Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with pump

Pump Up The Soap. Pump Up The Soap. Pump Up The Soap. Pump It Up!

Rewind — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 14:22:17 -0800

How the hell do you get everything out of a bottle that uses a plastic pump dispenser? Pump Dispensers. I love them because they allow for easy access to vital items such as liquid soap, Purell, moisturizing lotion, olive oil, hairspray, and Windex (to name just a few.) However, one aspect of their design has annoyed the fuck out of me for years. Specifically, what exactly do you do when the volume of the substance being dispensed reaches a level below that of the long stick portion of the dispenser that sits inside the bottle and which the substance is supposed to travel up?

For really liquid items such as hairspray and Windex, I generally go through this bizarre ritual that involves a lot of tilting of the bottle, such that the last remnants of the liquid just barely touch the tip of the stick thingy inside, and then I quickly start pumping to maximize the amount I get. However, half the time I end up spraying myself in the face rather than the intended target because of the direction of the tilt.

For slower moving items such as gels and soaps, I feel my only option is unscrew the dispenser portion itself, tilt the bottle, and then sit there for an eternity while the substance slowly crawls its way to the open end where my anxious hand awaits. And, for REALLY slow moving items like moisturizing lotion… well, I’m just screwed. Turning the bottle upside down and opening as necessary is, of course, an option but it usually involves a precarious balancing act against a wall or shelf and the bottle is easily tipped, thus ruining everything. Plus, when you do open the top using this method, shit just comes flying out the open end, causing a mess and making everyone involved very cross.

At times it’s enough that I just give up, rinse out whatever’s left, and throw it into the recycling bin. But, there again, in the case of liquid soap, there’s often enough left that I’m sitting at the sink for several minutes filling and emptying over and over again until all the soap is gone. Maddening, I tell you!

So – finally - my question, in two parts:

a) Can you offer any tips on quickly and easily accessing the last remaining bits of goodness at the bottom of a plastic pump dispenser bottle without causing a mess?

b) If your answer is to rinse and recycle, how do you minimize suds and save water without leaving residue behind that will piss off the staff at the recycling center? Oh, and can the pump itself be recycled easily, since it’s a combination of plastic pieces AND an internal metal spring in one unit?

Thank you in advance, hive mind, for helping me solve this critical puzzle of our time, and restoring a small piece of my sanity.

Time Travel With An Insulin Pump

COD — Sun, 17 Feb 2013 18:18:34 -0800

My wife, who has had an insulin pump for almost 18 years, has somehow never traveled more than one time zone with it. Next week she has 5 day business trip to the West Coast, and we live on the East Coast. Any diabetic MeFi's have experience crossing 3 time zones with a pump? A complicating issue is that I got laid off on 1/31 so we have no insurance at the moment and her soon to be former endocrinologist refuses to help her without a full office visit that he can charge us $500 for. Further complicating is that she has 11 changes in basal rate over 24 hours. Our thought is to wait until she lands, then set her pump clock to PST and set a temporary basil rate for 3 hours at the lowest rate from the preceding 3 hours (if it jumps around significantly during travel time.). That way she minimizes the extra insulin she might get and minimizes the chance of a serious low.

Does that sound like a decent plan?

Coming east seems like it'll be easier as she gets in at 11:30 PM local time so she can simply fix her pump clock when she gets here. After 21 years of marriage I have an uncanny ability to tell she is getting low, before she evens feel it.

Bike Pump: Am I doing it wrong?

ocherdraco — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 11:39:57 -0800

I've got a bike. I've got a compatible pump (two actually!). So why can't I seem to get the tires full enough to ride on? NB: I'm starting from completely flat tires (it's been a long time since I've ridden the bike). Is it not possible to hand pump bike tires all the way from flat?

Sump pump running a lot in winter?

WinnipegDragon — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 20:30:45 -0800

Why is my sump pump still running this winter and how can I correct it? So, we had a little warm spell including rain about three weeks ago, so I suspect that the ground is still a bit wet, and the water table is high, but the temperatures here in Winnipeg have been in the negative double digits celsius since then. So why is my sump pump still discharging every two hours or so?

There is no way to run a hose from the pump and keep it from freezing, so what I suspect is that the water is just discharging next to the foundation and going right back to the weeping tile. I thought the hard freeze would fix this, but so far, it hasn't.

What I'm trying to do now is leave the hose attached during the day to pump the water further away from the foundation when someone is home to listen for the pump in case the hose freezes, and then bring it indoors at night to de-ice in a utility sink. I can't think of any other solutions, and I'm concerned that maybe there is a leak somewhere that is causing the issue.

This is driving me nuts. Help!

What kind of savings using ductless heat pump?

Thrillhouse — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 05:03:28 -0800

What kind of saving can I expect from a ductless AC with heat pump? I live in Massachusetts. I currently have oil-fired forced hot water.
I'm considering installing ductless AC throughout the house and am also considering the heat pump option.

Everyone tells me that "You save money on heating using the heat pump" but nobody ever quantifies it.

Can I use the heat pump throughout the winter? I have some rooms that don't heat evenly. Can I use this all winter just to balance out the temps of the rooms if I want?

What kind of savings can I expect over running my furnace all the time? Anything else I should know?
Thanks!

Sump pump recommendation needed

exhilaration — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 09:48:25 -0800

Need a recommendation for a sump pump - preferably one with a battery backup. My brother and I, like the manly men we are, rented a jackhammer from Home Depot, broke through the cement floor, and dug a sump pit in the basement. Now I need a pump to put in there - the kind that will turn on automatically if the water level gets high enough. Can anyone recommend one? There are a million on the web. I'd like one with a battery backup if possible. Thanks!

Seeking a Water Pump

thegreatfleecircus — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 09:47:26 -0800

I regularly need to clear out 15-20 gallons of water from a basin. What would be an appropriate pump for this, and what other accessories would be required? I need the water to be as close to completely drained as possible. There is a sink nearby to drain the water into. Specific links to actual pumps and accessories would be very helpful! The situation is that water will occasionally fill a basin, but I am not physically able to lift and dump the water out once it is filled. I'd like a set-up to totally clear the water out. I know I need a pump and a floating mechanism, but what I see in the stores doesn't seem appropriate for this amount of water, and I am not sufficiently DIY-savvy to understand what I am looking at online. Many thanks.

Dont let my fish sleep with the fishes

MrMulan — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 14:23:55 -0800

How do I maintain a fish pond in freezing weather? I moved into a house with a fishpond. There are 14 fish, a pump at one end of the pond that feeds a waterfall at the other end. The waterfall has begun to freeze over, and the water outtake is faster than the intake. I don't know what to do. The pump is making a lot of noise, and I have read that if it is not submerged, I could damage the motor. This is NJ.

Please help! Thanks in advance.

Can you help with our well problem, please?

JMOZ — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 11:43:53 -0800

We seem to be having a problem with our well/water system where water intermittently goes out for a short time (about 30 seconds). I'm not sure what the likely problems are, and would appreciate your help diagnosing the problem so I can (1) repair it, or (2) figure out who to call for a repair. Details/my observations thus far are inside. So we've lived in our house for about 3 years and never had trouble with our water supply until now. Lately, every other day or so (with varying frequency), our water goes out for about 30 seconds before coming back on.

Our system is somewhat complex, but no worse than average. We have a well (I think it's a bit under 200 feet deep, and when we bought the house, we were told it exceeded 5 gpm, which is pretty good in this area allegedly.) From there, we have a large (bladder tank (I can't recall the size), a filter, and a water softener.

I've attempted to diagnose our problem and made a few observations-

1) The pressure switch appears to be function properly. Currently, the cut-on pressure is ~35 psi and the cut-off pressure is ~50 psi.

2) When the pressure switch kicks on, the pump runs for a little while (30 seconds - a minute, maybe?) and the pressure is going up, then cuts off for a little while (again, maybe 30 seconds to a minute) and so on, duty cycling until the cut-off pressure is reached. I don't THINK this is normal or used to happen.... Is this a thermal protector switch?

3) I've never been able to observe the pressure during the service interruptions, but my guess is that it drops.

So what are the likely problems? Is our pump on its way out? Is our well not producing like it should? Or are these a red herring for a problem further down the stream? Are there other things I should check?

Thanks in advance!

Help Needed Pumping It Up - but only 4 oz at a time.

webhund — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 15:15:24 -0800

PortionControlFilter: Help me find a pump/dispenser/whatever-setup that can accurately dispense two fixed-portion volumes of fluid (4 oz and 2 oz) from bulk containers into small containers? Oh, did I mention I need to repeat it several hundred times with several different liquids. One would think this is simple portion control, but my google-fu is totally failing me. I need a simple, reliable, and accurate method of portioning out 4 and 2 fluid oz. of a food liquid from large bulk containers into small bottles. Only other limitations are: 1) setup has to be food safe; and, 2) either fit a 38 mm threaded spout on the bulk container or be able to siphon from it. I'm going to need about a dozen of these setups to keep from cross-contaminating various flavored liquids and to avoid frequent washing/cleanups.

The best I've come up with so far seem to be the far extremes of the portion control world: a) a 1 oz. hand-pump (like a syrup/condiment dispenser) or, b) outrageously expensively biomedical/chemical fluid dispensers that can dispense down to the picoliter.

Surely there must be a inexpensive (less than a grand) middle ground that can accomplish this simple task. Any suggestions?

Water Pump for Misting Fan?

DMan — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 17:11:57 -0800

I want to build a misting fan, but I don't have easy access to a garden hose tap, so I want to use a pump to generate pressure. Where can I find such a pump? So in a few months I'm going to be moving into an apartment with a balcony, and I'd really like to build a misting fan to put out there on hot days. Easy enough, I just need to get some misting nozzles and put them directly in front or behind a box fan.

The problem is that since I'm in an apartment, I can't exactly screw in a garden hose and use that for a water supply. Instead, I'm thinking I could fill a 5-gallon bucket with water and stick a tube in it, and then use a pump to generate the necessary pressure to run the misting system. So 2 questions:

a) Where can I find such a pump?
b) Is this feasible? Will my misting system blow through a 5 gallon bucket in no time, or will it last me at least an hour or two?

Bonus points if the pump is fairly quiet. I'd rather it not be any louder than the fan, for example.

Thoroughly cleaning a pump espresso machine

advil — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 12:02:45 -0800

I am borrowing a La Pavoni Europiccola (an Italian pump espresso machine) from someone who is not using it. In fact, it had been sitting in storage for about 5 years with water in the boiler. How can I really thoroughly clean it? I have flushed the system with diluted vinegar several times (as suggested by the internet), and while I'm sure this is doing something, I'm just not feeling a lot of confidence that it is going to make up for the amount of time this has been sitting. It doesn't appear that I can really take apart the boiler to clean it directly (though I do have permission from the owner to do so if this is possible). Additionally the steam wand produces a pretty odd-smelling steam (at wonderfully high pressure), so I'd like to find some way of cleaning this too (the vinegar didn't seem to make a dent here). There's lots of internet resources on this machine but I haven't found much help with this particular problem.

Any suggestions before I give up and return it to the owner?

Home AC - Is my condensate pump broken?

GregX3 — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 18:23:58 -0800

So yesterday I heard this noise coming from the basement all day. It turns out the condensate pump on my AC (water goes from AC to some tank in the floor and the pump pumps it outside AFAIK) was continually running all day. I unplugged it and plugged it back in, and it hasn't run since. How can I tell if the pump is working properly or not? I looked in that tank in the floor and it looks about half full of water.

Is it normal for that tank to have some water, or is it supposed to all get pumped out?

Did I just pay premium for mid-grade gasoline?

MrBCID — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 17:32:39 -0800

Did I just pay for Premium Gasoline when I was really pumping Mid-Grade? While I was fueling up the car I noticed 2 of the 3 nozzles were switched from their correct position; what did I pay for? I was pumping gas using this kind of pump - (disregard the "Start" button; the pump in question didn't have one) it was the kind that has 3 hoses, 3 nozzles, and 3 plastic "holders" that hold the nozzles in place until you take the nozzle out of its place and "lift" the plastic holder to let the machine know which type of gas you want.

My pump (similar to the first one pictured) had a Regular, Mid-Grade, and Premium hose/nozzle. I placed the nozzle sitting under "Premium" in my car, lifted the plastic lever where the nozzle rested seconds before and then the LCD screen that had displayed the prices for "Regular" and "Mid-Grade" shut off and only the "Premium" price was lit... I began fueling... then I look up and notice that the nozzle in my car is the "middle" hose and the hose directly over "Premium" was sitting under "Mid-Grade"! Meaning the nozzle fueling my car was the nozzle/hose attached above the "Mid-Grade" not "Premium"... I quickly glanced over at the other pumps in the station and all the hoses/nozzles were in their correct place but mine was the only one "switched".

What did I pay for? Do the pumps with 3 hoses/nozzles work like the pumps with 1 hose/nozzle and 3 choices like this one?

Since the pump DID charge me for Premium does this then mean that I can hypothetically place the hose/nozzle under Premium in my car but lift the "Regular" lever and let the "Regular" nozzle/hose hang while I pump Premium but pay for Regular?

My electric bill is going to go crazy bc my sump pump won't stop running!

dpx.mfx — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 17:40:57 -0800

Our sump pump runs constantly, but only at night. Why? Our basement has a new sump pump (less than six months old). Has a battery back up. Stainless steel sump.

The pump cycles constantly starting at about dusk, and keeps going (at least until we fall asleep). There's very little water in the sump. No more than there is during the day. During the day it doesn't run.

The plumber who installed it is coming, but he's coming during the day, and I'm afraid he's going to think I'm nuts. Can anyone think of a reason why the time of day matters?

Objective info on HVAC brands?

eaglehound — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 13:21:29 -0800

I'm looking for objective, research-based rankings on household heat pumps/AC and gas furnace brands. I'm not looking for individual testimonials. But I can't seem to Google up anything but company-based advertising and the ranting 'XYZ Heat Pumps Suck!' sites. Consumer Reports is quite silent on what is a major consumer investment, unfortunately. Any leads on objective information?

What is this hole in my basement?

imaswinger — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 14:48:39 -0800

What is this hole in my basement? and what should I do? asking for a friend.... he says he's had his girlfriend flush the toilet upstairs and he doesn't notice any change in the hole. It's apparently very thick and black, very oily, maybe a little sewagey. To the right of the hole in the picture is the oil furnace, to the left a bathroom that no one uses. House was built in Vancouver in 1952. He's trying to get the rest of the stuff out now...
link to pictures

Is there such a thing as a silent pump for an indoor fountain?

x46 — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 15:33:13 -0800

Is there a silent pump for an indoor fountain? Things that hum drive me slowly mad. Is there a pump for a small table top fountain or fogger which does not hum? Of course all the ads for pumps say they're quiet. Ha! Not so! I had a small aquarium years ago and the pump did not bother me. I'm assuming it was a better quality than what comes with your average fountain kit. But, a table top fountain moves a lot less water so I don't know if an aquarium pump would be overkill. Any suggestions other than to add the fountain to the garage sale? I hunted all over the city for this fountain, have it and now can't use it.

Count the pumping events

Xhris — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 06:43:17 -0800

I need to count how many times a sump pump runs in a given period. The sump pump pumps water out of a hole on the ground, it is activated by a float switch - so generally speaking it pumps the same amount of water out each time it runs (the volume of water from the top 'on' level to the lower 'off' level). I want to know how much water is being pumped per week/month/whatever. I figure that since the pumping amount is (approx) the same each activation, if I knew how many times to runs (and it's about 4-6 times per day) I can work out the total pumped amount.

Is there a sensor or method you can suggest to do this?
Or to measure the pumped water volume directly maybe?

I'm on a tight budget, so I've been thinking of 'no-cost' solutions like balancing something on the pipe (which vibrates alot) or listening for the sound with a laptop set to record, but I hoping the hive mind can come up with a brilliant idea for me.

Thanks.

Jet pump troubleshooting at the cottage

saraswati — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 09:56:31 -0800

Help! We're at the cottage and we're having problems with the jet pump system. We installed a new jet pump and we're not seeing enough pressure to reach prime. We checked the intake line and it's filled with water and doesn't appear to have any holes. We also just installed a new foot valve. What else should we be checking? Help us get water to our cottage!

Will a funnel in a river pump water?

cmchap — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 14:57:16 -0800

PhysicsFilter: The Setup: a 3 meter hose with a 1 millimeter interior diameter is attached to the small end of a funnel with a 1 meter maximum diameter and a 1 millimeter minimum diameter. This assembly is submerged in a "quick-flowing river" with the large end of the funnel facing into the current (so, "on its side"). The free end of the hose is raised 10 centimeters above the top of the funnel and this happens to be above the water level as well. The Question: Theoretically, will water come out of the raised end of the hose? If so, what is the equation that will let me input the rate of the "quick-flowing river" get the rate of discharge from the free end of the hose? I ran this past my engineer father, and he past some of his engineer friends. We have differing opinions.One of the engineers is pretty sure that Bernoulli's Principle will come into play.

Are there examples of this kind of "pump" in the real world? I'd imagine they're VERY inefficient.

Should a hot water pump be this noisy?

damn dirty ape — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 11:33:22 -0800

Should a hot water pump be this noisy? I just moved into a new space and noticed a loud noise coming from the utility closet. There's a black pump mounted on top of the water heater making this noise. It runs for a few minutes at a time after I use the hot water for a bit. Im guessing this is the recirculation pump.

This thing is loud. Several times louder than the main HVAC fan. More than Im comfortable with. Is this normal with a pump like this? Ive lived with water heaters in the unit before but dont recall ever having this problem. Thanks.

Pool Filter... filter. "Incomplete" prime?

rocketpup — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:57:09 -0800

Replaced Jandy CJ200 cartridge filter with new Jandy SFTM22 sand filter. Pump pot no longer fills completely with water. Possible reasons? Contractor malfeasance? This weekend my Jandy CJ200 shot its top half many tens of feet into the air for unknown reasons. We had just cleaned the cartridge like many times before and had restarted it. The pressure release valve was definitely open.

Whatever the reason for this event, we simply decided to buy and have installed a new 22" sand filter, the Jandy SFTM22, which is apparently a renamed Hayward due to some recent corporate acquisitions.

Our pool service installed the new filter and left, but the pump never primed, and we couldn't get it to do so using the normal methods. Note that we have a Jandy JHPU1.0 1 HP pump.

So we got the pool service out again today and they managed to improve the situation somewhat, so that the water level is higher in the pot, and completely covering the inlet pipe. They say they did this by sealing some leaks, but that to fix it completely they need to replace the diffuser. We did backwash the filter, but it is brand new and the water was perfectly clear. There is no pressure release valve on this filter, not that I know if it needs one. It is currently operating at 23 PSI, and has been since it was installed. No idea if that is normal since it is brand new.

Note that the pot filled just fine when the CJ200 was in operation.

So I have a few questions:
1) Can the pump/filter just be operated this way as long as the water completely covers the inlet pipe?
2) Could this be considered a normal consequence of switching to a new filter? Maybe the new filter is easier to pass water through?
3) Could excess pressure in the system damage the diffuser without noticeably damaging anything else except for the old filter?
4) Could this have been caused by the contractor during installation?

Thanks for any help!

Pumping water with batteries

kamelhoecker — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 07:45:22 -0800

Small pump. For liquids. Battery powered. Inexpensive. Does such a thing exist? I've been searching for pumps and haven't found much available. I've found several pumps for garden fountains, that are basically a small paddlewheel on a fast motor that flicks water. Far too inefficient for battery power.

I've found homebrewers making their own peristaltic pumps which could be shunk down.

Any other simple homemade pump designs or sources for cheap pumps?

Help me open my Clean & Clear face wash!

pulled_levers — Sun, 31 May 2009 17:14:29 -0800

Help me open my Clean & Clear face wash! My face wash comes in a container with a pump, like a regular hand soap dispenser. To prevent accidental spilling, the pumps are twisted down onto the container. I've been able to get these pumps out and working for other things but for some reason, this pump just won't unlock. Agh!

Is there any special trick that you use to get these pump things open?

Thanks!