Solar & DC Powered Water Pumps
Deep well & pressurizing pumps
Conergy, March, Shurflo, Grundfos, Sunpumps

Solar Water Pumps

We carry solar powered water pumps (and a few AC pumps) from several manufacturers, including SunPumps, Grundfos, Conergy, March, Laing, Ivan, and Shurflo. We also carry a complete line of accessories, hardware, and installation parts and kits.

Solar pumps fall into two major categories, with some overlap - surface delivery and pressure (booster) pumps, and submersible well pumps. Delivery pumps are used to move water from one place to another. Some are capable of high pressure while others are intended mainly for moving large volumes at low pressure (such as moving water from a cistern to a stock watering tank). Flows can be small (1/2 gallon per minute or so) up to 30-40 gpm. These are also often used for pressurizing water systems in homes, RV's, and boats.

Submersible solar pumps are generally used for pumping from wells, and are designed to fit inside the well casing in a drilled hole. The most common casing size is 6", but 5" and 4" are also common. Some older wells drilled for windmills are less than 4", and most solar submersible pumps will not fit - for that the best thing is to replace the windmill with an ERA jack pump. The well may be anywhere from a few feet to 1800 feet deep - but the deeper the well, the more expensive the system. Depths over 400 feet will generally cost quite a bit more. Solar powered well pumps are seldom suited for large amounts of water, such as irrigating larger fields if you have AC power available. The largest pumps generally available are 1/4 to 2 HP.

Note about surface pumps of all types - including Shurflo, Conergy, or any other pump that pulls water from a tank, spring, cistern, or whatever:
MINIMIZE SUCTION LIFT to just a few feet, if possible. The maximum possible suction limit for ANY non-submersible pump is 20 vertical feet at sea level (subtract 1 ft. for every 1000 ft. of elevation). Some pumps, such as the Shurflo will pull from about 10 to 14 feet at sea level. The more you minimize suction lift, the more reliable and quiet your pump will be. Just be sure the motor will not be submerged if the water level rises, or it will be ruined. Your pump may be placed DOWNHILL from your water source, if feasible.