Non renewable energy from our dwindling fossil fuel reserves are cheap because although they were collected over thousands of years, we are allowing them to run out without consideration of the consequences. Solar energy can be considered as infinite in terms of replacement. But the cost of collecting it is currently higher than electricity from fossil fuels. This situation will reverse itself at some time in the not too distant future.

On the left is a picture of a typical set up.  You can get them here.  This one is shown wired up and ready to go.  It has a 30W panel but you can get kits with smaller panels.

This system has been proven to work satisfactorily.

If you want the system to last there are a few things you should try to avoid.

Never short out the wires from the battery or the solar panel. If you do you may damage the solar panel or melt the wires from the battery. Even thought the voltage is only 12 volts and can’t give you an electric shock, the hot wires could get hot enough to burn you.

Don’t leave the pump running for longer than its recommended duty cycle. Low cost 12volt pumps are not designed for continuous use.

Use a good switch to turn on and off the pump.

Keep the water being pumped clear of material that could block the pump. Don’t run the pump dry. ie Don’t plug in the pump until the pump is in the water.

Solar panel alignment is not critical. For optimum results in the UK it should be approximately 70 degrees from the vertical and facing south. The battery should be a 12Volt lead acid  (leisure type if possible). The pump also needs to be a 12 volt, preferably a submersible.

Possible component sources: Pump International.com or Online pumpshop.com

These sources have been chosen because they are direct sources and direct importers rather than distributers or retailers. Their costs generally reflect this. They often have large stocks, lower overheads and hence charge a lot less. Due to the Internet it is now quite possible for purchases to be made direct from these wholesalers rather than from a retailer.

See links below

Solar panel pump and wiring kit from the online-pumpshop, just add your own 12 volt lead acid (car type ) battery

You can make up your own kit if you understand what you are doing. It’s not a good idea to leave out the controller unless the panel is very small and the battery is very big ie panel about 5W and battery a larger leisure battery. This is because it is quite easy to damage the battery by over charging it.

Garden and Marine Solar Powered Water pumps.

This pump was primarily designed to be used to  recycle water for your garden or allotment from your roof or a water butt. These environmentally friendly heavy duty pumps deliver up to 1250 gallons of water per hour.

It has also found favour with sailors, no more dead radio batteries or flooded out bilges.

The pump comes with crocodile clips for initial charging from a 12 volt battery ( not supplied ). After this initial charging the battery will be charged by the supplied solar panel which will run the pump accordingly. Choose to buy a compatible float switch and / or a bilge control switch if you require them.

Note: These solar pump kits are in demand, please allow 10 days for delivery.

There are many kits on the internet saying they are solar powered pumps. Most of these solar powered pump kits would be more correctly described as solar powered toys or squitters of tiny amouts of water to spectacular dazzling heights of over one inch. Some of them even boast up to 4 inches . The heights that they pump to is only the start of the problem, basically they don’t pump any useable amount of water.

If you really want to pump some water it would be wise to consider the following link

http://online-pumpshop.com/xcart/product.php?productid=375&cat=28&page=2

Yachting Montly recently conducted a series of tests on marine bilge pumps from a number of leading manufacturers. The results of the tests were presented in the April 2010 edition of Yachting Monthly.

The Patay DD 120,  Stock Item SKU: A2000 was described as the “The Clear Winner” and as “the Choice for rescue services and trans-ocean sailors”. The tests indicated the pump could deliver 81 litres per minute which was 30% ahead of its nearest rival.

Click here to buy the DD 120 M

The DD120B Site Pump was designed for British Telecom in the 1970’s and since then has had an illustrious number of uses from down in the Falklands to pump out the trenches, to use by the New York Fire Brigade.

One of the popular outlets for the pump today is on garage forecourts where it is used for taking water off the top of diesel tanks.

The pump is made from aluminium and is mounted on a purpose-made frame which holds up to 10 metres of hose. The fastenings are made of stainless steel and the hand-wheels allow easy access into the pumping chamber. The one piece diaphragm with the valves included makes changing this part a quicker process than other pumps on the market where you have separate valves to fit.

The unit is easily portable and, with 6 metres of hose, weighs 12 kgs . The pump has two diaphragms so you pump on each stroke giving an impressive performance of 135 litres per minute. The pump will pass solids up to 3/4″ and is supplied with a strainer to stop any larger particles entering the mechanism.

This classically designed sump pump is ideal for engines or generator sets. It is the pump of choice by Beta Marine, Sabre, Mermaid, Broadcrown and Maddon Generators.

The pump is made of passivated steel and the spring loaded valve allows the pump to be used at any angle. The pump has 3/8″ male bottom fitting and we can supply a converter for this fitting to 1/2″ male and 1/4″ female. The body of the pump is 1 1/4″ and the capacity is 77cc per stroke. To mount the pump we have available clips in two designs - either round clips or ‘P’ clips.

Hand pumps that don’t need electricity can be ideal for watering and irrigating all sots of gardens, especially if you have an allotment or vegetable patch.

The following manual hand pumps have all been used in different situations.

Semi rotary pump ( wing pump).

This pump is made from cast Iron with brass internal parts.  It must be mounted upright using its two mounting lugs to bolt it to a vertical surface.  They  both fit  BSP stepped hose adapters for hose connections. Its important to buy these when you buy the pump so that you have something to attach hose to.

It comes in a number of different sizes, the K3 and K2 being the most popular.

The K3 is the sort of pump used for allotments and larger gardens. It’s only a few pounds more expensive than the K2  but at 12Kg may not suit everybody.  The K2  at 8Kg is more suitable for smaller garden plots or anyone that doesn’t want its bigger tougher cousin.

If you want to see the whole K series pump range  they are all here ….

If you would like to see  complete technical  details and dimensions and flow rates they are here ….

Diaphragm pump SD60.

This pump has a couple of really good points

You don’t need to  mount this pump upright and it comes with its own hose adaptors. It is made of plastic so it can’t rust.

This pump has one more important advantage. If you can use it to make a siphon you can start the pump off and then leave it to siphon the water without any need to keep pumping it.

This pump needs 1″ hose (25mm)

piston pump

This pump can be bought with a short length of hose.  It’s useful for transferring water to watering cans.

It uses 32mm hose

First thing to consider is how far down from the pump the water level will be. This is always on the input side of the pump. It’s called the lift or suction side. It’s impossible for this height to be more than 32ft (10M). In practice 19ft (6M) is a practical limit with up to 4M being far more usual.

The next issue is how far up you want to push the water, more than 20M is impractical.

Then you need to select a pump to do this. Diaphragm pumps are very good at lifting water up but they are not as good a pistons for pushing it up a hill. To find the details for any specific pump click the links ( underlined text) for the pump you are interested in.

We are introducing a new Budget Range of pumps. We already have in stock the fixed handle pump, stock code A2260, as shown below and the others in the range will follow shortly.

Budget Fixed Handle Pump

This compact design, fixed handle, bilge and waste water transfer pump may be mounted on the bulkhead or deck and is ideally suited to confined spaces on small-sized craft.

Capacity: 30 litres per minute

Connections: for 25mm (1”) hose

Dimensions: 180 x 125 x 75mm

Weight: 750g

Materials: Black Delrin with a Neoprene Diaphragm

Stock Reference: A2260

Service Kit Available – Stock Reference E2261

Budget Underdeck Bilge Pump

This compact design underdeck-mounted bilge pump, with its easily removable clamp ring for head rotation and quick maintenance, is ideal for confined spaces. It is suitable for hulls 5 -19mm thick.

Capacity: 40 litres per minute

Connections: for 25mm (1”) hose

Dimensions: 230 x 210 x 130mm

Weight: 1300g

Materials: tbc

Stock Reference: E2262

Budget Bailer Pump

This lightweight, portable bilge pump is ideal for bailing out small boats, dingies, etc.

Capacity: 2.4 litres per 10 strokes.

Dimensions: Length of body = 450mm

Length of hose = 610mm

Weight: 500g

Materials: PVC

Stock Reference: E2263

Budget ‘Maxi’ Electric 12v Bilge Pump

This 12v submersible bilge pump offers impressive pumping power for its compact size. The design of the upward-tilting hose connection enhances efficient water flow. The ‘twist-lock’ system allows the pump head to be removed for easy impeller cleaning and the multi-position mounting bracket ensures simple horizontal or vertical installation.

Capacity: 1250 gallons per hour / 94 litres per minute

Connections: for 32mm (1 1/4”) hose

Dimensions: Diameter of base = 120mm

Height = 135mm

Weight: 1050g

Stock Reference: F2264

Budget ‘Medi’ Electric 12v Bilge Pump

This 12v submersible bilge pump is ideal for small craft. The design of the upward-tilting hose connection enhances efficient water flow. The ‘twist-lock’ system allows the pump head to be removed for easy impeller cleaning and the multi-position mounting bracket ensures simple horizontal or vertical installation.

Capacity: 750 gallons per hour / 56 litres per minute

Connections: for 19mm (3/4”) hose

Dimensions: Diameter of base = 90mm

Height = 100mm

Weight: 500g

Stock Reference: F2265

Budget Float Switch

The float switch gives automatic control for pumping water out of the bilge. It may be used in conjunction with a 12v bilge pump drawing up to 15 amps.

Stock Reference: C2266

Budget Bilge Control Switch

A general purpose switch which can be connected to most bilge pumps.

Stock Reference: F2267

Made in cast iron this working ‘village style’, decorative garden pump comes complete with pedestal and has an attractive embossed rose patterned design. This pitcher pump would make a nice feature for any garden with an added bonus - it actually works! Click here to view the garden pump in our shop.

The pump is supplied complete as illustrated with pump, pedestal and hose connector fitting to accomodate 38mm (1 1/2″) hose. Hose is available to buy, our stock code D1135. You will also require a 1 1/2″- 1 1/4″ hose clip, stock code D1130.

The pedestal has four mounting bolt holes in the base, 11mm in diameter, to secure the pump to the floor.

The maximum suction lift height of the pump is 7 metres if used in conjunction with a foot-valve and it delivers a flow rate of 30 litres per minute.

The overall height of the pump and pedestal is approximately 5ft and the diameter of the base, including flange, measures 22cm.

Delivery time is normally around 2-3 days and it will be delivered in two packages, weighing approximately 36kgs in total.

Installation is very straight-forward; simply screw the polypropylene hose tail (threaded half) into the threaded base of the pump, place the hose clip over the end of the hose and push the hose over the ribbed end of the hose tail (if this proves difficult simply heat the end of the hose in some hot water to make it more pliable). Finally tighten the hose clip to secure the hose in place.

The effects of global warming, ever increasing water rates and often a simple altruistic regard for the environment has led to an increase in rain water harvesting. This is nothing new, once again, it is the Romans we have to thank for this concept.

Rainwater harvesting is becoming big business with complex systems which enable harvested water to be used for purposes that do not require water of drinking quality, such as the flushing of toilets, washing machines and of course, watering the garden.

However, most of us have at hand all the materials we need to create our own ’system’ for the garden:

• A Catchment Surface (roof)
• A Delivery System (gutters and down pipes)
• A Storage Reservoir (any suitable container in which to store the water)

While you can simply use a bucket or watering can to empty out your reservoir, a simple hand pump will make the process much easier and will actually transport the water some distance.

PUMP SELECTION:

Pump selection depends on a number of factors:

• How far you need to lift the water (in essence, how deep is your container)
• How far do you need to transport the water (how far a pump can ‘push’ water vertically is called the ‘head’.  Each vertical meter of head equates to ten meters horizontal push)
• How do you plan to mount your pump
• Do you want a portable pump
• What capacity (flow rate) do you require

The following pumps are all suitable for rain water harvesting, it is just up to you to decide which best meets your particular requirements:

The Super Rotary Pump

The Skipper