Choosing the right technical tools for your work is a tricky job. It gets all the more complicated if you are not well-versed in the specifications required. As a result, there are higher chances you may buy wrong or inappropriate tools and lose your money. However, it is also not viable to instantly seek the needed knowledge from a professional. For your help and better understanding, we have drawn out a summarized guide for your ease, stating the things you need to account for while buying a water pump.
Water pumps are mechanical devices used to move water from one space to another. Examples may include pumping water from ground wells for personal use, sucking water from areas in cases of flooding, sprinkler pumps for your garden, etc.
Even though water pumps may seem like a simple thing to buy, you should not overlook a few essential aspects. Here’s a list of a few basic things that you should know while purchasing water pumps:
- The Usage of the Water Pump:
The first and foremost factor you need to decide before your purchase is applying the water pump. The usage will pretty much define the further specifications you will require. Some of the typical applications for a water pump include:
- Sprinkler pumps which are useful to water gardens or lawns
- Well pumps for deep or shallow wells dug up for personal use
- Booster pumps for enhancing the pressure of water
- Trash pumps which are useful to move vast amounts of contaminated water
- Dewatering pumps are useful to transport clean water from one space to another.
- Submersible Utility pumps for different water removal usages
The usage will help you establish the kind of water pump you will have to purchase and its corresponding technical specifications.
- Electrical Or Gas Which One Do You Need?
Electrical water pumps are ideal for indoor usage. However, gas water pumps are more powerful in function. Most electric water pumps would need a standard outlet of 120V. You will also need to operate an electric water pump in proximity to an electric outlet so that the wire can easily reach the workstation. Therefore, if your working needs require portability, it is more accurate to purchase a gas-powered water pump.
Gas-powered water pumps require high maintenance, such as periodic oil changes, pressure tank troubleshooting and services, etc. They also produce carbon monoxide emissions, which makes it inevitable to keep it indoors. These types of pumps can transport up to 750 gallons of water per minute. It proves that gas-powered water pumps are best for job-sites or irrigation purposes at farms that call for heavy-duty pumping.
- The Flow Rate (GPM):
Now that you are sure about the usage and the kind of pump you need let us jump onto the next most crucial aspect: the flow rate. Each water pump has a specific water flow rate, which is measurable in terms of GPM. Gallons per minute or GPM measures the time taken by a water pump to transport a certain amount of water from one place to another. If we talk about water pumps required for personal use, such as in a household, a pump with approximately 40GPM will correctly do the job.
However, if we consider getting a water pump for a farm, one with a capacity of around 650GPM will best fit the job description since farms require heavy pumping. Here you will have to keep in mind the usage that we defined in the first step and conclude the appropriate water pump according to the use.
- The Total Head Lift (THL) and Suction Head (SH):
When talking about water pumping, one thing that you should not forget is the total head lift. That is the distance the water has to cover to reach the destination from the source. You can also say that this value will give the estimated power the pump would need to transport the water over a said distance.
Furthermore, the suction head is also an essential factor to remember when buying a water pump. The suction head will give you the vertical distance the water pump can suction water across. So, let’s say you need to pull water from a pond, 70 meters deep. You will need a water pump with a more significant suction head than 70 meters to do the job adequately. If you fail to get one, the water pressure would be zero, making your pump useless. The higher the distance between the source and the destination, the greater power the pump would require fighting off gravity and pulling out water.
- The Inlet and Outlet Size:
The size of the inlet on your water pump would tell you the amount of water the pump can suck in and transfer. The inlet valve pulls the water in and gets discharged through the outlet valve. So, for example, a 5-inch inlet valve can do the job faster than a 2-inch inlet valve since it has more capacity and a larger size. Most commonly, the inlet sizes you would find would fall somewhere between 1-6 inches, but they can also be more prominent in rare cases.
Conclusion:
When buying technical tools and pieces of machinery, it is essential to be well-aware of your requirements to not make the wrong purchase and waste your hard-earned money. Remember the pointers we have mentioned above, and you are all set to make an informed water pump choice the next time you need one.
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