Openwell or borewell submersible?
They look alike in a catalogue, but suit very different wells.
Sizing a pump: head and flow
Two numbers decide the pump. Here is how to work them out before you call us.
Every pump enquiry comes down to two numbers: how much water you need, and how high it has to go. Get these right and choosing the pump is straightforward. Get them wrong and even a good pump will disappoint.
Flow is the volume of water you need in a given time, usually in litres per hour. For a home, think of the tank size and how quickly you want to fill it: a 2,000 litre tank filled in an hour needs 2,000 litres an hour. For drip irrigation, your system supplier will give you a flow for each zone.
Total head is the height the pump must lift water, plus the losses along the pipe. Start with the vertical distance from the water level to the highest outlet. Then add friction loss: roughly 1 m for every 10 m of horizontal pipe in 1 inch size, plus about 1 m for each bend or valve. A well 8 m deep feeding a tank 12 m above ground with 40 m of pipe is around 26–28 m total head.
When you send us those two figures, add the water source, pipe size and whether you have single- or three-phase power. An engineer will pick the pump and send its performance curve with the quote.
