pump

[tendermason]

Would a submersible pump be ok to set into storage tank to pump to shack ? Thanks

[maple flats]

yes but must be food grade and must be removed when freezing is possible.

[Loch Muller]

where can I find a food grade submersible pump? Or find out how to tell if a pump is food grade for that matter. I have a couple pumps sitting around, but I haven't used them for sap yet since I'm not sure if its ok. One is a submersible pump that has a hook up for a garden hose and the other is a sprinkler system pump. I could try and get a couple pictures if that helps.

[Machinist67]

You do not need a food grade pump to pump sap. Use what you have. If is is for clean drinking water it will be fine.

[unc23win]

You do not need a food grade pump to pump sap. Use what you have. If is is for clean drinking water it will be fine.

I second that. There are not many that are 100% food grade inside and out and most are expensive. I use regular sump pump I bought new and it has only ever pumped sap.

[BreezyHill]

Flats is right. The use of nonfood grade equipment is prohibited in NY for making food items. even the grease in our sap pumps must be food grade or we are in violation.

Pumps for potable water are fine, as mentioned.

Sources include but not limited to Granger, McMaster & Carr, Farm Tek,

Please use a GFI cord for these pumps. I had one in a SS bulk tank that had some issue, got a nice jolt off the tank one day. That pump went in the scrap pile quick. Now I refuse to use that style anymore after I told an electrician friend about it and he laughed for a while. Then said what did you expect, you did put electricity in water with a pump made in another country. Well at least he found the humor in it.

Seriously do use a GFI cord.

[softmaple]

try an aquatec diaphram pump from freshwatersystems.com it can self prime and run dry. it is also an on demand pump so if its on a mechanical float valve or a ball valve it will stop when its closed. $160 for a 6 gallon a minute pump.
http://www.freshwatersystems.com/p-6028-aquatec-5513-1e01-j606-pump-60-gpm-12-fpt-115vac.aspx

[Loch Muller]

Thanks for the advice. Good point about the GFCI cord, makes sense when you stop and think about what your doing!

I can't find anything on the pumps that says they are approved for potable water (ie NSF rating) so I won't use them. Something like the one soft maple linked to should work fine for my setup since I have electric close by. I'm also considering a gas powered pump which could help me collect sap in some of the more remote places I tap, but haven't found one that says it is rated for potable water yet.

[maple flats]

I wonder how the pump referred to above would work as a vacuum pump?
http://www.freshwatersystems.com/p-6028-aquatec-5513-1e01-j606-pump-60-gpm-12-fpt-115vac.aspx
It does say not for continuous use, but I'm thinking maybe run one on about 160-180 taps around my sugarhouse. I could heat it's environment and even use an heat tape for several feet leading to the pump to minimize ice complications, and the price looks great. I could also set the pump to run off a thermostat and a timer if necessary.

[wiam]

Dave, your link is broken.

[Loch Muller]

So I'm still not finding any gas powered pumps that are approved for potable water use, nothing in a manageable size at least. I asked water pumps direct if the Powermate pump they sell is ok for potable water and they said NO. The Honda pumps on Northern Tool are not ok according to their Q&A below the products. Bascom's sells the Tanaka pumps, but there isn't anything listed on Tanaka's website approving them for potable water. So this has been pretty disappointing so far. I see that people have used these pumps before without any issues, but it just doesn't add up to me. If it isn't ok for drinking water, why is it ok for sap?

Unless there is some pump out there that I'm not finding, I'm thinking that I'll end up using the pump that was posted yesterday and set it up to run off the small inverter generator that I already have. A little bit of a hassle, but still portable and it wont cost me a fortune. Actually it will cost less than one of the gas powered pumps would since I already have the generator. Just need to make sure the generator has enough guts to run the pump. Please let me know if I'm overlooking something...

[markct]

I think what needs to be done is look at the pump itself and what materials its made out of and if they are potable water appropriat, to call it potable water approved requires certifications like nsf etc thus more cost for the manufacturer for a relatively small market niche. The pumps I use are gas powered ones from tractor supply that have an aluminum housing, which is safe for sap, they were of course brand new and the one part that did concern me was the unknown grease used on the seal during assembly, so a quick disassembly and cleaning and relube with food grade grease took care of that, as well as washing everything well with hot water to remove and residue of oils from manufacturing etc.

[maple flats]

Dave, your link is broken.
Sorry, I just fixed it. Thanks
Dave