12 volt pond pumps

I can't find much via google on serious 12 volt pond pumps. Are there
any r.p.m readers using one, or know of one that can pump suitable
volumes for use in a 5000+ litre pond?

I'm interested to know the power requirements and feasibility of running
from a car batter charged by photovoltaic panels. The price of solar
panels seems to be dropping all the time, and with energy costs going up
it might be worth looking into.

David



DavidM

You could just add a DC to AC converter to the battery, just don't know how long a pump would run off a car battery. You would want something more along the lines of a forklift battery, they are a lot bigger.

On Fri, 11 Jul 2008 16:21:05 EDT, DavidM <newsNO@_SPAMdjmorgan.org.uk>
wrote:

>I can't find much via google on serious 12 volt pond pumps. Are there
>any r.p.m readers using one, or know of one that can pump suitable
>volumes for use in a 5000+ litre pond?
>
>I'm interested to know the power requirements and feasibility of running
>from a car batter charged by photovoltaic panels. The price of solar
>panels seems to be dropping all the time, and with energy costs going up
>it might be worth looking into.
>
>David

I'm hoping you'll find an answer here. I know my son is trying to figure
out how to power my motion sprinklers via solar. At least where the
batteries are charged during the day, and will run all night. ~ jan
------------
Zone 7a, SE Washington State
Ponds: www.jjspond.us

How about running a conventional 120v pond pump off of an inverter powered
by the 12v battery.


"DavidM" <newsNO@_SPAMdjmorgan.org.uk> wrote in message
news:...
>I can't find much via google on serious 12 volt pond pumps. Are there any
>r.p.m readers using one, or know of one that can pump suitable volumes for
>use in a 5000+ litre pond?
>
> I'm interested to know the power requirements and feasibility of running
> from a car batter charged by photovoltaic panels. The price of solar
> panels seems to be dropping all the time, and with energy costs going up
> it might be worth looking into.
>
> David
>

What about using a inverter to power a 120v pump. Solar cells charge the car
battery, inverter changes 12VDC to 120 VAC to run the pump. Simple and you
can use common pond pumps.
Paul

"DavidM" <newsNO@_SPAMdjmorgan.org.uk> wrote in message
news:...
>I can't find much via google on serious 12 volt pond pumps. Are there any
>r.p.m readers using one, or know of one that can pump suitable volumes for
>use in a 5000+ litre pond?
>
> I'm interested to know the power requirements and feasibility of running
> from a car batter charged by photovoltaic panels. The price of solar
> panels seems to be dropping all the time, and with energy costs going up
> it might be worth looking into.
>
> David
>

On Sat, 12 Jul 2008 21:58:32 EDT, ~ jan <> wrote:

>On Fri, 11 Jul 2008 16:21:05 EDT, DavidM <newsNO@_SPAMdjmorgan.org.uk>
>wrote:
>
>>I can't find much via google on serious 12 volt pond pumps. Are there
>>any r.p.m readers using one, or know of one that can pump suitable
>>volumes for use in a 5000+ litre pond?
>>
>>I'm interested to know the power requirements and feasibility of running
>>from a car batter charged by photovoltaic panels. The price of solar
>>panels seems to be dropping all the time, and with energy costs going up
>>it might be worth looking into.
>>
>>David
>
>I'm hoping you'll find an answer here. I know my son is trying to figure
>out how to power my motion sprinklers via solar. At least where the
>batteries are charged during the day, and will run all night. ~ jan

There are several things you can do. Depending on the power you
want, there are oodles of solar possibilities. Virtually any pump
that runs on AC can also be made to run on DC, if you are willing to
spend the bucks. You may find that photovoltaic cells are a rather
poor investment as you go farther north.

I regularly run a bunch of stuff, both AC and DC, off photovoltaic
cells. It costs a *lot* up front, but it is virtually maintenance
free and doesn't cost a thing once you get it set up.

Galen Hekhuis

I wonder if you can get enough power from a photo cell without paying
an arm and a leg?

How powerful is your pump?

Jim

Originally Posted by Phyllis and Jim

I wonder if you can get enough power from a photo cell without paying an arm and a leg? How powerful is your pump? Jim

You'd still need a battery and a photo cell that that produces more watts then the pump uses, or the pump would only run during the day. You'd need enough stored energy for a day or two.

I've thought about making my own windmill, may be a good winter project. Would be nice to get some free energy and the pond would be a great place to start, as it uses little energy.

"Phyllis and Jim" <> wrote in message
news:231218da-ce7b-47de-8867-...
>I wonder if you can get enough power from a photo cell without paying
> an arm and a leg?
>
> How powerful is your pump?
>
> Jim
>

Kinda depends on how much arms and legs go for in your neck of the woods.
I've a Sequence pump that uses about 120 watts. A 400 watt inverter ($30)
would easily run it. Car battery, maybe $75 or so. Now here's where the body
parts come in. On ebay, 123 watt solar panels go for $660 each and I'd need
two of them, figuring that the sun only shines 1/2 the time, but the pump
runs 24/7. Maybe 3 would be better to allow for cloudy days and system
losses. Throw in a charging regulator, and we're in the 2 kilo-dollar
neighborhood. That's more than arms and legs go for around here. It doesn't
sound feasible for anything larger than say a whiskey barrel size water
feature.
Paul

Phyllis and Jim wrote:
> I wonder if you can get enough power from a photo cell without paying
> an arm and a leg?
>
> How powerful is your pump?
>
> Jim
>

My current pond pump is 50 watts. An inverter runs at 90% efficiency
according to the manufactures, so probably more like 80%, that bumps it
up to ~65 watts. I'm guessing even 50% output from a solar panel is
optimistic (% of total output, not efficiency) in Southern UK, even
though East Anglia is technically a desert
Looking at 120 watt solar panels make me think that it's not such a
great idea. They are in the £700 region here in the UK, that's without
batteries, charging circuits and the inverter.

How about gas fired steam pump?