Correct pump for water line ?

[bcarwell]

I have a 1500 foot stretch of 1 1/2 inch pvc water line I just installed running from my residence pumphouse to a livestock water tank. I'm guessing the total rise from pumphouse to the tank might be 100 feet- hard to say since the slope is almost unperceptable.

Can somebody please suggest an appropriate self-priming electric pump that would work to fill the tank periodically- size, brand, sources where available, or other specs. I don't think my house water pressure (I'm guessing is only 30-40 psi) would cut it. I don't care what the GPM is since I'm just filling a 200 gallon stock tank.

A few other details. 220 vac is available. I have one spigot take off at about 800 feet for watering a garden but don't plan on needing any large pressure or flow for irrigation or whatever. I'd like to feed the pump with a 3/4 inch garden hosebib in the pumphouse for convenience just for now to avoid having to modify the house water supply PVC in the pumphouse.

I got a cheapo 1" pump (1/2 HP, 115 foot lift) at Horror Freight for only $37 that I thought might do, but when I got it home I found out it isn't self priming.

Thanks for any suggestions

 

[Egon]

If you have a pressurized suction on your pump it will prime itself.

 

[BXpanded]

You said you had 30 - 40 psi from your domestic system. You'll need 43 psi to raise water 100 feet. The lateral distance is irrelevant except for friction losses.
Use your domestic system as the supply for your pump (makes it a booster pump) If you pressure feed, it does not need to be self-priming. Your purchased pump has 115 foot lift capacity (50 PSI). With that pressure, added to your 30 psi domestic supply, you can move plenty of water and could go as high as 200 feet.

 

[mmurphy]

1500 feet is going to have a head loss depending on gpm.
Lets say you have a table saying 1.5 feet of headloss/100ft. at 10 gpm.
If reduced to 5 gpm, head loss is now .75.
1500 feet would require at 10gpm will require 22.5 extra feet of head pressure just to overcome friction losses. That does not include curves or other fittings.
This is made up figures, I do not have a chart or formula in front of me, but this is some information needed before selecting a pump. Just thought you may need to know before selecting pump.

 

[TO_Bud]

Hi Bob, I'm hoping that you're using potable water rated pvc pipe and not the stuff used for Drain, waste, vent pipe. The DWV stuff leaches chemicals into the water. I know you said it was just for cattle but you might not want to use the wrong pipe.

 

[mmurphy]

If you do run off your house, make sure you do not pump more then well out put.
You may need to check with your well company with getting a match fit. They may require finding static head of water line up to point where it goes in to tank. Static Head is the pressure of line filled with water. That will give you the elevation of your lift, or Static Head pressure. (static is no pump running)
The system you have now with figures you gave will not even push it up the to tank.

 

[EE_Bota]

I have a 1500 foot stretch of 1 1/2 inch pvc water line I just installed running from my residence pumphouse to a livestock water tank. I'm guessing the total rise from pumphouse to the tank might be 100 feet- hard to say since the slope is almost unperceptable.

Can somebody please suggest an appropriate self-priming electric pump that would work to fill the tank periodically- size, brand, sources where available, or other specs. I don't think my house water pressure (I'm guessing is only 30-40 psi) would cut it. I don't care what the GPM is since I'm just filling a 200 gallon stock tank.

A few other details. 220 vac is available. I have one spigot take off at about 800 feet for watering a garden but don't plan on needing any large pressure or flow for irrigation or whatever. I'd like to feed the pump with a 3/4 inch garden hosebib in the pumphouse for convenience just for now to avoid having to modify the house water supply PVC in the pumphouse.

I got a cheapo 1" pump (1/2 HP, 115 foot lift) at Horror Freight for only $37 that I thought might do, but when I got it home I found out it isn't self priming.

Thanks for any suggestions

Hi, you have some good responses already, but I only wish to remind you to watch your sanitation issues. Be very sure there is no possibility of the well getting contaminated from the stock tank. You have probably already got all that covered, but I'm just saying..

 

[E/S]

Why bump the pressure up with another pump?
Why not turn your domestic system pressure up to 45# or 50# ?

 

[bcarwell]

Thanks for all the helpful replies.
Its potable SCH 40 pvc. Thanks for the sanitation reminder, I'm putting a backflow valve in.
I don't want to just bump the existing house pressure to 50# or so, as I don't trust the pvc house plumbing.
I assume a pump will prime itself with "pressurized suction" doesn't have to do with a particular type pump having this capability, but just means if you have pressurized water at the input pump (like in my case water coming from a garden spigot as opposed to the ditch or a basement) a pump will prime itself even if it has a priming hole in the top with instructions how to prime it. Correct ? If so, that's great and I'll keep my Harbor Freight pump and didn't know that.
I assume there's no problem in at least trying first with the existing pressure, then with the booster HF pump. As I said I have no clue exactly what the rise is I'm looking at- it could be as little as 20 or 40 feet elevation to the water trough. Hard to tell over a 1500 foot run.
I'll look up the table and see what kind of head loss I'm looking at in SCH 40 @ 10 GPM. Thanks.
Not sure I understand the post about pumping more than the well output. I just have a 200 gallon livestock trough at the end with a float valve. When the cattle drink at any given time the water is on just to replenish what they drink. If you mean I need to calculate what the standing "column" is of water in the pvc providing backpressure to the pump to see what I have to overcome from that plus the headloss from the flow and angles as MMurphy has suggested, I understand.
FWIW the spigot I intend to use at the well house is between the pressure tank and the water treatment (salt tablet) equipment which then goes to the house. The pressure tank is filled directly from a 1500 gallon tank which is filled from the well pump.
Thanks again for all your help.

Bob

 

[mmurphy]

You probably will be fine then with setup as you are saying. Is the 1500 gal tank pressurized? ..... That will reduce your Total head if suction of your other pump is basicly hooked to it.....What I was worried about for you was if you were trying to pump more then pressure tank and well would be able to keep up with. You may even want to have a throttle valve on discharge assuming we are still talking centrifugal pump... Just make sure open with no restrictions on suction side....Sorry long night at work, hope I am making sense, time to get some sleep!!