Pump protection.

Pump protection.

A topic much overlooked by many but as a wet water prospector it should be on the top of the list. This topic has been touched on before but it is time to bring it back on the boards so to speck. It all starts with your pumps foot valve or strainer on the end of the pumps pickup hose. The very first thing you need to do when you get a pump is to make a sock out of shade cloth and or nylon fly screen to go over your pumps pickup strainer or foot valve. The strainer/foot valve should also be placed in a bucket or keep above the streams bed, this will stop any fine junk getting into your pump. If you are using a 12v bilge pump make the sock to go right over the whole pump. Bilge pumps have a place in prospecting mainly for recirculating water, but if want to get serious a small petrol driven pump is the way to go.

Cheers James.

© J.B 2012
I withhold permission for this article to be cut and pasted or duplicated onto any other web site. ( without my express permission !

HI Whiskers, I am thinking of getting a small recirculating high banker, if I do I will remember to put a sock on it. Thanks for the data, I probably would have wrecked the fist pump till I figured this out so thanks.
Sparrowfart.

One other point I should have mentioned is when running petrol pumps they should be run on a level or flat surface or near as possible.

cheers
James

A photo is worth a thousand words. Here is what I have been talking about.

Cheers James

Whiskers wrote:A photo is worth a thousand words. Here is what I have been talking about.

Cheers James

Hi whiskers, isn't that cloth a bit fine? It looks like it will choke up pretty fast. Underneath the cloth appears to be the pumps original filter, and I have always thought that if things can get through that then the pump can handle it, and pass it right through. In other words, anything that passes through that filter will do no harm. Harry

Reckon the problem will show it's self pretty clearly if your running spray bars with smaller holes than the pump pick-up holes!

Point taken someday, forgot about the spray bar doodads

Whiskers wrote:A photo is worth a thousand words. Here is what I have been talking about.

Cheers James

yep I see, thanks Whiskers.
Sparrowfart.

shiraz wrote:Point taken someday, forgot about the spray bar doodads

Your idea may have merit Harry!
At the end of the day, there might be enough tucker in the spraybars for a meal

I'l go now!!

Whiskers wrote:Pump protection.

A topic much overlooked by many but as a wet water prospector it should be on the top of the list. This topic has been touched on before but it is time to bring it back on the boards so to speck. It all starts with your pumps foot valve or strainer on the end of the pumps pickup hose. The very first thing you need to do when you get a pump is to make a sock out of shade cloth and or nylon fly screen to go over your pumps pickup strainer or foot valve. The strainer/foot valve should also be placed in a bucket or keep above the streams bed, this will stop any fine junk getting into your pump. If you are using a 12v bilge pump make the sock to go right over the whole pump. Bilge pumps have a place in prospecting mainly for recirculating water, but if want to get serious a small petrol driven pump is the way to go.

Cheers James.

© J.B 2012
I withhold permission for this article to be cut and pasted or duplicated onto any other web site. ( without my express permission !

I've met a lot of serious prospectors out on the Queensland goldfields that use bilge pumps over petrol pumps. Can run all day without having to fill up, less moving parts to break down, if you did have a breakdown which I never have in over two years its $50 to replace it as opposed to hundreds to get it fixed or replaced. A lot of them have dual battery sit-ups on their 4wd and use the second battery to run their high bankers. Hundreds of kilometres between petrol stations out there so it is just more convenient and a lot lighter to pack.

shiraz wrote:

Whiskers wrote:A photo is worth a thousand words. Here is what I have been talking about.

Cheers James

Hi whiskers, isn't that cloth a bit fine? It looks like it will choke up pretty fast. Underneath the cloth appears to be the pumps original filter, and I have always thought that if things can get through that then the pump can handle it, and pass it right through. In other words, anything that passes through that filter will do no harm. Harry

Nope works well on a Honda wx15. What type of pump are you running have you ever sucked fine silt into your pump? As for doing no harm your wrong there. A little care can prolong the life of your pump no ends. But it's up to you if you want to fit a sock or not, all i can do is give my views and what i do. and i only post what works for me.

Cheers
James

No idea how I ended up with cock-eyed posts not quite

Happy New Year

[quote="Whiskers"]

shiraz wrote:

Whiskers wrote:A photo is worth a thousand words. Here is what I have been talking about.

Cheers James

Nope works well on a Honda wx15. What type of pump are you running have you ever sucked fine silt into your pump? As for doing no harm your wrong there. A little care can prolong the life of your pump no ends. But it's up to you if you want to fit a sock or not, all i can do is give my views and what i do. and i only post what works for me.

Cheers
James

No James, I think the sock thingy is a great idea, I merely asked if it ever chokes up. I use a B&S 5 HP on my sluice and so far no problems. I will definitely put a sock over the intake. My two 6.5 HP Hondas that I use for irrigation on the farm would definitely get upset if I put any restriction on their intake, so I keep the intakes about a metre under the floats in the dams, well off the bottom..

sorry mate my mistake, and you're dead right when you say about keeping the foot valves in suspension thats the best way of all. On a 5 hp motor and pump i would use shade cloth. It is not so much the silt that gives me grief for i keep the valve off the floor of the water course, but them bloody sheoak needles. They drive me nuts but no more.

So they were steering yu in the wrong direction then

If you want to keep the water super clean, try an inline filter. I use them on the farm because the water needs to be clean enough to pass through the tiny sprayer holes. Best part about them is they have a tap on them to flush the accumilated muck.





Remember the old ansell ad? "If it ain't on it ain't On"

shiraz wrote:If you want to keep the water super clean, try an inline filter. I use them on the farm because the water needs to be clean enough to pass through the tiny sprayer holes. Best part about them is they have a tap on them to flush the accumilated muck.





Remember the old ansell ad? "If it ain't on it ain't On"

Good tip mate thanks.

James