Shurflo pump VS. other Brands of Diaphragm Pumps

[BAP]

A lot of people have talked about using the Shurflo 4048 or the 2088 pump with good results. Has anybody used any other brands of 12volt diaphragm pump? If so, what are your experiences. Has anybody used the Shurflo 4008 Revolution pump? It is rated for 3gal/min versus the 4gal/min that the 4048 has. The price is a lot cheaper. I am planning on buying a 12v diaphragm pump but see that there is a lot of choices and price ranges for them out there.

[TerryEspo]

I would like to know also if other pumps are a good choice. Looing forward to anyone who can reply with a positive answer.
Thanks.
Terry

[maple flats]

I think the GPM ratings are for a solid stream of liquid, when you have air (gases) and liquid the gpm will drop a lot. If trying don't undersize the pump. My guess is that there must be a reason that the diaphragm pumps being used are mostly Bosworth pumps, (guzzler) and I understand that there are seal differences for those designed for maple use.

[Biz]

I'm to be experimenting with a Shurflo pump this year on some of my red maples which are on a relatively flat slope. Will be doing maybe 10-20 taps. I purchased the Shurflo 4008 pump. It is only 3gpm but with my 20 taps, figuring 2 gallons of sap per tap per day (very optimistically), I won't come close to maxing it out on flow rate. It will be pumping at less than 10% of its max rating, so it can easily handle many more taps. I am also running it on a battery and the 4008 should have less current draw than the 4048 and run longer on a battery. The 4008 draws about 1.25 amps off a 12V battery under low flow conditions according to my measurements.
Dave

[BAP]

Has anybody tried the Shurflo 4008 Revolution pump?

[TerryEspo]

I am just bumping this post to see what pumps memebrs have tried with good results. I too am looking online for a pump to play with and get confused reading all of them.

Looking forward if anyone puts some info here for us all to learn from.

Thanks.

Terry

[68bird]

I'm going to try a Jabsco diaphragm pump. It is from a boat water system. It's 12 volt, and looks like a mini sap puller! I have purchased one of those as well. The Jabsco will be on a little over 100 taps, and tha Puller will be on 400(It is a double) This of coarse if we ever get any weather!!!!

[pennslytucky]

ive been reading alot on them recently. aquatec looks like the best for this i think. they are rated continuous, are made in usa, and seem to have the best diaphram for the abuse. i have a shurflo for the water/meth injection on my truck, and an aquatec 8852 for my 200gpd ro in the house. taken both apart and the aquatec looks much much tougher, especially in the design and thickness of the diaphram

[Sandersyrup]

I have one of these.. wondering if I put this on my 3/16 setup it would get my currently 14" of Vac to at least 16" or higher?

http://shurflo.com/images/files/RV_Product_Data_Sheets/Classic_Pumps/pds-2088-473-143.pdf

Also it a 24 volt.. how do I power it?

Thanks!

[Biz]

Great info on the diaphragm pumps. I am not a pump expert but here are some things that I was looking for in this type of pump. The problem is that we want to use them for vacuum but they are primarily designed for pressure.
1. Is it rated drinking water safe (potable water or food grade)? Some of the Shurflo and Aquatec pumps are - they use the term "fresh water". A pump rated for RV use is usually OK. If it doesn't say or is marine use, it is questionable
2. To get an idea of how well it would work for vacuum, I would look at the self priming lift. Seems like if it can self prime to a higher level, the vacuum would be better.
3. Power - 12 volt rated is good to power off a battery, or 115V rated to run from normal AC. 24V DC or AC needs a power supply or adaptor.
4. Need to be able to rated to run dry. The diaphragm pumps can do this.
Will be testing my 4008 pump in a few weeks.

Dave

[markct]

24v can run off two 12v batteries that's how its done in heavy equipment, two 12v batteries in series. They don't make 24v batteries other than for stuff like electric forklifts

[pennslytucky]

just watch which 24v you are looking at. many aquatec RO pumps are 24v AC. those need the power supply that goes with them. the 24v DC pumps can go off a pair of 12v in series.

feet of lift seems to be a gray area. all different numbers on the pumps, but they all seem to pull up in the 20's when wet.

[OGDENS SUGAR BUSH]

it would be nice if someone would post a picture of 1 of these with a vac gauge hooked up

[jmayerl]

Can the discharge on the shurflows be say a foot off the ground and then directed up 4 feet into a cage tote with a hose? Would this sacrifice any performance?

[pennslytucky]

no, in fact, it helps quite a bit to have a head of liquid in the discharge line of the pump. i spent the day yestrday watching and re-engineering my setup. i put my aquatec 8800 on a short 100' 5/16 line in the yard with 12 taps on it to see if i can get the most out of it. doesnt sem to be a lot of info about these setups online yet.

with the discharge going directly down in the bucket, it drains empty. when the pump pulls sap, it pulls way harder than when its pulling on air in the suction line. with sap, it gets vac up in the 20's and stalls out when a big bubble gets to it. then it sits there trying to pull that air out with nothing moving until the vac in the line drops back to about 12". if the discharge line is dry, the pump cant resist the higher vac and some of the air in the discharge slips back in the suction line. but with a loop in the discharge to hold sap right at the pump outlet, it creates an air lock since theres no way the pump will allow that bit of liquid to get pulled backward through the pump head.

so now when the sap gets to the pump, the pump pulls and pulls until vac is up in the 20's and stalls on an air bubble. now the vac stays in the 20s, slowly dropping as the taps fill the line with sap, lowering the vac back down in the teens till the pump can beat the air bubble (which is much smaller thanks to the wet discharge line not allowing 3' of air back in the suction line) and it grabs the sap, sucking it back up to 22-25". this cycle goes on all day, holding much higher vac on average with the wet discharge

a recycle timer would save a whole lot of running time on the pump. thats todays project

[Maple guy]

http://www.amazon.com/Seaflo-Water-Pressure-Diaphragm-Pump/dp/B009B1MHNC/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1425993943&sr=8-3&keywords=seaflo+pump

this is the pump i have, it pulls 5.5 gpm and thats the most out of any diaghragm pump iv seen in this price range, its got 10" of vacuum unsealed in my living room, i have yet to test it in my sugarbush, I'm gonna have it hooked up to about 200 taps and as long as it helps move the sap along i will be happy!

if vacuum is effected by gpm this pump should do better then both 4008(3gpm) and 4048(4gpm).

will see!