6 Crucial Things You Need To Check Before Choosing A Drum Pump

You know you want to transfer a liquid out or into a container. Maybe it’s a chemical or fuel that must be safely pumped without any risk of spillage. You might be aware that you need an electric drum pump to handle larger quantities of fluid, but there are many different models and materials used, as well as several choices of immersion tubes depending on size of the drum and its depth. Every drum pump is unique!

Here’s a quick checklist of the 6 crucial things you need to check before choosing a drum pump:

1. Head and flow requirements
The first thing you need to be clear on is whether you need to do a simple fluid transfer or whether you need higher flow or head. This information will help you decide on the type of motor required.

2. Type of fluid
What will you be using the drum pump for? The type of fluid you need to pump will determine what drum pump and/or immersion tube you can use. Every drum pump has different capabilities. Specific fluids such as those that are flammable, combustible or corrosive may restrict what type of drum pump you choose. The outer tube materials simply must be compatible with the fluid in your drum (you can use a chemical resistance guide to check).
Other factors that may influence your decision are the gravity and viscosity of the liquid.

3. Temperature of the fluid
Immersion tubes come with temperature limits. Choose the type of drum pump according to the temperature of the liquid you’ll be pumping.

4. Container size
The container size will indicate what drum pump you can choose. A standard 45-gallon drum (200 litre) uses a tube that is 100 cm long. 30-gallon pumps use smaller lengths while storage tanks require much longer lengths.

5. Available power
Some facilities such as those in hazardous mines won’t have access to power and might use a rotary hand pump. If a site has specific requirements such as applications using flammable or combustible liquids, they might use a compressed air or explosion-proof pump motor. For electric motors, check the voltage requirements before you decide on the drum pump required.

6. Accessories needed
It can be helpful to create a list of the accessories you need in order to get the right drum pump for a specific application. There’s a vast range of accessories that include flexible hoses, static protection kits, adapters, flow meters and filters to choose from, but not all drum pumps come with these options.

Deciding what drum pump to choose becomes so much easier when you know exactly what your requirements are! Give us a call to discuss the different drum pumps available on 1-800-367-4180 (toll-free). We have experts on hand to help you choose, install, maintain and monitor a variety of equipment. And to answer questions about things you’ve previously tried gone wrong.