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pat konen wrote:

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I got a quote from someone at Randolf.... the pump that is about 9 gpm is priced at $1150 -- just the pump end. You need to supply the motor.

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That is cheap enough, how much pressure ?

swee****erfish wrote:

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If you've ever use an electric pump.....you know!

I use Myers Pumps for my roof cleaning and soft washing. 80% of the time I'm plugging into the customer's outlet for my power. I have a decent gas savings, but the true benefit of  the electric pump is the peace and quiet that comes along with them.   I'm starting to cringe when I have to fire up the pressure washer or generator. I'm getting spoiled in my old age.

I know I need to get away from the Myers pump eventually, mine just died after 8 months of service, however they did replace it with a new one under the warranty.

Anybody know how do these peristaltic pumps prime?  I would assume there would be enough pressure build up they would self prime.  I'm real excited to see these peristaltic pumps! Bring on the electrics!

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swee****erfish wrote:

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I'm using a Myers 3/4 HP booster pump...i'll try and find a pic of it.  Its hard wired with an on/off switch. I usually use either a 50 or 100 foot cord (heavy 12 gauge) to get to the house. It only draws 15 amps at startup, so most exterior outlets have no problems handling it, don't trip from use so much, but certainly trip when the plug isn't properly masked/taped off.

Yes I carry a generator too, as sometimes power isn't readily available.

Have never had a problem with the seals/pumping action of the Myers and using the love, but have had electric  problem with the motor.  Started getting very hot and pulling too many amps here recently, but it was warranty replaced.

My next electric pump will be a Goulds. One of my closest friends and mentors in the biz has one, and he's been using the SAME pump exclusively for 2 years.   And he uses it every day...he's a large contractor and does 3-4 times the biz that I do.  Not bad value for $600

 

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Here is a picture of the Myers  Booster Pump

Here is the Goulds Pump

These pumps are Centrifugal Pumps, and take advantage of the fact that pressure In to the pump is multiplied.

Firemen have long used 2 Centrifugal Pumps in series, IOW one pump feeds the other for more pressure.

With garden hose pressure, these pumps are capable of high PSI's of up to 175 PSI. I do not know what PSI they can get just drawing from a tank ?

Some of these are sold at Grainger.

A slick set up for guys up north needing a lot of pressure would be one of these feeding another with RPM control of the motors

I have tried probably 5 Centrifugal Pumps over the years, w/o any luck, although never one of these.
But they are not real expensive, and do have a warranty. Usually the seals/shafts go away pretty fast. Stainless Steel does not have a great rating for our use, and the stainless and ceramic Centrifugals I tried did not last long, for OUR use, doing several roofs a daily 5 to 6 days a week. In the Centrifugal pumps I tried, the chlorine attacked the stainless shaft, and they leaked all over. Plus, in a centrifugal pump, as head pressure is increased, flow goes down. There are magnetic drive versions of these availiable I have always wanted to try, but here is what happened to that. I found the Kynar Yamada Air Diapraghm Pumps, they worked, we got real busy, and I have stuck with them. My guys are on commission, dont want me "messing" with their livelyhood, and I lost the use of my right hand. I am injured, and cant clean roofs anymore, or experiment like I used to.

Centrifugal pumps can be ruined by running dry, even for a second, except for the self priming variety. I would assume the boster pumps are self priming, but what about when you turn the gun off ?  The pumps is building pressure, so a bypass into the tank is required I would think ?  Still, if these last for awhile cleaning  roofs every day, 2 of them may be the answers to the prayers of roof cleaners who need a pump that will really shoot.  The first pump can have a low horsepower motor, all we are asking out of it is to feed the higher pressure 2nd pump. In a centrifugal pump, the higher the hp of the motor, the more pressure it can generate.

The second pump shall be a 3/4 horse motor for more pressure. Only a bypass on the second pump will be required, since the first pump feeds the second one.

Curb Appeal Roof Cleaning Charleston SC (843)324-4003 wrote:

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Ray and Chris,

Thanks for the info! I have heard of a guy using Goulds pumps -- may be the same person.

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If you look at the performance table for the gould pump you will see that at  200 feet of head (86 psi) the flow is 10 gpm, pretty respectable. BUT, that assumes you are putting city water pressure INTO the pump I think ?

When you feed one of these pumps from a tank, pressure will be much less.

The question is this, HOW much pressure will the pump develop on it's own ?

I can see where chicken farmers will love these pumps, hook it up to a water supply, and you get over 275 psi OUT!

But remember this, the GPM of the pump will also be limited by the GPM you put into it, just as in a pressure washer.

The gpm potential of this pump will be limited only by the GPM capacity of the pump itself, if fed from a tank directly.

BCRoofClean wrote:

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swee****erfish wrote:

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Chris and Curb Appeal:

I'm not sure how to measure the PSI coming out of the pump, but here's some detail that my help to explain my set-up, process, and equipment.  In full disclosure, I consider myself a "softwasher". My company had a psuedo-business arrangement with another individual and we traded off equipment. He had a BCE hotwash rig, 8.5 GPM dual gun beast which we used for our pressure needs.  That arrangement died a slow painful death, and I realized I didn't really like pressure washing, so I make due with my pressure needs with a little 3000 psi 2.6 GPM machine now. Its all I really need for the types of jobs I tackle.

I built and handled all the softwashing needs. My rig is setup with 250' 1/2 inch hose. I carry another 200 foot on the rig in case its needed, but thats tpically uses for the fill line.    The plumbing on the truck itself is 1 inch PVC to help " flood" the pump.  Out of my sauce mix tanks I can spray 30-35 feet on a windless day with good volume (8-10 GPM)  I was able to reach the peak of this roof from the front of the house without a ladder.  On the rear I did need to use a ladder due to some change of roof pitches.

As far as city water pressure is concerned, Tallahassee is a truly mixed bag. Sometimes my tank pressure is better than boosted city pressure., but usually I get a little more pressure from the city water supply.   The nice thing about two tanks is you can fill one with water and augment the city water pressure when you get into a "low pressure" neighborhood.

I try and use 1 inch hose for fill sometimes, that has helped my rinse pressure a little bit, but in all honestly, there not too many jobs my set-up can't do.  My rear reel  has 200' of 1/2 hose on it, and I just usally use it for filling.  My friend who has  a nearly identically plumbed set-up ( but with a goulds) uses 3/4 inch hoses for spraying and he gets a little more volume/pressure/distance than I do, maybe 6 feet.

If I had to do it all over again, I really don't know if I'd change a lot. I would use bigger fill hoses on the reel.  I know my system is a little different than most folks on this board, but its what works for me.  When I first started out, I even used a "polaris" booster pump I robbed from my swimming pool to spray love....times were real tough then!

There are no pressure reliefs on these pumps, so I try not to deadhead them too much.  But I've never had one burn up "pump-wise", its been more of a motor problem.  In fact, if i have a spot I can't reach, if you let the pressure build up for a minute or too, you get an extra 10 feet a distance for a brief burst.

I've never used mine nearly as much as the venerable Mr. Chris uses his equipment. I'm using it on on an average of 8 to 9 jobs per week, probably 14 hours of run time total.

Running two in a series sounds like a GREAT idea, but I wonder if many average outlets could handle that AMP draw, maybe you could use a 1/2 HP for the first pump to overcome that obstacle.

As far as the house softwashing goes, this rig is the bomb for that purpose. You'll never accidentally cut/damage paint. I admittedly do a lousy job of stripping flaking paint due to my reduced pressure, but I choose not to take on jobs of that nature.   One added benefit, the pressure is very safe around windows.   Think of it as the opposite of pressure washing in some respects...rather than power dirt off a surface, I'm chemically treating it and "flooding" it off.

All that being said, I'd love to get my hands on a air diaphragm pump and give it a whirl to see how I like it. I still have a Fat boy sitting in a box in my office that I've never even installed.

PS: on the end of the hoses, I use a regular trigger style pistol sprayer...thats my delivery system.

 

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Aaand there goes the Yeingling again. I think we can just say that it's the official beer of roof cleaners. LOL

 

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