You can look at the pictures on this link to see how our pump ended up as a pumpsicle this winter. we-have-an-ice-flow-problem-help-t18305.html
It seems to have taken a lot out of the pump, as it does not have the flow it had last year (based on psi and flowmeter readings). Also, these Doughboy pumps seem to be built very cheaply- they are made in China, and then put in a fancy plastic casing. We plan to open ours up and see if there is anything we can find to improve performance, but want to have an alternative plan in case we end up ruining the pump in the process.
We would like to go to a 2-speed pump anyways, so any recommendations? We have round 23,000 AGP, with qty (2) 4 ft by 20 ft solar panels that are ground mounted in parallel. We do not have to worry about self-priming, as everything is below water level. The current Doughboy pump is supposedly 1.5 hp, but since I have only about 12 psi on my gage and 30gpm on my flow meter, I am guessing that some sort of major fudge factor was applied to come up with 1.5hp. It takes every bit of flow the pump has to fill both solar panels, and all my research suggests that I should have twice as much flow as I need. I have not been able to obtain head charts for Doughboy pumps, but I know that at high speed, I need to have at least 12 psi and 30gpm to run my panels and Ranger suction side cleaner. Any thoughts?
It seems to have taken a lot out of the pump, as it does not have the flow it had last year (based on psi and flowmeter readings). Also, these Doughboy pumps seem to be built very cheaply- they are made in China, and then put in a fancy plastic casing. We plan to open ours up and see if there is anything we can find to improve performance, but want to have an alternative plan in case we end up ruining the pump in the process.
We would like to go to a 2-speed pump anyways, so any recommendations? We have round 23,000 AGP, with qty (2) 4 ft by 20 ft solar panels that are ground mounted in parallel. We do not have to worry about self-priming, as everything is below water level. The current Doughboy pump is supposedly 1.5 hp, but since I have only about 12 psi on my gage and 30gpm on my flow meter, I am guessing that some sort of major fudge factor was applied to come up with 1.5hp. It takes every bit of flow the pump has to fill both solar panels, and all my research suggests that I should have twice as much flow as I need. I have not been able to obtain head charts for Doughboy pumps, but I know that at high speed, I need to have at least 12 psi and 30gpm to run my panels and Ranger suction side cleaner. Any thoughts?
