wire reinforcement is Ok as is the thick blue pipe. Do not use the thinner, cheaper blue pipe as this is will be sucked flat by the pump.

[Gumballl]

It's been years (more than 20) that I had to deal with a pump drawing water from a body of water, but the pump I had was located next to my home, was a 1.5HP electric pump that drew water from a brackish water canal 50ft (17m) away. The pump was used for lawn irrigation purposes.

The key is to have a check-valve that prevents water from flowing back from the pump back to the source of water. Second, you need to prime the pump with water (e.g. using a water hose) before you start it. You also will want to place a filter on the end of the pipe (I used PVC schedule-20) so that 'crap' from the body of water is not pulled into the pump. The pipe I had was buried underground with the exception of the part that reached into the water.

I would imagine that an irrigation pump and PVC piping are available at your local hardware store.

[steveG]

recon your best bet is petrol driven skid mounted pump with a long length of flexible pipe or blue plastic pipe run underground. If blue plastic pipe overground consider using screwed connections so that you can remove the pipe once pumping has been completed.

Somebody above recommended going to a store and asking them - With the information you supplied above they should be able to assist with the correct pump for your application.

[Gonsalviz]

If you were to use a good check valve, would that not stop the water from emptying the line. A check valve at each end would surely work.

[Daffy D]

A point when pumping from a pond is not to get the intake clogged with debris or to suck air when the level drops.

A simple way to avoid both is to have the intake floating suspended some inches below the water level. A flexible section of pipe at the pond end with an empty plastic container holding the intake valve just below the surface will do the trick.

The intake valve will rise and fall with the level of the pond and always get the clean water.

[Hornell]

Thanks to all for help and suggestions. I now have a pretty good idea of what I need to do, which would seem to be to site a pump as securely as possible beside my pond. A lot of useful advice here, thanks again.

[Gonsalviz]

We had a pump mounted (in Thailand) near the irrigation pond on a cement pad with a steel cage secured by a lock. That and 100 meters of cable disappeared one night,

[kamalabob2]

It must be possible in other provinces of Thailand, where a "water pump shop" who sell large municipal and commercial Italian water pumps also sell inexpensive brushless DC 24 volt water pumps powered by solar panels that can be moved each day. Irrigation water for crops drawn from a river, a pond or a well is not rocket science and it can and is powered by mobile solar panel installations in Buriram Province. You could speak English to the Thai - Chinese owner of Ruangsangthai builders merchants in Buriram or with his British Solar department manager in person in Buriram at the Buriram Home Garden Expo Event Open Day next week. You can speak English with the Buriram Netafim irrigation representative in person at the Buriram Home Expo February 13th through February 17th while enjoying free Pizza from Roma Pizza cooked at the Builders Merchants. There must be other family owned water pump shops in other parts of Isaan where the owner can speak English and is familiar with pumping water in an inexpensive and safe manner for crop irrigation. I know where my wife got her Schaefer Franklin well pump and netafim garden and crop irrigation drip system for a village in Buriram and it was not at an air conditioned modern trade store that sold furniture and curtains.

[Hornell]

Yup Kamalabob2, thanks for your last and I noted your previous post. I thought I'd drop in to the show in Buriram over the Chinese new Year (!) I'm pretty clear what I need to do now, but it would be interesting to talk to the boss at Ruangsangthai and find out his views. All I have done so far is to dig a 150 metre trench ready for pipes! I like the idea of a solar powered pump.

[kamalabob2]

I've been told that Mr. Paul and Mr. Pichai will be both near the Buriram Solar Booth and that water pumps and motors powered by the solar panels set up by the staff of Ruangsangthai will be operating during the February 13th through February 17th Expo. The CEO of Hitachi Power Tools will be at Ruangsangthai on Friday February 13th with three female technical advisors in unique uniforms. Better those women in the Hitachi Uniforms than the native English speaking solar booth staff. Mr. Pichai has a REAL depth of knowledge of water pumps and irrigation, but he defers to a native English speaker with many more years experience in the solar field for proper solar plans in my observation.

[tom21]

if you are going to put the pump near the water i would like to make 2 suggestions 1/ run 4 wires 2 for power and 2 if you want to set up level control in the tank (now or later). 2/ instead of a plug , fit a junction box near the pump and hard wire the pump. makes would be thieves think twice

[edd]

Why not build your tank near the pond but high up say 6 or 7 meters up so when needed you could take a petrol powered removable pump to too it.

This way gravity will do the delivery for you.

And you can not get Robbed

Edited February 8, 2015 by edd

[kamalabob2]

If you have any questions regarding water pumps I believe that Mr. Rattawut Chaola the Mitsubishi Fan and Water Pump marketing supervisor or Mr. Artit Manubrud the Deputy Department Manager of Fans and Water Pump for Mitsubishi Electric and the other technical team members of Kang Yong Electric Public Company Limited who are in Buriram for the Buriram Home Expo would be most helpful. They worked today with Mr. Pichai on the Mitsubishi water pump display booth for the Expo starting this Friday and gave advise on a water pump repair procedure to the manager of the only authorized Mitsubishi water pump repair service center in Buriram for free warranty repairs. The same water pump shop has fixed my Mitsubishi WP-305 Water Pump during and after the five year warranty period. Mr. Artit Manubrud assured me that Mitsubishi would have deep well submersible well pumps, submersible pumps used in ponds, land pumps and super pumps on display in Buriram with staff who can answer questions in English.