Can I use a 3 inch pump in a larger diameter well?
Absolutely. There is no issue using a smaller diameter pump in a larger diameter well casing. One of the main reason for a larger well diameter is increased water production. The larger well acts as a reservoir for longer pumping durations and the ability to produce a larger volume of water without depleting or drawing down the well. And no, the opposite is not true, a 4 inch pump will not fit in a 3 well casing. Don’t even try it. Trust me on this one…
How can I shut the pump off when the water storage tank is full?
All of our controllers come with a tank high shutoff input and float switch. Simply install the float in the tank or water trough and when the water reaches and lifts the float, the system will automatically shut off. Once the water level drops, the system will turn back on and begin filling the tank.
Can I add an external switch to turn on and off the pump?
Yes. With our controllers this is very easy to do using the tank overflow input. Simply wire and on/off switch to the tank high (Th, Tc) inputs. Operation will be opposite of how most switches are labeled. When the switch is open, the pump will run, when the switch is closed (short), the pump will turn off. A $1 light switch works perfectly.
How long do your systems last?
Our well pump system are designed for many years of operation. All of our solar well pumps have a two year warranty. If anything happens within 2 years, we will immediately send out replacement parts. All of our kits also come standard with an extra helical rotor pumping mechanism. In most cases it is not needed, however dirty or sandy wells can cause wear on the gasket. If pumping volume decreases due to wear, simply replace the gear and the pump should be back up to full production. It is very easy to replace yourself and only requires removing 3 bolts.
What type of motor do your pumps use?
Our pumps use brushless DC motors. We prefer these motors compared to their brushed counterparts, since you never have to replace carbon brushes! They are maintenance free and are rated for many years of operation.
What type of solar panels do you supply? Why only 90 watt and 100 watt panels?
We only supply the highest quality mono crystalline solar panels currently available on the market. Our panels use Bosch solar cells made in Germany. These are some of the highest efficiency solar cells available, meaning they turn the most amount of sunlight into electricity. The panels are rated for a minimum of 25 years with minimal power reduction.
We sell 90 watt and 100 watt solar panels since they are easy to ship without damage and can be installed by one person. Larger 200 watt solar panels are easily damaged in shipping and are usually too heavy/awkward to lift and install by one person. Our goal is easy to install solar systems and the smaller panels accommodate this. At the end of the day, they have the same performance at their larger counterparts and have the benefit of cheaper replacement cost in case on gets damaged.
Can I make a long horizontal run from the well head to a distant storage tank?
Yes, this is not a problem and has minimal impact on flow rates. One of our customers recently made a 1700 foot horizontal run, using an RPS1.8-80 system, to his 3000 gallon storage tank and was still achieving over 6 gallons per minute. The elevated storage thank they distributed the water to 5 different livestock troughs throughout the ranch.
What type of well pipe do you recommend?
We recommend 3/4″ black HDPE tubing aka “black poly pipe” for most usages. If you are making a long run, with a high volume pump, then you may wish to consider going to 1″ pipe. Both sizes are available at most big box home improvement stores for minimal cost. The pipe is flexible and comes in single pieces. The main benefit is when placing the pump in the well or pulling it from the well, you do not have to unscrew sections like standard PVC pipe which makes installation much faster. We do recommend using one 6 foot section of PVC pipe for the initial connection to the pump, to help keep it aligned vertically in the well casing.
Can I use a solar well pump in a pressurized system?
Short answer is yes. If you want to run a pressurized system off of a solar well pump you have a few options:
- Install a separate DC booster pump with battery backup and its own solar panel which pressurizes the bladder tank from a separate storage tank. The well pump fills the storage tank during the day, and the booster pump keeps water pressure throughout the day and night. The booster pump is much lower power and does not have to pump water from deep underground to maintain pressure. Therefore it does not require quite a large battery bank to make it through the night. Most people can get by with one gel cell for a 12V booster pump.
- Add battery backup to one of our systems. We offer optional controllers with battery backup and battery charge controller for all of our systems. You will also want to add a bit more to the wattage of the solar panels, as they will have to operate and charge the system batteries during the daytime. Using the current rating of the pump and the estimated nightly run time, you can figure out the battery bank required to make it through the night. You will also need to substrate 2.3 feet of pump capability for every 1 psi you want to pressurized the tank. For example with 120 head and 40 psi, you would need a system capable of pumping a minimum of 212 feet referred to as the “total dynamic head.”
- Use an AC to DC power converter to run off of main power during the night and feed into a controller with battery backup. The converters cost about $200 and you most likely would want to put a diode in series to prevent the controller from trying to charge the controller. This would be a very robust system.
While you need to think ahead to plan out your system, once complete they are very capable and robust systems. They are modular in case you need to replace a specific component or add more capability in the future. I always recommend to purchase the basic system, set it up and try it for a few days. If you need more water, additional solar panels can be added with batteries for increased performance.