Water Pump Customers

At some point, every pump will reach a point of failure and no longer be serviceable. It doesn’t matter whether it was a $500 pump or a $5,000 pump. Nothing lasts forever. While we all know this, we don’t typically plan for failure. Especially if you are a glass half full person!

What is often not considered when purchasing a pump is the cost of down time in your production process when a pump fails. Having two water pumps can prevent loss of time and money during an otherwise less than productive period. 

Below are a few things to consider that may help you when purchasing a backup pump:

1. When the cost of production down time is greater than the cost of a second pump, purchase a backup.

I don’t think a day goes by here at Absolute Water Pumps where someone does not call in search of a new water pump, with a sense of complete urgency in their voice. How soon do they need it? Usually, the day after yesterday!

What many fail to understand is that depending on the type and style of your pump, there is often a lead time involved in a water pump purchase (from either days to weeks). Not every pump is sitting on a shelf and ready to be shipped. Larger pumps are typically built to the customer’s specifications and require, even under the perfect conditions, a number of days to complete assembly on the production floor.

When purchasing a water pump, ask yourself a few questions: For every day this water pump will not be in operation, how much will it cost us as a company? How much will I be paying in labor for employees to stand around? What losses will we incur due to a lack of production? If the answer is more than the cost of the pump itself, perhaps you should consider a second, backup water pump.  

2. You may need to convince the powers that be that a backup pump is your insurance policy.

Insurance is hot topic these days! But put very simply, insurance is way to minimize your risk. Think of having a backup pump as your insurance policy. Sometimes, the person responsible for authorizing payments at a business needs to hear it in those terms. You as the pump buyer may be fully convinced of the wisdom in having a backup pump, because you understand the implications of your down time when that pump is not in operation.

What you may need to do is convey this clearly to the person who authorizes purchases at your company. Let them understand that the second pump is so that you never go more than a day (sometimes only an hour or two depending on your installation crew) with production being down due to a pump failure. Paint the picture for them!

3. Purchase one pump now, and a backup a few months down the road.

If you are replacing a pump with an identical pump that has worked perfectly for your application, then go ahead and purchase two right away. If you are upgrading or switching brands, then purchase a pump now, see how well it performs, and when you are fully confident, purchase a second as a backup a few months later. This will give you the full assurance that in the future, all your bases are covered. 

4. What about the mechanical seals of a pump if they sit on a shelf too long?

One concern many people have with a backup pump is having it sit unused for a long period of time and having the seal material dry out. Most mechanical seals can be shelved for five years if they are stored properly with no problems.

This means storing the pump (mechanical seals and O-rings) in a room temperature environment (40-80F) with a humidity below 70%. Also, keep them free of all forms of radiation, especially sunlight, as well as other contaminates such as pumped products, copper, oils, and other solvents.

5. For larger, more costly pumps, purchase a mechanical seal kit and O-rings and store them as your backup.

Let’s face it, many large pumps can be expensive and it is unrealistic to purchase two pumps. For smaller pumps, often the cost of a new pump is a better bet than trying to “rebuild the pump”.

For large horsepower water pumps, you can purchase and store backup mechanical seals and O-rings for a fraction of the total price. This effectively becomes your insurance policy. Though it will not solve other failures, you are alleviating smaller maintenance which needs to occur on a pump by replacing the mechanical seal kit.

Our recommendation would be after a few years, replace the seals and O-rings preemptively and either purchase a new set to become your backup and/or begin preparing for a pump replacement in the future. 

While we only sell pumps we believe are designed with the highest quality and manufactured for years of reliable service, let’s face it, overtime things break. The question is, are you prepared for that day? Do you have your insurance policy in place?

Make yourself the company hero, because you planned for the inevitable day when you hear the words: “We have a problem!” 

Absolute Water Pumps has a variety of payment methods, including ACH transfers. Give us a call today so we can help pair you with the perfect pump for your application!

Many people who live in rural areas or on farms know of the absolute necessity of having a Fire Fighting Pump on hand. No matter how quick the response of local firefighters, precious time can be lost while waiting for someone else to put out a fire. Especially one that could spread quickly in a fire-prone place such as a barn or storage area.

Even those who live in more urban areas could find a fire pump handy in the event of being cut off from the municipal water supply – so long as there is a pool, pond or other water source nearby.

Many fire pumps are sold as “fire and pump” packages, with suction and fire hoses included for your convenience. With a little research, however, you can likely find the right combination of hoses to use rather than having to rely on someone else’s pre-determined choices.

Fire pumps generally consist of a portable gasoline engine that powers a high-pressure pump. The entire apparatus is usually installed in a roll cage; some units are best used in conjunction with a dolly or other piece of equipment that can facilitate mobility.

The size of fire pump that you choose will depend in part on the kind of terrain it will be used to protect. Properties with tall trees, steep slopes and salt-water swimming pools will require additional or different forms of power in order to stage an appropriate defense against fire. If you are not sure what size pump will best fit your needs, please feel free to contact one of our experts for more information.

Under many circumstances, first responders from your local fire department can make use of your fire pump and hose setup in addition to relying on their own equipment. It is best to notify the local fire department chief or captain as to the presence and availability of your fire pump, and to suggest that they make use of it in the event that you are not at home when an emergency occurs. You and your neighbors could also consider making advance plans to share firefighting resources.

There are certain situations when the best way to remove water is to go with a submersible pump. One classic scenario: Your basement has taken on water and you are able to access the flooded area through an outside window well. By lowering a rope-tethered submersible pump through the window well, you may very well be able to begin extracting water without having to wade directly into the basement or risk exposing the electrical connections of your pump.

When trying to determine which kind of submersible pump to use, ask yourself whether you will be removing only water, or water with solids—including debris and sand. If pumping out clean water only, then you will need an Electric Submersible Clean-Water Pump. If pumping out solids, then select an Electric Submersible Trash Pump.

Submersible Clean Water Pumps are very versatile machines. They can remove standing water, drain out window wells and de-water clogged sinks or tubs. The pump’s inlet size will determine the speed at which you can move the water. Naturally, the more water that a pump can process through its inlet, the quicker it can move it to a drain area or other place where it will do no harm. Submersibles with a float switch can automate the use, since the float will turn the pump on and off without your having to supervise it. Depending on the nature of your project and the amount of time invested, having a float switch could make your life a lot easier.

A Submersible Trash Pump would be the right choice if, say, your home was to be flooded and the water is tainted by sand and silt. Relying on heavy duty impellers, these pumps expel water and debris through the use of centrifugal force. They tend to be more expensive than utility pumps, but they are absolutely the way to go if you need to remove dirty water.

We recently consulted with a client looking to purchase a trash pump he would utilize to manage an ongoing dewatering issue on a specific construction site. He planned to continue to utilize the pump in future dewatering situations throughout his diverse construction company field operations far beyond his present needs as well.

His first questions to us focused on simply how much water he had to deal with. He came with just the right information for use to set out in helping him determine the best pump for his application. He knew the pond acreage which essentially is a measure of the surface area we were going to have to consider. He also had and estimated depth of the lake or pond he was going to have to dewater. Based upon that information our calculations provided us the gallons of water he had to deal with. There are many helpful on-line pond or lake calculators available. We find these sites to be simple and helpful: Pond Volume Calculator or LakeLawnAndPond

With the gallons in hand we were now able to estimate the time to drain his present pond by dividing by gallons per minute discharge capacity of each pump he was considering. Though simply and estimate of the theoretical time it would take him to empty his pond, this calculation gave us a rough order of time investment he would have to figure in manning his pump until the pond was dry. Generally, the lower the GPM and investment level equated to a longer time until dry, while the greater investment and discharge capacity meant a speedier time to drain the pond.

The question was asked if you could leave the pump unmanned and the likely outcome if the pump were to lose prime (or quit pumping water because the suction hose lost back pressure after being removed from the water source) or if the engine were allowed to run out of fuel while pumping. We always frown on these two situations because of the damage that can and will be caused to the pump. There are auto starting and stopping pumps, like Multiquip’s ActivePrime series of pumps that utilize a float system that allows a pump to be remotely operated and turned on and off based upon the water levels of the dewatering area. Though many pump operators may allow their pumps to run out of fuel, our engine manufactures will not endorse this kind of operation. Warranty claims due to such operations will likely be declined.

The operator also had solids content to consider during his pump operations. He was convinced that material of 1-2 inches were likely to be passed through the pump and thus he had easily concluded on the need for a 4-6 inch trash pump which in most cases have no problems handling such materials.

The questions now remained about how he would man the pump during dewatering and if he could justify the price point of a quicker dewatering situation or if he could handle a little more time consuming operation at a more affordable price point.

Given the work hours of his field foreman and superintendents and their availability to man the pumps during the work day, he felt dropping down to the 4 inch pump from 6 inches would be a cost effective solution that still allowed him to dewater at an acceptable rate. He did accommodate for a full day run time though by making sure the trailer mounted pump had a fuel cell that allowed him to run at least a continuous 12 hours. Many of the trailer mounted diesel trash pumps have continuous run times of well over 20 hours thus surpassing most work day hours.

Because of his pond’s capacity, he was looking at over a week’s worth of pumping to totally dewater his pond. For many, this is unacceptable due to the urgency around the work that dewatering may delay or postpone. For some in emergency dewatering situations, the only option is the absolute fastest and largest capacity pumps.

The above narrative is something we walk through on a daily basis with our customers at Absolute Water Pumps. Each contractor, municipality or other organization has their unique situation to consider. At the end of the day we simply enjoy equipping our clients with the most cost effective dewatering solution for their application and budget.

Give us a call at 888-264-2189 or start reviewing our available pumps for your application by clicking here.