I have a 1/2HP SQ 120v single phase. It's at around 200', water is at 150'. I get around 11 gallons a minute and pump into a holding tank about 8' above ground. It's pumping through 1.25" poly. I have ran it with a Honda 2200watt inverter generator, 4kw 24v AIMS and a 2KW 12v Renogy inverter. All with no problems. It starts at 0 watts and ramps up to 1,050 watts once at full speed (even though it is rated .5HP). I spoke with a Grundfos engineer and was told they are very reliable. He said it is one of their tried and true legacy pump designs. You would not believe how hard it was to get someone from Grundfos on the phone that had any kind of knowledge.
240v well pump -> offgrid
- Thread starter FightThePower
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FightThePower
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Sweet, I want one.
OzSolar
Whatever you did, that's what you planned.
Those controllers are certainly pricey for no more than they do.
But it is a bit more than a dry contact for a float switch. From an initial set up and future troubleshooting aspect it's nice able to see if the pump is working, how much wattage it's drawing and what the error code is. There is an on/off push button but it isn't that handy in a battery-less application because it self resets to ON at the next sun rise.
Phantom
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sounds like what I did , only different is im running 24 volt inverter , with 4 12v 100ah sok batteriesI just did what what you are asking about. I took my 1.5hp deep well off grid with grid backup. I have it set to prefer the batteries, and some may laugh at the 12v batteries running a 1.5hp pump, but I have no issues in 4 months. Pump only runs for about 70 seconds at a time to fill with pressure tank from 35-55psig.
I used this site as a blueprint for equipment, but purchased the following individually:
4Kw Aims 12Vdc-240V low frequency inverter
Two, 440W panels with tamarack racking on my well pump house roof
80A charge controller (could get away with 60A as I've never seen >65amps charging)
2X Ampere Time, 200AH 12V batteries in parallel
I took the house supply 240VAC and plugged it into the Aims inverter/charger
I installed a new sub panel which is fed from the inverter (now I have 120V out there as well!)
I adjusted my 9 zone sprinklers to run 2 zones a day, staggering them.
I have not seen my batteries below 40%.
Now I'm working on insulating and wiring 12V self heating as everything is in an un-insulated pump house.
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OzSolar
Whatever you did, that's what you planned.
I'm amazed that you did get someone on the phone.
FightThePower
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On Sunday my neighbor is coming over to lift my well head off and we are going to check the water depth and try and draw down the well by pumping 10k gallons. Then I will be able to properly size the new pump. Im looking at the SQ15 1.5HP pump right now thinking it should be a good option. We already have 1.25" steel well pipe. I see the 22gallon/min pumps have a 1.5" outlet which seems overkill. Im tempted to buy one and run the 1.25" pipe still. I know it will handle the flow because we used to have a 5HP pump that made 28gpm through the 1.25" pipe.
Anyway, I am just giving an update and getting serious about buying a new pump.
I have done some research and the pumps seem solid, the only issue is if the start caps or some other parts go out on the 2 wire SQ type pump, the whole jig has to come out of the earth. Im not super confident in this setup to be honest. We will pumping over 1 million gallons a year and need a reliable pump.
Anyway, I am just giving an update and getting serious about buying a new pump.
I have done some research and the pumps seem solid, the only issue is if the start caps or some other parts go out on the 2 wire SQ type pump, the whole jig has to come out of the earth. Im not super confident in this setup to be honest. We will pumping over 1 million gallons a year and need a reliable pump.
I had a suprise with my pipe. I replaced the old (1970's) steel pipe with new in 2000. The new pipe looked OK, going in, but after only 2 years, it began to fall apart, rusting through. I don't know where it was made, but the steel and galvanizing were poor quality.
The old pipe was in the well for decades before showing the same level of decay.
Anyway, I replaced it all with Stainless Steel pipe & fittings, made in Taiwan, great!
But lots of $$$, will last longer than I will
FightThePower
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My pipes started having pitting and pin holes after about 15 years. Had to pull the whole 640ft enchilada and replace the bottom 2 sections. That was 7 years ago. Have not had it up since but its not leaking...
When the holes happened, the pump was running and water was shooting out the pipe instead of coming up to the surface. This went on for some time and I had a very large power bill the last month with holes in the pipe.
My neighbor says I should go schedule 80 pvc. But the well guy said he hates plastic pipe jobs in case they break. I dunno whats best? Stainless sounds good but how much is a stainless pipe? I need hundreds of feet of 1.25 or bigger pipe.
When the holes happened, the pump was running and water was shooting out the pipe instead of coming up to the surface. This went on for some time and I had a very large power bill the last month with holes in the pipe.
My neighbor says I should go schedule 80 pvc. But the well guy said he hates plastic pipe jobs in case they break. I dunno whats best? Stainless sounds good but how much is a stainless pipe? I need hundreds of feet of 1.25 or bigger pipe.
I'm sure stainless is insane $$$ now.
My pump is only down 40' in the 4" casing,
Here is what I asked the local steel yard for, 15 years ago:
stainless pipe
1-1/4"
1.66 OD
20'
schedule 80
welded
quote both 304 and 316
I think each piece was about $100 back then.
Agree about PVC, would worry about how it could survive the weight & vibration.
FightThePower
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Yeah they probably cost 3X now. The world has gone mad with pricing.
Im tempted to not drop the pump as deep this time if the water table is good. I think the water table is only around 100ft down here but need to verify. And I have not noticed any drawdown at all ever. And the well was rated at 150gpm refresh rate when it was drilled. I may just hang the pump at 200ft this time and go pvc.
Im tempted to not drop the pump as deep this time if the water table is good. I think the water table is only around 100ft down here but need to verify. And I have not noticed any drawdown at all ever. And the well was rated at 150gpm refresh rate when it was drilled. I may just hang the pump at 200ft this time and go pvc.
FightThePower
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OzSolar
Whatever you did, that's what you planned.
That's one way to keep the well pump guy out of your pocket. Nice work!
Any idea how stable that water level is? I'm not sure of the proper term... perhaps "draw down"? IE: Could you set the pump at 250' and pump 20 gpm without worries? Last year I installed a solar pump 110' down in 120' deep existing well that had water at 30'. Even at 3 gpm we would outrun the refresh rate of the well within a few minutes.
It was at the moment customer said "you told me to test it". What a mess, had to wait 6 months for the well driller.FightThePower
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I don't think it draws down at all but I can't really tell for 100% sure. The well is rated at 150+ gpm refresh 20 years ago.
I think its pretty safe to put a pump rated for 370ft of head on it down at 350ft. And if it draws down and sucks air, I can always pull it and redo it but i think its pretty safe to go ahead.
I think its pretty safe to put a pump rated for 370ft of head on it down at 350ft. And if it draws down and sucks air, I can always pull it and redo it but i think its pretty safe to go ahead.
peakbagger
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There are devices called pump protectors that plug into the external capacitor box. They monitor pump current draw and shut down the pump if it runs dry or there is change in discharge head (like a broken pipe). Most folks forget about them. I came home from a business trip and had no water. I went down to the pump control box with a multimeter and no juice. I then remembered the pump protector and confirmed that it had shut power to the well pump. I then reset it and discovered that the valve on my toilet tank had stuck open while I was gone so the pump ran for long enough that the pump protector sensed a problem and shut down the pump. No external adjustments that I am aware of, its just got built in timers that open the power contact at preestablished values. It has been installed for 20 plus years and I think its the only time its kicked in.
I have done all my own well work. I have researched for years and you find info here and there but there is allot of info that does not make it out on the webs.
Example; When your have a pump, wires and poly pipe only going down a few hundred feet or less, it can actually be dropped in by hand with lots of sweat. BUT, it get REALLY heavy after you fill the poly line with water!
the physics really add up fast, especially the deeper you go and the poop can hit the fan really quick. Serious injury and lose of a well can happen really quickly so be very very careful.
OzSolar
Whatever you did, that's what you planned.
For sure they are much easier to set than they are to pull by hand. ~100' static level on 1" poly is pretty much my limit and that would be only be if I was in a heckuva bind. A few months ago I set one on my property at 75' by hand, static is 50'. Only used 3/4" poly so pulling it back out is not bad.
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peakbagger
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I knew an old time retired contractor that was too worn out to do the work but loved to help folks DIY. I sized everything and he checked it over and made suggestions on extras that were not required but would make it easier and extend the life of the install. I then bought everything through him at his cost with 10% markup and he lent me the wheel rig that mounts on the casing to make pulling it easier. I installed a 300 foot string down my 320 foot well solo about 20 years ago. The biggest hassle was getting the pitless adaptor set with a 300 foot string hanging off it. My resting water level is about 40 feet so yes the string does get real heavy.
One thing he convinced me to do with the money I saved is to put in a much larger bladder tank in the basement, pumps usually wear out from stopping and starting. A bigger tank means less stop/starts. And he had me put in the pump protector I mentioned above.
One thing he convinced me to do with the money I saved is to put in a much larger bladder tank in the basement, pumps usually wear out from stopping and starting. A bigger tank means less stop/starts. And he had me put in the pump protector I mentioned above.
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Did you have a bleed hole at the bottom of your drop pipe or no check valve in the pump? Just curious. I don't know if it is a thing but it would empty the pipe to the water table. My water is at 150', it would take a while to fill line every time the pump starts.
