Now that we got your attention, let’s explain what we are talking about. Hydra-Tech’s submersible pumps include several wear parts in the body of the pump that can be replaced should they get worn out. The internal wear parts in the 3 and 4 inch sludge and slurry pumps, and 4 and 6 inch vortex flow trash pumps have a few common parts, the wear ring, wear plate and vortex impeller that are interchangeable. To lengthen the life span of these wear parts, they are now available with a carbide coating Shieldzall, which Hydra-Tech gets from a company called Oliver Carbide Products*. This coating provides a cost effective solution to the everyday wear and tear along with the harsh abrasive environments that our submersible pumps are used for. Some of these challenging applications include pumping driller’s mud, mine slag, dredge work, stones and rocks of all sizes and of course abrasive sand. A common statement Hydra-Tech hears from the end user is if you can get these harsh types of material into the inlet of the pump and then get that pumpage through the volute then the pump is a success.
Hydra-Tech did a case study with one of their customers. The customer was using a 6 inch trash pump in a mine and after 8 hours the impeller and wear ring were worn down. Hydra-Tech then supplied them with the Shieldzall carbide coated wear ring, wear plate and impeller, and had them run the pump to see when the parts would get worn out. With these coated parts they were able to get 280-hours out of one set, after that amount of time the wear ring was the only part that needed to be replaced.
*Oliver Corporation is the world premier manufacturer of tools and specialty coatings utilizing nickel-brazed carbide coatings.
Just over a year ago Jeff Whittaker started working for Hydra-Tech Pumps. He knew most of the employees fairly well since most had been working for Hydra-Tech since the company moved to Nesquehoning PA in 2007. Jeff’s family acquired the business in 2005 when it was located in Mt Holly NJ.
From Jeff’s perspective, his first year:
As I sat at a desk that I made my home in my first week at Hydra-Tech, part of what I did was eavesdrop. Seriously. What better way to begin to figure out the culture and hear the Hydra-Tech end of technical calls, application calls, sales calls etc. I heard people stressing our great customer service, and I began to see it myself. In my first back order meeting where we review the orders in house, the production plan and the shipping schedule, I realized that it was a symphony of friendly ribbing, but that everyone was pushing each other to get the orders out as quickly as possible and do whatever was possible to do better than the customer expected.
On a daily basis I saw firsthand how hard Hydra-Tech’s employees work for the customer and how dedicated everyone is about their role in the whole process. It was also immediately obvious to me that Ken Reim, who founded the company back in 1977, is as passionate about the design of pumps and power units as he ever was. There is nothing he likes more than a new application and challenge.
So with a year under my belt (and a still a lot to learn) I realize that our customer service is one of our most important aspects, something that has been confirmed time after time with customers I have spoken to. So as much as we are selling hydraulically driven submersible pumps and hydraulic power units, we are also providing solutions to pumping needs and working hard for your business every day.
Manufacturer of the Year – Hydra-Tech Pumps, proudly recognizes the efforts of all of its employees for the contributions made which have enabled us to be recognized as the Manufacturer of the Year by Gorman-Rupp Pumps. The award comes to us as a long time GR vendor and participant in the Supplier Scorecard evaluation program that Gorman Rupp has been using since 2006.
Pre-dating the Supplier Scorecard, Hydra-Tech’s relationship with GR goes back to the mid 90’s. During that time period Gorman-Rupp recognized that Hydra-Tech’s USA made products offered both the best value and the best technology in the world of submersible pumps driven by hydraulic power. With that in mind, they invited Ken and his partner to Mansfield, Ohio to help create the right product offerings for our joint customers. After some brief negotiation, a handshake deal was done, and Gorman’s hydraulically driven submersible pump and hydraulic power unit program was born. While G-R’s line of hydraulics are limited to three, four and six inch pumps along with the compatible power units, Hydra-Tech’s product line has grown to include pumps from two inch discharge up to 24” axial flow pumps.
The GR hydraulic product line is manufactured in Pennsylvania by Hydra-Tech and in accordance with G-R’s quality standards. The equipment is private labeled and carries to market the distinct Gorman Rupp color scheme.
In addition to the standard products, GR and HT have partnered on some custom projects, including sound attenuated auto-start systems employed in western Canada, small auto-start diesel packages in use in Mexico City and a pneumatically activated auto start system for use in a permanent industrial setting.
We thank Gorman Rupp for the honor and want all of our client companies to understand that we work each and every day to be the Manufacture of the Year for each and every one of our valued customers.
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Comparing Electric Submersible Pump with Generator and Hydraulic Submersible Pump Systems.
Electric Submersible with Generator:
- Submersible pump is not affected by suction lift limitations
- Generator must run at constant full speed at all times
- Fuel usage is high regardless of demand on pump
- May be unsafe to operate in certain areas
- Potential shock hazard
- Costly to repair
Hydraulic Submersible: (from Hydra-Tech Pumps)
- Submersible pump is NOT affected by suction lift limitations
- Variable pump speed to suit job conditions
- High overall efficiency and low fuel consumption
- Can be used in hazardous environments
- Many different pumps can be driven from a single power unit
- Pump and power unit are field serviceable
- Easy and inexpensive to maintain
Here we are ready to go to work laying a foundation at the bottom of the 40 ft. deep excavation. We are keeping ahead of the incoming groundwater with our electric submersible pump connected to the local electric supply when suddenly the power goes out! No problem. We run over to our backup diesel self-priming pump and start it up. What? Why isn’t it pumping?!!
Oh, that’s right. The dig was deeper than we anticipated and this type of pump can’t lift the water that high. Now our only choice is to stop everything and try to lower the pump into the hole until it can catch prime and hope it can keep up until we find a better way. Tic-Toc, Tic-Toc…as time and money passes by.
Wish we had used a hydraulic submersible to begin with.
My Submersible Hydraulic pump has a blown motor lip seal, what’s the cause of this?
Seal failure on the hydraulic motor is usually caused by excess pressure build-up in the motor casing.
Some other common causes:
- Not connecting the quick disconnect fitting completely on the wing style fittings.
- Hooking up the pressure line before the return line causing the pressure in the hose to build up with no place to go except past the motor lip seal and mechanical seal and into the pumpage.
- Disconnecting the return line before the pressure line causing the same as above, no outlet for the pressure. **The motor lip seal is not designed to hold the full system pressure only internal leak oil for lubrication.**
- The return hose might be too long and/or diameter might be too small.
- Clogged return hose or coupling obstructing the return of oil flow back to the tank.
- Power unit, Bobcat, Truck, or Excavator hydraulic controls may not be an OPEN CENTER or motor control spool meaning the return is closed off and traps the pressure at the motor.
- The power unit is putting out too much pressure and hydraulic flow for the motor.
- Running the motor at full speed in cold weather without allowing the hydraulic oil to warm up first.
*Always be aware of your max hydraulic motor pressure and flow requirements.
*Before you hook up your power unit know what your power unit’s output is to prevent bodily damage and equipment failure.
Vortex Impeller Pumps Solve Solids Handling Challenges.
Think about how effective the average toilet is…It creates a vortex action using water flow and pressure to quickly and efficiently dispose of human waste, sanitary products and the occasional dead goldfish. The vortex energy found in the common toilet is the same kind of energy which makes our vortex impeller pumps perfect for handling stringy materials, rags, slurry and many types of solids and semi-solids.
Consider also, that engine driven hydraulics powering a motor atop our submersible pumps magnify this vortex effect, creating an even more effective pumping system. Using any vortex type impeller submersible pump will help eliminate the clogging which sometimes occurs in channel impeller pumps. In addition our vortex pumps do well when pumping sludge, sewage, silt and even the occasional goldfish.
A popular question we are asked is “Why do you need to use an open center hydraulic circuit when driving a submersible pump?” The quick answer is to keep the pump from coming to an abrupt sudden stop.
Let’s think of it in terms of driving a car. You are driving your car and the traffic light turns yellow and then red. You apply the brakes just enough to slow the car to a stop. Imagine what it would be like if you had to slam on the brakes or jam the transmission into ‘Park’ every time you needed to stop. Both you and the car would experience excessive wear and tear. A closed center hydraulic system acts the same way when driving anything with a hydraulic motor, especially driving a pump.
1.) In a closed center circuit, the valve controlling the direction of oil on the submersible is placed in the center (off) position, the oil returning from the submersible pump is blocked and has nowhere to go. The pump impeller goes from spinning fast to an abrupt halt. This can cause damage to the pump and cause motor seal failure.
2.) In an open center circuit, the valve controlling the direction of oil on the submersible pump is allowed to pass through the valve and return to the oil reservoir and allows the pump impeller to slowly wind down. See this link for a hydraulic diagram that shows a typical open center hydraulic circuit.
All of Hydra-Tech’s standard power units are single direction open center systems that provide safe hydraulic power matched to the pumps they drive. If it is impractical to change the existing hydraulic circuit on the power unit or vehicle you are using to drive a submersible pump, there is another solution. The Hydra-Tech Pump can be used between the power source and the submersible pump to prevent sudden stops, wrong rotation or over-speeding and allow you to control the pump output.
Two factors must be used to determine the maximum length of hydraulic hose you can run from the hydraulic power unit to the submersible pump.
On the pressure side friction losses in the hose and couplings will reduce the amount of pressure available to the hydraulic motor. This will cause a reduction in power from the motor and may have an effect on the submersible pump output.
On the return side friction losses not only will effect performance but also create excess backpressure that can damage the hydraulic motor and possibly cause seal failure in the motor.
As a rule of thumb we recommend going to a larger return hose on running distances greater than 150ft (45m). Use a larger hose on the pressure side on distance over 150 ft (45m).
Case drain lines (third lines) are used to relieve any excess pressure build-up in the hydraulic motor casing on the submersible pump. The larger the hydraulic flow capacity of the system, the greater the need for case drain lines. All of Hydra-Tech’s power units 25HP (15GPM) and above have provisions for case drain lines to be fitted. All of Hydra-Tech’s pumps that operate with input flows over 35 GPM (132LPM) have case drain lines fitted as standard. Pumps that operate with flows from 15 to 35 GPM only require case drain lines when you are using 150 ft. (45m) or more hydraulic hose from the power unit to the pump. Units under 15 GPM (57LPM) normally do not require case drain lines and in applications over 150 ft from the power unit to the pump, a larger size return line can be used to reduce back pressure.