pump for home made dredge

[efret]

I'm looking to buy a pump for a home made 3" dredge. I've been looking at this pump:

http://www.harborfreight.com/2-inch...water-pump-approved-for-california-65351.html

Will it work for a 3" dredge? If not then what would you suggest.

 

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[strickman]

should work ,notice at the bottom of the page ---where it says customers who bought this also bought --------and there is a pic of a long handle magnetic pickup tool. thats dredgers buying them for black sand removal. that pump should work. i bought a similar pump from max tool ,that was a 3" in 3" out ,i put a bell reducer on it to 2" out .also mine was not a high pressure ,and it works great ! better than before.that sucker ever gets a good sized rock with your hand in the way ,you'll know it !!!!!!!!!! but here's the problem with mine.it's a lot heavier,so i had to moved my pontoons forward.about 6"or 8".........but works great.......the one you found looks to be lighter. ,high pressure ,and overall probably a better match .next one i buy will probably be the one you found.......it would be easier on my back when moving it around...........

 

[efret]

Excellent.

I wasn't sure about it only having 110 gpm, but I have no idea how much is needed to run a 3".

I've got all of it completed and I'll post some pic's of the frame work, etc.. when my camera batteries get charged.

 

[BenThereDoneThat]

Excellent.

I wasn't sure about it only having 110 gpm, but I have no idea how much is needed to run a 3".

I've got all of it completed and I'll post some pic's of the frame work, etc.. when my camera batteries get charged.

Will work..........i use the 1" - 11/2" - 2" pumps for my gear and those pumps work good. get the extended warranty as well just incase

 

[strickman]

heres a pic of mine with the after market motor and pump,it works better now than before -it rips !

 

[efret]

Strickman, what are the specs for your pump?

 

[strickman]

pull and it cranks !!!!!!!!!!!! honestly i don't remember ,but i bought it from max tool .3" clear water pump. it works really good ,except too heavy. but for $200 it was a quick fix,it has already paid for itself.and a little extra ! i will try to copy the specs from their site .the pump you are looking at would probably be better.

 

[strickman]

here is the specs, http://www.maxtool.com/product/sear...3b.htm,DBCOMP=ABS,ReturnMax=1,DB_ITEM=XP650WP


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Enlarge Photo DuroMax Portable 3'' Water Pump w/ a 6.5 Hp. Gasoline Engine
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Move Huge Volumes of Water with this Smooth Running, Easy Starting, Long Lasting Pump
Use to drain a pool in no time, empty a flooded basement, pump out a flooded trench, fill or empty a water storage tank or reservoir, irrigate a field, hose down a construction site, help drain a levy breach & more.

The XP650WP Features:

* Durable DuroMax 6.5 Hp. Air cooled gasoline engine w low oil shutoff and idle control.
* 3'' ID intake & outlet w back flow check valve.
* Pump overhead lift: 91 ft.
* Suction height: 26 ft.
* Gallons per minute: 220 gpm.
* .6 gallon fuel
* EPA & Carb approved.

Includes:

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* Tool kit w/ plug wrench


See Suction & Discharge Hose for this Pump• Shipping Weight: 68.00 lbs.
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[strickman]

also check e-bay for this pump ,i believe i bought it there .buy it now ,and it was cheaper that way.

 

[efret]

Thanks for the help guys!

I ended up picking the pump that i was looking at.

Here's my set up:

 

[strickman]

should work good for you . what part of the country are you in ? make sure you can move your pontoons -forward,and back - to find the sweet spot .the way it rides in the water is critical.plus don't want it to nose dive. also make your box able to be adjusted.up,and down .to get the right angle .this will drastically affect recovery.

 

[efret]

I'm in the central Oregon area. Redmond to be more specific.
It seems to float alright, but I think I'll need to add some more buoyancy under the engine plate. It'll nose dive a little if I put all my weight on just one end.

 

[strickman]

mine nosed down with the new motor.i slid the pontoons forward and it made a big difference .hope yours works out well. depending on what setup you use ,and what size stream etc.... you could have the motor on the bank to lighten the load.

 

[nuggy]

Hi Efret, Had alloy pontoons like that way back, kept rubbing holes when any contact with rocks with the engine vibrations - can rub a hole in ten minutes!
Cure was ---- glue on some rubber sheeting ( I used thin 4mm used conveyor belting ) to cover the sides and bottom and ends. Use heavy duty contact adhesive Ados f2 or similar. Do it well as it's a pain if it starts to peel off.
Adding the rubber does make them heavier though.
Now I'm using 4 plastic containers about each 5 gallon, 2 each side welded together. Ugly but cheap. Nuggy

 

[kiwi jw]

Hi guys, Strickmen, Your set up is exactly the same as mine (pontoons, frame & box) except my pontoons are green. I changed mine from a 3" to a 4". Ditched the old crasher box & used an old road works cone to make a flare. You have probably seen these pics before

Have you ever thought of widening the frame a bit so the box can sit lower down between the pontoons? This will give you better suck as the material doesnt have to be pushed so much higher above the water line. Gravity takes over big time when the material gets above the water line & does have a big effect on suction at the business end of the hose tip.
You can see how high my box is sitting above the water. You will notice how much lower boxs sit in dredges these days.

Efret. I actualy wonder if yours isnt too low & by the looks of your frame you are going to mount the motor/pump at the back? If not then I think you will have to slide your box back quite a bit & as has been said you will need to find the sweet balance spot. Also as your operating & your box fills up with water flowing down & the riffles getting loaded up with material, this will affect the balance as well & you will need the adjustments to be easily made out in the field as well as being able to alter the tilt of the box.. You will notice in my above pics how much lower the box is to the water when it is operating & full of water & material compared to the pic of the dredge just sitting in the water before operation.

Nuggy, How you going mate? I was going to go for a dredge this weekend but the weather that has been fine for months has decided to 5hit itself this weekend. BUGGER, so here I am grazing the forums.
Good luck to you all & a very merry xmas & a prosperous new year.

Happy hunting through the festive season

Regards

JW

 

[strickman]

good to see you posting kiwi, nice setup. did you upsize your motor when you from 3" to 4" ? mine has a lot of suction ,more than originally-If I lower my sluice ,went to a flare it might work ........ wow that would surely increase production.

 

[kiwi jw]

Hi Stricky, No I didnt change motor/pump. It is as standard. 5hp honda pump is 2" inlet 1.5" outlet. Same box although I do have a 4" dredge box that is wider & longer. I was wanting to keep things smaller & lighter so just stuck with the 3" box. I am running 20 feet of 4" suction hose which is ok when not dredging too deep. I generaly only operate with snorkle & mask & so only go to about 4 foot deep. If I have to dive down then I dont get too good a suction but it does still do ok for me. I will go to a power jet if I get down to a bit of depth as that gives more suction on its own other wise most streams are quite shallow & I prefer the suction nozzle.
I have toyed with the idea of making a "rams horn" An outlet from the pump that splits in to two so you can run two pressure hoses off the one pump & run the suction nozzle & a power jet at the same time on the same suction hose. I have heard this works very well. The power jet is pulling material through & the nozzle pushing & you dont need to reprime the power jet if you lift the nozzle out of the water as it will reprime it for you. Anything to increase production of material but bearing in mind your recovery system needs to be up to speed with it as well.
I am liking the idea of making a box that flares out as it goes on down & so reducing water flow & pressure so the fines have a better chance of dropping out as they go down the box.

Happy hunting

JW

 

[strickman]

the dahlke dredge has a dovetail box that flares ,supposed to help the fines drop better.

 

[Gravel Hog]

Alan Trees makes those flared out sluice boxes for fine gold on his dredges.

Have a look : http://www.golddredgebuilders.com/6_super.html

 

[nuggy]

Hi JW and All, I'm all good - getting toward the time when I can get some days to get out and about, at last.

Just thought I'd stick pix of my tapering out 4" box and floats on too. Haven't put the rubber flap on yet. Box sits half in half out of water. All made to tight budget unfortunately. Couple of ounces could improve the budget nicely tho,

Others show pix of my nozzle with removable restriction. It's a way around my hand not fitting up intake when restriction is permanent, and hopefully less block-ups. Nuggy