Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I am trying to identify the water pumps available here in Indo.

I suspect they are badge jobs ie made by a respectable company but under a different name so they can charge you guys in the west more.
Anyways - I have a Norita pump -230V 50hz (230 should be fine for 220 or 240V) 5000lh Max H 6m Max depth 5m grain size is 5mm.
It has a all plastic blue and black body, a round black & blue floatswitch.

Anybody seen this in OZ? I got this one for 40 USD.

Please post a photo of the pump.
Murray

mmmmmmm, don't know it off hand, probably is a badged pump..... Pic is the only way to get any real idea, as Murray suggested.

hi Murray.
In Joel's book he mentioned that the pump he used is not affected detrimentally by restricting the water flow with gate valves etc. Are bilge pumps the same? Could you restrict the flow of a larger bilge pump in order to have more grunt should the system be added to at a later date?

Thanks

Monya

what is the expected cost for a 5000lph pump??? My tiny system runs on a small 1500 lph pump and I am not sure if it is good enough... also, where can I get a good float switch from?

hop onto murrays website aquamad. it's really comprehensive and his prices are really competitive especially for forum members

good idea, thank you

by the way, does anybody use any of the float switchs like on murrays web page? I need one to prevent my pump from running dry (it almost happend 2 days ago)...

Hi Aquamad,
If you do get a bilge type float switch don't get one of the low cost ones, believe me I have tried them over the years and it is a bit like russian roulette, some will last but most won't.
The only way to go with float switches are the Rule ones...bit expensive...but worth it in the end...

A short list can be found here. .. Bilge pumps and float switches
The thing to remember with this type of switch is that there is very short travel between on and off, only about 50 to 60 mm of water depth, so the switch will cycle very frequently, therefore you will need a really good switch.
The Rule bilge pumps can be run dry without damage.

On a bigger system that needs to move more water then the type of switch shown in the attached pix would be good. I am currently sourcing some different ones of these. The switches will need to be modified a little to take the amps that DC motors use, then this type of switch will be ideal to switch larger DC motors for large bilge pumps or external DC motor driven pumps.

As can be seen with this type of switch it can be easily adjusted by adjusting the upper and/or lower float stop to switch on and off as desired. They can be adjusted easily to either switch on or off when the float is at the top, etc.
Murray

Monya, Any of the bilge type pumps can have the water flow restricted by using some sort of gate valve or tap or ball valve without damage to the pump or a build up of pressure in the pipes.
Murray

thanks murray

On the subfect of float switches, I've also seen that you can buy the float switches like the ones attached to my pumps, but on a long lead. These would possibly not last as long as Murray's suggested switch, and they would require wiring up by an electrician if your using 240V, but they are reasonably cheap. Float switch

Hi Joel, good to see you back on the Forum....
That type of pump switch is very good, amount of water between switch on and switch off is easily regulated by the length of lead. This would be fine for 12 volt systems as well. Much less than the type shown above that I posted a pic of earlier, they run out at about 150.00 ....That is why I am hunting around for the importer to try and buy three or four at the right price.
Murray

I also used to work with some small black plastic bilge switches when I was in the marine game. For memory they were reasonably cheap, I'll try and find out the supplier my work used to get them from.. They were fairly reliable , they have to be when they are your bilge switch, and also pretty tough to handle any of the crap that often ends up in bilges of ships... For memory they ran off a magnetic pickup, as in a magnet inside the float that rides up and down a shaft with the water level... I'll see what I can find.

Don't know if this is good bad or ugly.

i get all these bargain emails, so i thought i post a link.

Comments?

http://www.dealsdirect.com.au/cart.php? ... er16062006