Hi, Been having a recurring problem with my open loop spring supplied system. I have a spring 60 feet or so from my house which has been supplying water for the heat pump. The installer used a grundfos alpha 15-55sfc to provide a constant running loop (to avoid freezing) and then another pump to feed the heat pump off the loop when needed. My problem has been with the constant loop pump. What I like about it is that at max draw it only uses 45 watts but I've had to replace the pump annually as its gpm's reduce when its wearing down. It typically runs at 12gpm, last week it was down to ten and the flow switch shut the unit down. I do have a filter in the spring which I periodically clean. This was the first thing I checked. I also checked that the impellers were clear on the pump. It seems this pump can't handle constant duty. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what would be a better pump or different ideas as to a better loop system
I'm not completely clear on your setup, but as you mention open loop, the pump type may be your problem. The pump is a circulator pump and is for closed loop setups.
Thanks for replying. I'll try to explain it better. Basically the grundfos is just getting the spring water into to the basement and runs 24/7. When the geo kicks in there is another pump that draws from this. Let me know what you're unclear on and I'll elaborate. Mark, You say you've done work with springs. What is your typical setup? My installer admitted this was a first for him so I think he was winging it
The spring we used for the geo system was already developed and the water used for irrigation. The customer wanted to continue watering his crops, so we routed the water in to a poly septic tank and back out to the plants. We then installed a loop field in the tank. Mark
Circulators are only designed to deal with the head loss of the piping. They do not provide lift. So, it sounds like you have the wrong type of pump for the open loop side.
Agree with Chris, the circulator pump was a poor choice for delivering the water to the basement. Eric
