Interesting old pump

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vaplumber

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I just got back from a service call. Lady had no water, and suspected a frozen pipe. Wanted it fixed before it ruptured. I knew better. Its chilly here but is still 35 degree, yet took the call anyway. Found an 100++ year old small 2 story farm house, supplied by 2 cisterns as water source. Lady fills both cisterns with 1600 gallon each about once each 6 weeks. Went to dirt floor and rock wall cellar, and discovered an old Montgomery Ward piston driven pump and tank. Cement pad that pump sets on was ingraved in finger print July 8 1958. Owners guide and tag were still attached to pump unit. Glanced through book and read tag which were faded and hard as rock. Confirmed that pump and tank both was installed July 11 1958!!!! Pump was piston type pump and for you younger guys who havent seen one it looked like a portable air compressor and was driven by a 1/3 horsepower motor through a belt and pulley. Confirmed that pump had a broken drive belt, which by date still visible on outer band of belt I determined the belt was made in 1978!!! I replaced the belt, checked water pressure, confirmed that there were no leaks, and all checked out fine. I just thought that you would all find this un believable!!! Why cant some one still make pumps and tanks this durable?
 
One reason is that a lot of tradesman are not as honest as you. Many of those pumps got pulled because some ex-auto salesman showed her the date on the pump and told her it died. Then they would have sold her a variable speed pump with pumptrol, cycle stop valve, bladder tank and whole house filtration. And she would have done it all over again each and every 7[-] years

The other reason is that America is sliding downhill to an imported disposable society without the machinists [or teachers therof] to create an honest consumer product with pride and durability.

The Costco-samsclub mentality costs the earth a heavy price in waste.

My brothers kid is 22 and never changed a tire on a car yet. Its like that.

Lucky lady she is...
 
Been awhile since Catholic school. Any quotes about pride in building a good machine or tool in that book?
 
Raucina said:
Been awhile since Catholic school. Any quotes about pride in building a good machine or tool in that book?
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Not that come to mind at the moment, but there sure is much about honesty, prudence, stewardship and right treatment of others!

I did not mean to begin any religious thing here, but I just had to comment on vaplumber's service to that woman. Also, someone with a full PM box to which I therefore cannot reply has asked this:

Who is Elohim?
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In most English versions of Scripture, the word “God†appears there ...

I do not personally know Hebrew, but I have heard “Elohim†means “Mighty One†or “The Almightyâ€. And then:

"Who has gone up to the heavens and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has bound the waters in a garment? Who established all the ends of the earth? What is His Name, and what is His Son’s Name, If you know it?" (Proverbs 30:4)

Yahuah and YahuShuah.

"God" is not anybody's name.
 
One reason for changing out that old piston pump for 85% of households is that most of them only put out 4 gpm and wouldn't keep up with the heavy usage that most folks enjoy today. The benefit of drawing water slowly throught a screened well is that the screen plugs much slower than one which water is pulled thorough at high velocity. Those old pumps were tough and sent water to an old galvanized tank while the piston pump could draw a little air while pumping without losing their prime and keep the tank from waterlogging.

One drawback of the piston pump without a PRV happened to a customer years ago. The points stuck together in the pressure switch and launched the tank from the basement floor into two floor joists which rattled the kitchen above so, that it actually pushed the floor up by cracking the joists and broke an undetermined amount of dishes.

That old gal you fixed up VAPlumber will probably be perfectly happy with that old pump until her demise.

bob...
 
As I recall...there is a term "manufactured obsolescence"... supposed to keep the manufacturer in business selling replacement parts or machines.

Leejosepho... you didn't mention "Yahweh".
 
Randyj said:
As I recall...there is a term "manufactured obsolescence"... supposed to keep the manufacturer in business selling replacement parts or machines.
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The neat thing, however, is there did not used to be so many gluts in markets to tempt manufacturers to do things that way. Consumerism is destructive and wasteful in the sense that people today now throw things away just so they *can* go out (or stay in) and purchase some more.

The computer I am using at the moment was a "throw away" someone gave me when they bought a new one rather than "wasting time" trying to get it going, and after taking a quick look inside, I discovered the hard drive had yet to be connected. It turns out they had bought the thing at some ----Club kind of place and had no idea it needed an internal connection before use!

Randyj said:
Leejosepho... you didn't mention "Yahweh".
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Many names can be spelled in different ways, such as my own: Joseph, Josef, Yoseph or Yosef. However, there is no "W" in written Hebrew and no "wa" sound in HaShem (The Name), so I write it as I do.
 
From your writings I don't think there's much chance of you being good ol' Southern Baptist.....
 
Leejo... don't want to get into a religious discussion here (or anywhere else)...but I've often wondered if hindu's, buddhist, baptist, catholics, jews, etc. are going to hell and only jehova's witness will go to heaven(or any other bunch of religious folks)... I think it's a matter of how we live and only that we believe because we are too far removed to know for sure which is the "correct" group to belong to. I really don't want people thinking I'm "one of them" every time another religious icon is sent to prison for their indescretions.
 
please please please...do not drag me into that discussion! I'd rather argue plumbing.... but don't stop running if the fire is chasing you!
 
Randyj said:
Leejo... don't want to get into a religious discussion here (or anywhere else)...
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Out of respect for Terry, his great board and the many fine folks who come here for completely different reasons, I would agree this is not the place for religious discussion!

Randyj said:
I've often wondered if hindu's, buddhist, baptist, catholics, jews, etc. are going to hell and only jehova's witness will go to heaven (or any other bunch of religious folks)...
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I doubt that will be the case.

Randyj said:
I think it's a matter of how we live ...
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That is most definitely a significant factor ...

Randyj said:
... and only that we believe ...
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Well, that depends upon "Believe what?" But, I am not asking. Mere "belief", however, as with Dorothy and Toto in Oz, has no mystical or magical quality.

Randyj said:
... we are too far removed to know for sure which is the "correct" group to belong to.
Click to expand...

I have found it is best to avoid sectarian affiliation altogether.

Randyj said:
I really don't want people thinking I'm "one of them" every time another religious icon is sent to prison for their indescretions.
Click to expand...

I hear you. YHWH's own are known by their love for one another ... but sadly, most people today have been given wrong impressions of what that really is.
 
Last edited:
speedbump said:
One drawback of the piston pump without a PRV happened to a customer years ago. The points stuck together in the pressure switch and launched the tank from the basement floor into two floor joists which rattled the kitchen above so, that it actually pushed the floor up by cracking the joists and broke an undetermined amount of dishes.

bob...
Click to expand...

Did not know this and have never seen it hapen myself, never read about it, but after reading this and thinking about the possibilities, Im going to contact the woman I did the work for and suggest that if she could pay for parts, I'll instal either a high pressure cut out or prv at no labor cost. Dont want to see no body get hurt over this, yet as good as the old pump works, cant see ripping her either.
 
Piston pumps are positive displacement and like pressure washers can run into1000+ psi even with that old washing machine motor on it. But....at that age, probably not, and with the old pipes each joint is a prv.

Last year a big pressure tank launched from being filled by a unattended fire truck piston pump and after it came down from the sky killed a bystander.
 
Just proves that even at my age, we are never too old to learn. I am instaling both a high pressure switch and a release valve on this system some time the week after next. Cross your fingers that nothing happens before then!
 
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