water pumps comparisons

[Steve Nguyen]

I think it's time to get an update on this subject to see if any owner change his/her mind about the brand they have been using. I am interested in hearing feedbacks on reliability of Artisian Perf. Pro, Sequence, Dragon, Wave, Evolution ESS series - those with built-in leaf traps.

I like the Dragon with 2.5 inches union In/Out. Evolution ESSx400 seems to be cheapest but only comes with 2 yrs warranty vs 3 yrs as comparing to others.

any thoughts?

Steve

[koiscales]

Very happy with Performance Pro and would buy them again in a heartbeat. Very quite pump and gets the job done.

KS

[koiczar]

Steve

The Evolution ESS pumps can also be plumbed to 2 1/2" pipe. The unions are made so the 2" pipe fits INSIDE the fitting and the 2 1/2" pipe fits on the OUTSIDE. The ESS 5200 is a 1/4hp and pumps 5200gph @ 5' head and uses 300 watts at full load amperage. The ESS 6400 is a 1/3hp and pumps 6400gph @ 5' head and uses 368 watts at full load amps. Once under a small load, the wattage will reduce slightly for better efficiency. If you place a Lim Dragon and an Evolution Series ESS pump side by side with no decals on it, you will not be able to tell which is which. Still, for the pond you want to use these for, this will be the best bang for your customer's buck! JMHO

Mike

[farne230]

I have mentioned this before on other boards. I bought three new proformance artesian Low RPM 1/2hp A75 pumps. I had problems with one, shorts out if wet and loud. My biggest problem was with their customer service, very poor, rude, uncooperative. In the end they did replace the motor housing, but it was all because of my pursistance. I would consider other manufactures before purchasing again IMO.

[HenryC]

I have had good luck with both WLim Wave and Sequence pumps. I have two 1/4HP Wave pumps that have been running continuously for the last 7 years. I have two 1/2HP Sequence pumps that are doing well. They are only 2 years old. One of the Sequence pumps started to running fairly loud after 6 months in operation (sounded like a bearing or bushing was bad). Sequence fixed it without questions. They even offered to send a loaner pump to take its place while they fixed it. I had a spare so I did not have to take them up on their offer.

I know somebody that had their filter pit flooded recently. There was 3 Sequence pumps that were submerged but kept running. As far as I know, they are still running (except no longer under water).

[CarolinaGirl]

I am running two WAVE pumps on my big pond and a 1/15 hp WAVE on my ring tank. The pumps are all very quiet. The poor pump on my nexus has been run dry twice....both times from me leaving the stopper pipe in the center of the nexus after cleaning. Once it ran dry for 24 hours, the second time it was more like 2 days. The pump was not damaged by either episode. The only negitive about WAVE pumps is the impellers are easily clogged by even the smallest bit of debris (crushed leaves, etc). I accidently overflowed kaldnes into the outlet of the nexus once and the sequence pump (it was too big and was replaced with a smaller WAVE pump) sucked it all up and pushed it right into the pond. The same thing happened later with the wave and the pump clogged up immediatly. The K1 jammed tightly into the impeller fins and it was quite a task to get it cleaned out.

[gregbickal]

On occasion, I too find K1 that has been sucked in and crushed by my Sequence. I have 3 sequence and am very happy with them.

[Rich L]

Properly installed pumps should last for a decade so most failures are due to installation or mishandling.

Folks with performance Pro have received good service after purchase so I am wondering what happened that caused that employee to be so rude. When dealing with a company like Performance Pro. Don’t hesitate to send the CEO a complaint message. It may not be the employees fault but they will sort that out. Sequence needs no support from me, it and Performance Pro are the best all round that I’ve seen yet. Of course, any dealer will tell you his pump is the best but that’s because that’s the one than ….. Well, you know.

Some of the dealers out here stopped carrying Lim products because he wasn’t supporting his products. Even when he had an ongoing problem with multiple customers he still blamed the problem on the customer. I hear he got a wakeup when dealers started dropping his line so he may be getting better.

As far as efficiency, the components making up a centrifugal pump do as well as one another. Motors run 85 to 90% efficiency, mostly 85. Pump heads lower the final combination to 65 to 70%.

Don’t pay attention to nameplate readings. They have little to do with pump efficiency. Most dealers don’t understand pumps but don’t want to admit it so they talk about horsepower, current ratings and maximum flow which have nothing to do with the operation of the pump other than to tell how many horsepower the pump can handle before over heating. In a proper installation, the ratings at minimum head have no meaning at all, nor does the maximum flow rating.

Pump selection begins when the rest of the plumbing designed is finished. The first decision in the plumbing design is determining the turnover you want. Then which components you will have in the filter circuit and how much water you will want in each branch. Then you use pipe flow charts to determine the proper size pipe to use. After that you will be able to do a pretty good estimate of the head created by your system at the turnover rate you want.

That information can be placed on a graph to show what’s called a system curve. Pump design curves can be plotted on that graph to help select the pump that best compliments your specific installation. That’s what Steve Childers is talking about when he says “it’s a system!”

The pump that is chosen should be the one that operates at its Best Efficiency Point at the head and flow your design calls for. Other than that, it doesn’t matter what the pump’s other ratings are. One pump can’t be compared to another by reading its current alone.

You’re right on in checking on reliability and customer service.

As far as the size of port, it has little to do with pump operation other than in establishing NPSH. A term you will seldom need to deal with. That’s why you seldom see it on hobby related pump curves.

Don’t go to 2 ½” lines unless your design ends up calling for that. The cost jumps after 2”. There are different opinions on determining bottom drain size. Some say installing the size your design calls for and other prefer 4” period. I’m in the latter crowd because I am continuing to experiment with different configurations and changing pipe size under the pond is hard. On the other hand, someone who is building a pond to raise koi only and never change it might be just as well off operating with a line that is easier to purge.

If all the buried lines are large enough they will be able to accommodate airlift pumps in the future and cut your power consumption in half. If you really want to go for it, design the pond using airlifts now. You won’t need to worry about which pump to buy.

The impellor is shallower on the wave but that and the impellor diameter are why that pump works at a lower head. If a pump design is getting plugged by debris, install a leaf trap. There aren’t many items that will cross that barrier. (Can you say algae?)

[Russell Peters]

Originally Posted by Rich L

If a pump design is getting plugged by debris, install a leaf trap. There aren’t many items that will cross that barrier. (Can you say algae?)

I have been using Sequence pumps for seven years and I am very happy with them. They all have leaf baskets but from time to time I do have to take them apart to get the garbage, that gets past the leaf basket, out of the impeller. I just took one apart two days ago. There were many things, no algae, stuck in the impeller. Mostly debris from Oak and Redwood trees.

[Birdman]

Over the years I have used just about every kind of pump there is. You just can't beat Sequence for durability. I had two of them that after 10 years of use and abuse were still going strong. And I have had no complaints with Superfalls or Aqua Flo.
Last summer I tried one of the new Sure Pro pumps with the newly designed super efficient Marathon motor. The model SP 5500. This pump only has a 1/10 HP motor but out flowed my Sequence, my Superfalls, and my Aqua Flo, all with 1/4 HP motors, and did it at over a hundred watts less. Only 286 watts. I was so impressed I took on the product line and now sell the Sure Pro pumps.
I am now running 7 of them on my ponds. Four 3500s, two 5500s, and one 8500 running my shower. All 7 are drawing rated wattages or less. They all have totally enclosed American made Marathon motors, 15 foot cord, top end high silicone carbon seals, two year warranty, and even an off/on switch. For a low head high flow situation they are another good option.