Choosing a barrel pump for watering your garden from storage tanks

Which brand should you prefer?

There is a large selection of domestic and imported pumps on the market for organizing irrigation in the garden. Russian brands offer a favorable ratio of quality and price, are moderately reliable and unpretentious in everyday use. Gilex brand products

, units from
UNIPUMP
. The devices are captivating with their simplicity of design and affordability.

Among the most reliable pumps are German brands Metabo

and
Karcher
.

Quattro Elementi

is trying to compete Gardena's flagship garden equipment .
The success of the brand is determined by its price advantage and good performance characteristics. As for pumps of the ZUBR
and
Vikhr
, they demonstrate a favorable combination of cost and operating parameters. At the same time, the same Karcher, assembled in the Middle Kingdom, will still be “head and shoulders above”, since the Germans reserved quality control for themselves.

Selecting a source for water intake

The choice and purchase of a suitable model of garden pump for irrigation largely depends on what kind of water is intended to be pumped and where it is planned to be taken from.

Plants cannot develop normally without a sufficient amount of life-giving moisture. But only well-settled warm water is suitable for watering green spaces.

Rainwater is the most affordable option for life-giving moisture, which has a neutral acid-base balance and contains a minimum of chemical impurities dangerous to plants.

Careful owners collect rainwater in barrels and large containers placed on the site under the gutters. If necessary, all that remains is to get it out by scooping it up with a bucket or pumping it out of the barrel with a pump for watering.

Quite often, if there is a well or well on the site, water for irrigation is taken from them. But a “cold shower” can cause irreparable damage to the delicate roots of plants: they can begin to rot.

For this reason, water pumped out from a hydraulic structure is first poured into containers, allowing it to heat up under the sun's rays, and only then is it used for irrigation.

The third, and perhaps the most successful source option, where it is convenient to get water for irrigation, is a nearby natural reservoir or an artificial pond constructed on your own.

Using water from a home pond to water plants, you solve two problems at once: you provide life-giving moisture to green “pets” and perform preventive cleaning of the water structure

In all the water sources listed above, the degree of contamination of the water varies greatly. Therefore, separate types of pumping equipment have been developed for each of them.

Choosing a pump for garden irrigation

When choosing a pump for irrigation, in addition to the manufacturer’s brand and cost, owners pay attention to a number of key characteristics:

Typical design.

It is largely determined by the fact where the water intake will come from. There are barrel, submersible and surface pumps. The latter option is optimal for pumping water from large containers. Drainage devices have shown themselves to be excellent in wells and reservoirs. At the same time, pumps designed for pumping out barrels have the most modest performance.

Suction depth.

It is important when supplying water from wells and natural reservoirs.

Pressure

If the site has elevation changes or you plan to connect the pump to an extensive irrigation system, this characteristic plays a key role in ensuring a reliable supply of water to the garden.

Performance.

It also affects the quality of land reclamation. Supplying large volumes of water is optimal for watering trees in the garden and collecting containers for settling water. This parameter is also important when using several sprinklers at once in a garden plot.

What does water pressure mean?

Pressure is the height or distance to which water is supplied. This value is measured in meters. The important thing is that the pressure and performance of the apparatus at the end point remain unchanged. At the same time, the meaning of vertical and horizontal feed is completely different. The ratio between them will be 1:10. The pressure in a vertical position will be 10 times less. For example, the pump’s passport says that its pressure is 10 meters. This refers to the value in a vertical position. Based on this, the horizontal water supply of the pump is carried out over 100 meters.

Next, we will consider in detail how to choose a unit. Let's give another example. The container is located at a depth of one and a half meters underground. The length of the area that is planned to be irrigated is 35 meters. First of all, you need to understand that there are two parameters. The first indicates the vertical net pressure, and the second (horizontal) is reduced by 10 times.

Based on these data, we calculate the required pressure of the pumping unit: 1.5 + 3.5 = 5 m. It is important to take into account possible losses of water when moving it. After all, during the retraction and rotation of the hose, about 20 percent of the pressure is lost. It turns out: 35x0.2=7 m. Now let’s summarize: 5+7=12 m.

It is recommended to add an additional 10 percent to this value. This will be the so-called reserve. The end result will be a minimum of 13.2 meters.

Manufacturers

An interesting trend is observed in the domestic market of barrel and garden electric pumps for irrigation - in the retail network it is impossible to find products from world-famous manufacturers of pumping equipment for individual water supply (Grundfos, Pedrollo, Wilo, Speroni).

Also, a number of the largest Russian manufacturers of electric pumps do not produce models of this series for various reasons, so the unconditional leadership in the market of pumping equipment for gardening belongs to the largest German concerns with a high rating - Karcher, Gardena, Al-ko.

Each of the companies is well known in the world as a supplier of high-quality equipment and tools for garden care in a wide range. Karcher has won worldwide recognition and positive feedback from domestic consumers thanks to its extensive line of vacuum cleaners and steam cleaners for domestic and industrial use. Al-ko, in addition to the production of garden equipment, produces components for the largest German automobile concerns and manufactures ventilation and air conditioning systems.

Of the Russian models in the retail chain, you can buy barrel pumps with the brands Belamos, Zubr, Stavr, Unipump, it is clear that their cost is two to three times lower than their foreign analogues, products from lesser-known companies Quattro Elementi, Grinda are less common.

With limited financial resources, most owners of dachas and cottages use vibration pumps for irrigation, which are characterized by low cost and low parameters. The market offers a huge range of products from Russian, Chinese, Belarusian, Ukrainian (currently unknown) manufacturers; consumers are well familiar with brands such as Malysh, Rucheek, Vikhr, Zubr, which have approximately the same characteristics.

Brief overview of popular models

In addition to pure barrel submersible pumps, many homeowners also use garden pumps, with which they water from containers. Garden types operate on a centrifugal principle and differ from submersible barrel ones in higher productivity. When choosing a pump for a 200 liter barrel for irrigation or pumping water from a tank of another capacity, many users opt for budget vibration pumps of domestic and foreign production, characterized by their simplicity of design and unpretentiousness in operation.

• Karcher BP 1 Barrel (4500 RUR) - a barrel submersible unit with a maximum productivity of 3.8 m3/h and a delivery height of 11 m, power is 400 W, Karcher BP 1 Barrel Set, complete with a hose, a gun and various connecting connectors, costs about 7000 rub. All modifications are equipped with a float switch and built-in idling protection; they are installed vertically in the tank in a suspended state, thanks to fixation on the edge of the barrel with a curved holder.
• Karcher BP 4 Garden Set (RUB 10,000) - a surface garden pump, the latest representative of the BP line, with the highest power of 1000 W with a maximum flow volume of 4 m3/h and a head of 45 m; the other two models in this series have lower characteristics . The Karcher pump for irrigation from a barrel BP 3 creates a pressure of 40 m with a productivity of 3.5 m3/h (5300 rubles), parameters BP2 - 35 m3 and 3 m3/h (6400 rubles), respectively.

All units are designed for pumping clean water, are capable of sucking water from depths of up to 8 m, operate silently, and the diameter of the outlet pipe for connecting the hose is 1 inch.

Gardena 4000/2 Classic and Al-Ko Jet 3000 Classic

• Gardena 4000/2 Classic (5300 rub.) - a barrel submersible pump designed for drawing water from various types of containers, its maximum head is 20 m, productivity is 4 m3/h with an energy consumption of 500 W, like all analogs, the Gardena pump stops watering when when the built-in float switch or internal dry-running protection relay is activated. A distinctive feature of the Gardena 4000/2 electric pump is the presence of 2 impellers and, accordingly, stages that increase the outlet pressure, resulting in this parameter being the highest among representatives of its class.
• Al-Ko Jet 3000 Classic (RUB 5,500) is a surface garden electric pump with a maximum head of 35 m and a productivity of 3.1 m3 / h, consumes 650 W of electricity, is equipped with a standard 1-inch outlet pipe and is capable of supplying water from a depth of 8 m. Alco is silent and is designed to pump only clean water; the approximate weight of the unit is 6.4 kg.

Pumps Zubr ZNPB-300, Belamos Omega 350 LX

• Bison ZNPB-300 (RUB 3,000) is a submersible drainage pump for supplying contaminated (rain) water with a particle diameter of no more than 0.5 mm from tanks, the maximum pressure and supply volume are 9 and 2.46 cubic meters. m3/h, respectively, the unit consumes power 300 W. The pump has a built-in float switch to turn off the power supply when the water level drops, there is internal protection against dry running, the diameter of the outlet pipe is 3/4 inches, and there is a curved telescopic rod for easy hanging from the edge of the tank.
• Belamos Omega 350 LX (RUB 2,700) is one of the budget models of a submersible electric pump, designed for drainage and irrigation from a barrel, has a maximum head of 10 m with a productivity of 3 m3/h, power of 350 W. The unit can pass particles with a diameter of up to 0.05 mm, has a telescopic rod for hanging, is equipped with a float switch and internal idling protection.
• Livgidromash Malysh BV-0.12-40-U5 10 m (1500 rubles) is a budget vibrating submersible pump for an irrigation barrel, which is often used by homeowners when drawing water from reservoirs and irrigating their garden plots. The unit has standard pressure and pumping volume for its class of 40 m3/h and 1.5 m3/h, respectively, power consumption does not exceed 240 W, immersion depth under the water surface is no more than 3 m. Since all vibration models are not afraid of turbid water (exception are liquids containing sand), they are often used for pumping rainwater from reservoirs for watering the garden.

There are several more models on the market with the same name from different manufacturers, they all have the same parameters, design with minor changes and differ from each other in cost.

Varieties of the Malysh brand

Three categories of electric pumps are best suited for organizing irrigation from a barrel: surface garden, barrel and vibration; each type has its own characteristics and a different niche of application.

Garden units with a centrifugal operating principle make it possible to irrigate places furthest from a water source; barrel pumps for watering a vegetable garden are easy to use, more suitable for immersion in tanks and are designed for irrigating medium-sized areas.

The advantage of vibrating types is their low cost, with their help it is practical to water small areas, but when carrying out work, constant supervision is required - budget models are not equipped with a float switch, many do not have protection against dry running - these circumstances often lead to burnout of the winding and the inability to restore the functionality of the pump .

Types of electric water pumps

The domestic water pumping equipment market offers a wide range of pumps, many of which can be used for water supply from surface tanks. The following types of household electric pumps can be used for pumping from barrels:

Centrifugal surface (garden)

Centrifugal pumps are widely used in water supply systems of private houses; most often they serve as the main components of pumping stations that have a built-in hydraulic accumulator, pressure switch and pressure gauge. For barrel water intake, no additional equipment is required, and the electric pump is used without these elements, installed next to the reservoir and immersed in the pressure hose.

Since a surface electric pump is capable of sucking liquid from depths of up to 8 m and this height of the container is difficult to imagine on an individual site, a centrifugal external electric pump is suitable for irrigation from barrels in all cases. The models on the market are capable of providing a pressure of about 50 m or more, their maximum supply volume usually does not exceed 5 m3/h. Centrifugal surface electric pumps have an efficiency of about 55% and work mainly with clean or slightly turbid water.

Types of well pumps

Submersible borehole (well) electric pumps

For borehole water intake, household multi-stage deep-well electric pumps of a centrifugal operating principle are used, capable of pumping water with a pressure of up to 300 m with supply volumes of up to 20 m3/h. The efficiency among analogues is maximum and reaches 65% in expensive modifications from the world's leading manufacturers (Grundfos).

Also in the trading network are vortex and screw well units with more modest characteristics: maximum pressure up to 100 m, the supply volume of screw ones does not exceed 10 m3/h, for vortex ones it does not reach 5 m3/h, the efficiency of two varieties is not more than 50%.

All of the above units have a high cost and are used for constant water supply to houses with three to five people living (the volume of water supplied is 3 - 5 m3/h), that is, they are capable of pumping on average about 70 liters of liquid per minute and supplying it over many hundreds of meters . It is clear that such pumping volumes and distances are more suitable for watering large areas in agriculture, so their use in everyday life is irrational and economically unprofitable.

The retail network sells varieties of centrifugal, screw and vortex electric pumps with a float switch, designed for drawing water from well sources; they have parameters similar to well types, in the direction of some reduction, but are also too expensive and ineffective when drawing water from surface reservoirs for irrigation.

Drainage pumps

Drainage submersible units

Another modification of electric pumps that can be used for irrigation only as a last resort is submersible drainage pumps, designed to operate in heavily polluted environments. Since the working mechanism has too large gaps for the passage of large particles and, accordingly, high hydraulic losses, these units are absolutely unsuitable for working with clean water due to low efficiency (very low efficiency).

Vibrating

Inexpensive, low-power pumps with a vibration operating principle push water by moving a piston located on the armature of an electromagnetic coil; they are more represented on the market than other types; in addition to domestic manufacturers, the product is supplied from China and the former CIS countries - Belarus, Ukraine. The maximum supply volume of vibration units does not exceed 1.5 m3/h, the pressure reaches 80 m (standard 40 m), the efficiency is quite low and is about 35%.

Since the low price is complemented by rather modest technical parameters, vibration models are widely used in households for various purposes, the main of which are watering garden plots and filling containers with water. The disadvantages of vibration models, in addition to low productivity, are the low quality of workmanship of many brands, the absence of a float switch that stops the pump when the water in the container runs out. Sometimes the volume of water supplied by the unit for irrigation of even medium-sized areas is too small (the nominal operating supply parameter is usually 1.5 times lower, and taking into account the low quality of such products, it is actually about 0.5 - 0.8 m3/h).

Vibration pump - device

Special pumps for irrigation from a barrel

Leading foreign and domestic manufacturers of pumping equipment have developed special models of electric pumps designed for drawing water from surface tanks. For these purposes, a high pressure of the unit that sucks water from surface reservoirs is not needed, because when calculating, 10 m of a horizontally located pipeline corresponds to 1 m of its vertical length (for rigid-walled polymer pipelines with a diameter of 1 inch). In addition, the absence of various fittings, bends, tees and other elements of plumbing fittings on a straight hose reduces hydraulic losses and, accordingly, does not require additional pressure to overcome them.

The supply volume plays a more important role and in barrel types it approaches the limit value of 5 m3/h, and since the lack of water in the irrigation tank is a common occurrence, all models are equipped with a float switch with adjustable immersion level.

Leading manufacturers of electric drum pumps often equip their products with the following additional accessories:

• A gun with a water shut-off button (aquastop) and nozzles that allow you to regulate the flow from a hard, narrowly directed jet to aerosol dust.
• Adapters for changing from 3/4" to 1/2" sizes.
• Watering hoses and connecting connectors for attaching the hose with one click.
• Telescopic clamp on the edge of the barrel with a flexible clamp, allowing you to change the depth of immersion of the pump into the tank.
• A float switch with an adjustment unit for turning off the device at different levels of water in the barrel, a convenient rotary lever for turning the unit on and off on the handle.
• A filter integrated into the electric pump that protects its mechanism from the penetration of large dirt particles.

Compared to other types of electric pumps, barrel pumps have rather modest basic characteristics: in standard models, the pressure does not exceed 15 m, and the supply volume is 5 m3/h.

Barrel pumps

Conclusions and useful video on the topic

Details on how to properly connect a surface pump as part of a pumping station are presented in the following video:

Here is a visual representation of the procedure for connecting a surface pump for irrigation:

There are not many pitfalls in installing a surface pump. Of course, you shouldn’t rely on your own instincts or the famous “maybe”.

A careful study of the manufacturer's instructions, as well as a few short consultations with experienced craftsmen, will help even a beginner cope with this task quite satisfactorily.