help - bore pump questions???

perdition · 03-10-2008, 10:11 AM

house/garden has a bore/pump feeding the retic - now i didnt use it much over winter (manual on/off) and now that im checking it out for summer, it wont pump any water

- im thinking the water has dropped back down the pipe due to lack of use or the water table has dropped abit and the pump isnt picking up the water yet ?????

i jumped into the pit where it is and undid the cap between ''pipe'' and the pump - filled it with water (although it never actually filled up) and have tried running it a couple of times with no luck.

i did undo the cap while the pump was running and water seems to ''spurt'' out (not much tho).

it did this last year and it simply started pumping water after a few tries with the pump running.

not so this time and i dont want to run the pump too long try incase that isnt good for it ?????

any ideas on what to try next or anyone here do bore pump or know someone who does ????

likefry · 03-10-2008, 10:17 AM

we had this on one of our old bores we had to fill the pipe completely up with water then it would work fine.

It used to take a while to fill up so maybe try doing that

Satan1 · 03-10-2008, 10:18 AM

Are you sure it is primed correctly? Fill as much water in the pipe, seal it quick and fire it up. Can take a few goes, I doubt the water table is too low if it was cranking last year, usually slowly drops away over a few years.

*BEaten

perdition · 03-10-2008, 10:23 AM

how much water tho - i put in 2 big water cans worth and let the tap run for a while, with no luck - i was begining to think i was topping up the water table

what with doing up the cap quick - its an old cap and naturally it doesnt want to do a up quickly

and then how long should i let the pump run for - is is BAD to run it dry ???

Satan1 · 03-10-2008, 10:28 AM

You definitely don't want to run it dry, after long outages the old farm pump may have taken 80-90 litres.

perdition · 03-10-2008, 10:33 AM

okay , so by filling up the pipe, im not simply dumping water back into the water table ????

Satan1 · 03-10-2008, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by perdition

okay , so by filling up the pipe, im not simply dumping water back into the water table ????

You are filling the bore back to the pump, You can imagine if you are trying to draw on 20 feet of air before the water it would take a strong vacuum to get it cranking, by filling the bore you are effectively disposing of this 'slack'.

If there is absolutely now water down there you will be kicking shit up hill but i doubt it, you should be able to make it overflow regardless as the water won't drain away that quickly.

perdition · 03-10-2008, 10:48 AM

oh okay - so by filling up the pipe with water , im pushing the air out or down ?????

BERT · 03-10-2008, 11:32 AM

Hey Dave
There is a non return valve in the system to "hold" the water in the pump to keep it primed (full of water)
These valves are not perfect and over time will allow the water to escape back to the water table.
When you are trying to fill the pipe and pump there will be some water going back to the water table if there is dirt or corrosion on the valve sealing face.
Keep filling with a hose turned up full bore, when there is water in the pump and pipe turn on the pump motor and it should draw water from the water table, you may need to cover the filling hole with your hand if the cap can't be replace quickly to get it to prime.
Once water is being pumped you can then stop the motor, replace the cap and try it again to make sure it is still primed.
You will probably get very wet rtying to do this

If you have no luck give me a shout and I will come over after work and have a look (at you getting wet)

Bert

perdition · 03-10-2008, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BERT

Hey Dave
There is a non return valve in the system to "hold" the water in the pump to keep it primed (full of water)
These valves are not perfect and over time will allow the water to escape back to the water table.
When you are trying to fill the pipe and pump there will be some water going back to the water table if there is dirt or corrosion on the valve sealing face.
Keep filling with a hose turned up full bore, when there is water in the pump and pipe turn on the pump motor and it should draw water from the water table, you may need to cover the filling hole with your hand if the cap can't be replace quickly to get it to prime.
Once water is being pumped you can then stop the motor, replace the cap and try it again to make sure it is still primed.
You will probably get very wet rtying to do this

If you have no luck give me a shout and I will come over after work and have a look (at you getting wet)

Bert

hahahaha thanks bastid, bring your PS over , in case i need to replace the pump all together

Gryphen · 03-10-2008, 07:25 PM

If the pump has a bleed off valve (little screw in post on top of the pump, you can fill the pipe above the pump, then run the pump and then open the bleed off valve slightly it lets the air out of the pump itself, and it should eventually get enough water in the pump itself to start lifting the water from below.

The problem of letting an on-ground pump sit for too long is that the non-return valve can warp in one of two ways.

1. the non-return valve right on top of the filter (20 -30 m down) can perish, or at least deteriorate, this means that no matter how much water you lift, once you leave it it iwill slowly lfow back down.

2. non-return valve right below pump, well these can dry out and it has the same effect as above. ( alot easier to fix though)

More than likely your pump just needs to be primed properly, and all it needs is a chance to lift the water from the water-table to the surface (how far is it?)

Easiest way i remember was to disconnect the pump from the retic, fit a pipe straight to the ground above the bore or even dig a bit of a hole and just let it flow out of the pump (this takes some of the pressure of the pump having to also push the water up.

2wheels · 03-10-2008, 07:48 PM

Dude this my job, all of the above are pretty much bang on the money, it will be the NRV or the foot valve (same type of thing ) you can't get round it, once it's worn it will need replacing or you will have this every time you try to use it. Mech seal will wear and let water into the motor and that will be the end of that! If your bore pipe isn't to deep (15m+) lift it your self, it's pretty easy as it's got no water in it. Replace (probably 1 1/4") bronze valve, prime and bob's your uncles wife

Gryphen · 04-10-2008, 07:44 PM

Hey if its too deep you could always cheat and put one on the top

under the pump

perdition · 05-10-2008, 08:19 AM

Thanks guys for helping out here and BIG PROPS to Bert to coming around friday after work and helping me out alas it does look like one of the valves has gone, hopefully the one nearest the surface. we run out of time to unto the flange that leads off the pipe to the uppr foot valve.

2wheels, where abouts are you - might be needing your services :-)