Comprehensive Guide To The Head Of A Pump

The head is a measurement of the amount of pressure. The essential thing to remember here is the pressure required to successfully deliver the fluid pumped at the desired flow, as the amount of pressure needed to pump water in a home is somewhere between 40 to 60 psi.

Factors deciding the head of the pump

At home, if you are filling a reservoir, you will not need any pressure at all because you are just looking to get the water in the tank. In most sewage applications where solids handling is involved, there is not necessarily a requirement for pressure in most cases like effluent sewers and on-site sewer systems where you may have a pressurized drain field.

You are certainly going to be looking at some requirements that involve pressure so as not to overcomplicate things; the pressure is pressure. So the desired flow is the amount of fluid that you need to be delivered, how many gallons per minute is generally. There will be only two primary factors in dealing with pump heads in their most basic form, so you have got the lift, and you have got the loss.

Elevation difference

So, let's talk about lift as it boils down. It is essentially different from point A to point B, from where the pump is located to where the fluid needs to be pumped. That is typically the elevation difference now. It has no bearing on the distance between A point and B point. But only the vertical difference, so one foot vertically would be one foot of head regardless of if the pump is a hundred feet away from the discharge location.

A one-foot rise is a one-foot rise. So it's essential to realize that when calculating a list or the elevation. You are only considering the height differential between where the pump sits and where the discharge location will be.

Flow and pressure

These are the other two components that tie into the second factor when talking about flow. The pressure flow is the amount of fluid that you need to be delivered at a particular location and in many sewer applications. You are going to be basing your flow on the amount of inflow.

So how much waste is going into the tank or basin and then sizing the pump based on how much is expected to need to be pumped? In a successful pump application for delivering water to a home. You may only be basing it on how much water the house is going to use. Any irrigation or anything on top of that pressure. Once you know them, then you can determine the friction loss.

A pump with 5m of the head will push fluid up the pipe from the discharge outlet.

Consider that the higher the liquid in the tank, the higher the pump value. A pump always produces pressure. So, however, it can pump water at a higher rate and might produce a higher head. For example, a vertical pipe forces more water from one side to another. This process is called high head water pumps.

As we know, there are several pump types, like centrifugal, axial, positive displacement, and more. Radial impellers are used for high head water pumps.

Friction loss

It is otherwise called head loss. It is the second factor contributing to your total head or total dynamic head in many cases.

When it comes to friction loss, what to be referred to is the amount of energy that is absorbed as the fluid is transported through the piping and plumbing in the fittings. And Forth so as the liquid travels through the pipe. It drags on the walls of the pipe and drags on the fitting. That creates resistance, and that resistance you need to compensate to deliver the fluid at the desired flow and pressure properly.

What will be the total length of the pipe?

If you have got 100 feet of pipe, that is regardless of any elevation changes. That is factored in entirely separate from your friction loss characteristics. You have to make sure that you tally up any pipe lengths. You must know what material the pipe is? Count up all of your fittings, and then you are going to the friction loss worksheet, where there are plenty of friction loss calculations available.

Sum

Whatever the calculation you know comes up with, you have to add that to your other calculation to get your total head at a specific flow. We base the friction loss on the flow through the pipe: the flow increases, and the friction factor increases.

When you are doing this calculation, it is only based on the specific flow you have targeted. It would be best if you took your elevation. Then add your friction loss and our pressure. The main thing is elevation is already going to be in feet.

In most cases, it's not converted to feet. Your pressure needs to be converted to feet.

To convert pressure to feet, one psi equals 2.31 head feet. You take whatever your desired pressure is multiplied by 2.31, and then you will have that number—now converted to feet, so you take your elevation. Add your pressure in feet, then add your friction loss in feet.

Finally, you will have the total feet head that there's a need for that specific location to calculate the head.

It is all that you will know for a basic conceptual understanding. There will be little more depth involved when accounting for specialized systems but your day-to-day head calculations.

 A pump always produces pressure. So, however, it can pump water at a higher rate and might produce a higher head. For example, a vertical pipe forces more water from one side to another. This process is called high head water pumps. The total head measure is a measure that removes the high head water pumps.

As we know, there are several pump types, like centrifugal, axial, positive displacement, and more. Radial impellers are used for high head water pumps.

Conclusion

This comprehensive guide of the head of a pump will make you understand all about the pump's head. Since there are several types of pumps, you might get confused in choosing the most appropriate pump for you. Pumps are just used to transfer fluid but in different styles.