Well pump for irrigation pressure issues.

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Steve Lumplow

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I recently installed a new well pump when my 30+ year old Goulds 1/2 HP pump lost pressure after a melt down. I installed a Goulds GT10 irri-gator. The sole purpose of this pump is to run my irrigation. For some reason I just cannot get the pressure up. (insert cialis joke here) The heads run but barely. I have investigated a bladder tank but I am unsure if this makes sense given that this pump will run about 2 hours per day continuously and then off. I have read a few places that the pump runs more efficiently if it is pushing against a little pressure and that may be the issue here.

My questions are:
- Is a bladder tank a reasonable solution to this issue?
- If so what size would be reasonable?
 

LLigetfa

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A pressure tank won't help.

The theory that a pump works better against pressure applies to jet pumps. You don't have a jet pump.
 

WorthFlorida

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For irrigation a pressure tank is not need nor wanted and your replacement pump is an excellent unit. Since you went from a 1/2 hp to 3/4 hp or larger, your well may not be able to supply enough water. What is the size of your well pipe, pump model number, horsepower and voltage you're running the pump on? Do you know your static water level? For South Florida it is only about 5-10 feet below grade. What happened with the original pump, was it a electrical motor issue where the pump motor just wore out?
 
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LLigetfa

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Assuming you have the 3/4 HP model, it has the following performance characteristics. We need to know from what depth it draws and how many GPM the heads use. As shown, at 25 feet suction, it puts out 14 GPM at 30 PSI.

Maybe what caused the old pump to melt down is preventing the new pump from performing well.
 

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Steve Lumplow

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For irrigation a pressure tank is not need nor wanted and your replacement pump is an excellent unit. Since you went from a 1/2 hp to 3/4 hp or larger, your well may not be able to supply enough water. What is the size of your well pipe, pump model number, horsepower and voltage you're running the pump on? Do you know your static water level? For South Florida it is only about 5-10 feet below grade. What happened with the original pump, was it a electrical motor issue where the pump motor just wore out?

I suppose well level is about the only thing I cannot account for as I do not have a reasonable method to assess this. I am in St. Petersburg florida and the nearest aquifer level is about 25 miles away and showing 25 feet. The well pipe is 1 and 1/4".

The heads are saturn II by orbit, and I am running 3-4 heads per zone. Which used to work perfectly with a smaller pump.

The pump is running at 240 volts and it has 14G wiring, which I reused from the previous pump.
 
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Steve Lumplow

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Assuming you have the 3/4 HP model, it has the following performance characteristics. We need to know from what depth it draws and how many GPM the heads use. As shown, at 25 feet suction, it puts out 14 GPM at 30 PSI.

Maybe what caused the old pump to melt down is preventing the new pump from performing well.

I agree that this may be a well level issue.

The melt down was a problem with the automation and the previous pump ran for several hours without the valves opening and performance was compromised afterwards.
 

WorthFlorida

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Four sprinkler heads are nothing for any pump. If you have a spigot on the discharge side of the pump, open it fully to get a bead on the water flow. With the failure with your last pump, debris may have clogged up the nozzles on the sprinklers. You can remove them turn on the pump to flush out the system.

Assume you have the GT07 model, it has a 1.5" suction and discharge pipe fitting. Going from 1.25" to 1.5" is really nothing and 14 gauge your OK. It's seems more and more that the water table has dropped. Irrigation pumps are so simple that it is nearly impossible for them to be defective but if the water is passed 25 feet it will barely move pull water. Look at page three of the product literature.

Perhaps before calling in a well company you might want to call the Pinellas County Cooperative Extension. They may have a local hydrologist or a contact to call about the ground water levels. [URL]https://sfyl.ifas.ufl.edu/pinellas/n[/URL]

http://goulds.com/centrifugal-pumps...n/irri-gator-model-gt/#product-tab-literature
http://documentlibrary.xylemappliedwater.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/22/files/2012/07/IM049R08.pdf
 
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