Pump for Blue Bowl

[Ben Cartwright SASS]

I am getting a Blue Bowl from Santa this year, the question I have is that I notice several companies sell "kits" that include a pump for the blue bowl.
I have a 300 GPH pool cover pump that has a garden hose connector on it. I got it to use with my backyard sluice.

Would this work rather than spending the $40 or $50 for a 12 volt pump for the blue bowl? I like the pool cover pump as it is a 110 volt, house current.

 

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[jmoller99]

You need a higher GPH pump. The one they sell with it is 750 GPH (I use a 1000 GPH pump and a brass valve instead of the plastic one that it came with - valve from Lowes Hardware - most any hardware store should have something that will work).

 

[Hefty1]

I am getting a Blue Bowl from Santa this year, the question I have is that I notice several companies sell "kits" that include a pump for the blue bowl.
I have a 300 GPH pool cover pump that has a garden hose connector on it. I got it to use with my backyard sluice.

Would this work rather than spending the $40 or $50 for a 12 volt pump for the blue bowl? I like the pool cover pump as it is a 110 volt, house current.

Try it first...

 

[Old Radio Tech]

I think the bowl works best when drip fed from the top rather than spooning in. Get the bowl up and running with only water (warm). Give it time to stabilize. In this case a smaller pump will work better. The bowl only needs about 60GPH. The bigger the pump the more restricted it runs, the more heat it generates and the harder it is to have fine flow control. I'm using a 160gph and a 6 turn valve, with 3' of hose between pump and valve, and 3' of hose from valve to bowl. Also, the output of a DC pump will vary with voltage, an AC one will be more stable. The amount of head over the pump will also affect output, so have an overflow hole high up on your secondary containment, and fill to that point before you begin your run. Even a few squirts of Jet Dry will change the level in the bowl (lower tension and the level increases). Using this method your level will stay rock solid. Then adjust your concentrate feed to keep it there.

 

[TerryC]

My suggestions, for what they are worth, use a dc pump and battery charger. That way you can use the pump directly from a dc source (battery) or from an ac source (using the charger in-line). The size of the material running through the bowl will dictate the size of the pump needed. Very small material, such as #50 mesh or smaller, will require less flow rate than ,say, #20 mesh. Trial-and-error your flow rate, starting with the smaller sizes, to rate the pump flow. Use a permanent marker (on the inside of the bowl, to display the flow rate needed for the different size materials. Hope I have helped a little. TTC

 

[Ben Cartwright SASS]

I think I will buy the "kit", I can use whatever pump works for the material. I have a couple DC toy train transformers and will see if they will power it.

 

[Old Radio Tech]

the key is keeping your water level steady. Even a slight change will affect your capture rate. If you don't find the right combination of level and feed you'll be constantly adjusting your water to keep your level where you want it. So, variations in pump output are critical. Even a small pump can overflow the bowl. The water exiting the pump is turbulent. The hoses smooth that out. The bigger the pump the more hose needed to smooth it out. I'm running -30 and -50 at 1/2"down and -100 at 1"down. Haven't run any -20, but plan to this winter as the top 1/2" of bowl is pretty active. Using the drip method I can run 2- 2 1/2 cups/hr. and can walk away from the bowl, coming back every hour or so to add more cons.

 

[Old Radio Tech]

Think of your bowl as a sluice box with the exit at the center rather than the end. It's happiest with nothing but water flowing through it. Tuning involves finding the right water level and feed rate to keep your gold from flowing out the end (hole), and not loading down (riffle packing) the action. With the bowl you can see when your loading by seeing the water level drop as you feed. With the bowl the feed point is important also. Looking at the bowl as a clock face, with the injection hole as 8, I feed at 7. I find that most of the gold settles out between 10:30 and 4.