Submersible pumps are designed to be fully immersible within a tank or other media storage receptacle. The motors of submersible pumps are normally sealed in oil-filled cavities that are protected from contact with the transfer media. Many common types of pumps can be designed by submersible pumps manufacturers to be submersible. These include, but are not limited to:

• bladder pumps
• bilge and ballast pumps
• borehole pumps
• booster pumps
• centrifugal pumps
• condensate pumps
• dewatering pumps
• fountain pumps
• grinder pumps
• macerator pumps
• micro pumps
• sampling pumps
• trash pumps
• utility pumps
• well pumps

Applications

Submersible pumps can be applied to many distinct applications, from pumping large solids or grinding solids to smaller sizes, to transferring wastewater at large flow rates or high pressures, to simply pumping up water off the floor or the bottom of a tank; depending upon submersible pump design. Some of the more common submersible pumps designed for specific applications include water submersible pumps, sewage submersible pumps, 12 volt submersible pumps, sand submersible pumps, irrigation submersible pumps, and solar submersible pumps. Solar submersible pumps, while not specific to an application, are best used for slow and steady water transference into a holding tank, but may also be used for direct pressurization applications.

Specifications

There are four main specifications to consider when selecting between the available submersible pump types (beyond specific pump type or application). These submersible pump specifications include:

• Maximum discharge flow, which is the maximum flow the pump is designed to generate. This value is dependent on the system or pressure head the pump must enter.
• Maximum discharge pressure, which is the maximum pressure the pump is designed to generate.
• Horsepower (hp), which is a unit in the foot-pound-second (fps) or English system used to express the rate at which mechanical energy is expended. Horsepower is the work done at the rate of 550 foot-pounds per second and it is equivalent to 745.7 watts.
• Discharge size, which is the size of the submersible pumps’ discharge or outlet connection.

Related Information

CR4 Community—Two Submersible Pumps in One Well Bore

CR4 Community—Submersible Pump Torque

CR4 Community—NPSH for Submersible Pump

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Mukund275 / CC BY-SA 3.0