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| So, I'm trying to figure out how big a pump I need. Obviously, I need to know the head pressure I'm going to have, and the rate I want flowing--for me, down a stream to a waterfall into a pond. I've got 5' of vertical height from the pond surface, I suspect 1 90 degree pipe bend, 40-50 feet of pipe from skimmer/pump to "waterfall weir" (stream start).
So far, I've tried:
And nowhere seems to take into account the diameter of the pipe, which I understand is also crucial (and I don't know what THAT should be either!). Pond will be...um...max 1000 gallons, but in real life (not a square!) seems like 600-800 gallons. I really thought I'd been reading this forum long enough to figure this out on my own, but no, apparently not! Been waiting 2 years to start this project, and we're *finally* digging the hole & now I can't figure out what to buy! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| First you have a static head of 5' and then you have to add the dynamic head. To calculate the dynamic head you need a friction loss chart. Here is a link to a very good one "http://www.performancepropumps.com/PDF_Files/FrictionLossChart.pdf". You need to have some idea how much flow you want and then every fitting that you will be using from the time the water leaves the pump until it flows out over the weir. If this is too complicated to calculate if you could list all the fittings and the amount of pipe and flow you want I can calculate the head pressure. Mike |
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- Posted by nancym1956 (My Page) on Tue, May 18, 10 at 9:17
| Just an addendum to Mike's post. If you can use the long sweep 90% connector bend, it will have less friction than a sharp 90% bend. They do sell those in the larger pipes. I used them in the 3" and I'm completely sold on them. |
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| Thanks Mike, that chart is perfect. Not that I "get" how much flow I'm going to need, but at least this has the real numbers I need to deal with! Nancy, the 90 degree bend I know I'll need would be coming out of the pump/skimmerfilter--I suppose it depends on the exact configuration in question, which is, of course, a bit hard to tell without having the pump & the skimmer in hand. Unless someone has a way of telling what pumps fit in what skimmers? |
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| Okay I assume that you will be pumping to a waterfall. You need at least 100 gph per width of weir on the waterfall to get a solid sheet of water coming off the weir. This is assuming that the weir is somewhat flat and smooth. Then you have to take into account the size of the pond and how often you want to turn it over. Which ever number is higher that is the smallest amount of flow that you want. More is always better. Mike |
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