New York Eastern Finger Lakes | The previous poster has it correct. Sounds like you have an oil lube pump. Should have bronze bearings that have male threads both end which are used to couple the 2 inch pipe together. The 2 inch pipe should have female threads both ends. Depending upon motor RPM they are at a minimum on 10 foot centers. Shaft runs inside and is centered by bearings. Oil lubed pumps typically leak oil into the well over time. The worst I ever saw was 30 feet of oil floating on the water inside well casing.
With regard to pump end there are two types of impellers semi open and closed. The semi open seal across the entire face. About 15 thousands clearance is correct. This is adjusted by the big tension nut on top of the motor. Closed impellers have sealing rings which drop into the previous bowl. Clearance around the OD of the sealing ring is likewise around 15 thousands. The idea is to keep the low pressure side of the impeller separate from the high pressure side which goes into the low pressure side of the next impeller. Each combination of a bowl and impeller is called a stage. Each stage passes along the water from the previous and passes it on. If the clearance is excessive you get recirculation inside the bowl which uses electricity but does not add anything pumped. Eventually the clearance opens to the point that pump is shot. Pumping rate is determined by the first stage and pressure by the number of stages.
Bowls are either threaded or bolted. The easiest is to remove the bottom of the lowermost stage. This is where you will also have inlet strainer or suction pipe. The condition of that impeller and bowl will tell the whole story. If it is worn all others will be or vice versa. Not a good idea to remove impellers. They are held on by a tapered sleeve called a collet. You need proper collet tool to reengage.
Hope that helps. |
Irrigation well questions
