Retro fit Old Well

My backup well / Emergency supply limited use has pump problems I'm looking for a complete solar package to replace the 220 AC well pump well is 300 ft deep with pump set at 275 ft I have a 2500 gal storage tank with a jet pump for pressure system . So the solar system would only need to fill the storage tank that I'm thinking of moving the tank to gain 12 ft in elevation for emergency gravity flow . What would the best system for my needs ? Also how do I add my solar system to the bottom of my post show it shows on each post ? 24 solar world 285 watt panels with 24 Enphase 250 s ground mount grid tied . Thanks
24 solar world 285 watt panels with 24 Enphase 250 s ground mount grid tied .
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Regarding pumping--You have the choices of:
- Pure Solar Panels (no batteries, no genset, no AC power)
- Hybrid Solar--Run solar panels + some sort of backup power
- Solar Friendly--A pump that will run from a small AC inverter+battery+solar panels+backup genset
For in-well pumps, Grundfos makes some very nice (not cheap) pumps with a wide variety of pump configurations.https://www.solar-electric.com/commercial/solar-water-pumping/submersible-and-well-pumps.html?manufacturer=Grundfos
There is the SQ Flex family motor which will take 30-300 VDC (really higher than 30 VDC), and also will take something like 90-240 VAC. This motor will work very nicely with just solar panels (pumping during daylight hours)--But will also work with other AC or DC power sources.
There is also the SQ Family which only works from 120-240 VAC (as I recall). These are similar to above and have very low starting surge current (virtually none)--And are very AC inverter and Genset friendly. The SQ pump motors are all quite a bit less money (as I understand--I am not in the solar business).
The SQ-xxx pumps are very good quality and can be your primary well pump too.
They may be a bit on the expensive side if this is only intended as a backup water / energy source.
There are other vendors/brands out there... As well as other traditional pumps (from Franklin and others) that have lower starting surge and/or can be fitted with VFD (variable frequency drive--basically what is inside the SQ-Flex pumps) at the well head (nominally a 3 phase pump motor, but other options are possible). Typically three wire pump motors with the starting capacitor at the well head have lower starting surge vs standard two wire pump motors.
Standard well pumps can have very high surge current for starting--Necessitating the use of a large inverter+battery bank, and/or genset.
If this is for short term emergency supply--A "cheap" well pump plus noisy 4-5 kW genset you run once a day or a couple times a week with backup fuel supply (propane, better storage, or gasoline+preservative rotated once a year, or siphon from car gas tank when needed) would be more cost effective vs a pure solar SQ-Flex type pump+solar panels.
My usual suggestion is to do several paper designs and see which works out best for your needs.
Our host as a pumping FAQ here:
https://www.solar-electric.com/solar-water-pumping-guide.html
Do you have a local well driller/support company that will do the work--Or are you planning on doing this yourself?
-Bill
You can get low rate solar pumps (1GPM) that run off a couple panels, but they get pricey
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in Georgia
System 1: PV- 410w Evergreen, Mppt- Blue Sky Solar Boost, Batt - 225ah Deka AGM, 12v led house lighting,
System 2: PV- 215w Kyocera, PWM - Morningstar PS30, Batt- 225ah Deka GC's, 12v led house lighting, Dankoff 12v water pump,
System 3: PV- 1.5kw Kyocera, Grundfos 11 SQF well pump, 3000 gal above ground water storage, dom water & irrigation,
System 4: PV- 6.1kw Kyocera, Mppt- Outback FM80-2ea, Inverter- Outback FX3648-2ea, Batt- 804ah GB traction, Grundfos BMQE booster pump 240v, Mitsibushi mini-splits 240v, 18k and 15k
I'm partial to Grundfos SQ-Flex pumps becuase I have had them in service for a few years. If you're looking for a stable and reliable pumping system, you can't do any better than Grundfos. That said, and as Bill has already pointed out, you will need to be prepared to spend the money up-front and have confidence that the ROI is down the road and wrapped with the Grundfos dependability.
Do you want your emergency water system to be "completely" off-grid, including pressurizing? If so, things can get a bit complicated, so one step at a time.
in Georgia
System 1: PV- 410w Evergreen, Mppt- Blue Sky Solar Boost, Batt - 225ah Deka AGM, 12v led house lighting,
System 2: PV- 215w Kyocera, PWM - Morningstar PS30, Batt- 225ah Deka GC's, 12v led house lighting, Dankoff 12v water pump,
System 3: PV- 1.5kw Kyocera, Grundfos 11 SQF well pump, 3000 gal above ground water storage, dom water & irrigation,
System 4: PV- 6.1kw Kyocera, Mppt- Outback FM80-2ea, Inverter- Outback FX3648-2ea, Batt- 804ah GB traction, Grundfos BMQE booster pump 240v, Mitsibushi mini-splits 240v, 18k and 15k
The SQ set-up is pretty straightforward using the Grundfos controller. I would suggest you adequately ground the system. I've had some lighting strikes somewhere between my well-head and controller (about 350 ft apart) that fried the remote generator electronics and blew a ground fault breaker in my DC electrical panel. I've been told that the in-ground power cable to the pump acts like lighting rod. I suppose.
I bring this up because you can have flexibility in where you locate your controller from the well pump. The Grundfos controller has an option for a remote generator pump operation. If you can house the controller at or near other structures in your compound, maybe you can consolidate some of your activities. If this is an option, you may need to increase the size of the power cable to the pump.
Another consideration is pump-to-well sizing. The SQ has dry pumping protection, however, if you oversize the pump to exceed the well recharge rate, frequent or excess occurrences of dry-pumping may affect the integrity of the unit. I don't know that for sure, but something to think about.
Good Luck!
in Georgia
System 1: PV- 410w Evergreen, Mppt- Blue Sky Solar Boost, Batt - 225ah Deka AGM, 12v led house lighting,
System 2: PV- 215w Kyocera, PWM - Morningstar PS30, Batt- 225ah Deka GC's, 12v led house lighting, Dankoff 12v water pump,
System 3: PV- 1.5kw Kyocera, Grundfos 11 SQF well pump, 3000 gal above ground water storage, dom water & irrigation,
System 4: PV- 6.1kw Kyocera, Mppt- Outback FM80-2ea, Inverter- Outback FX3648-2ea, Batt- 804ah GB traction, Grundfos BMQE booster pump 240v, Mitsibushi mini-splits 240v, 18k and 15k
in Georgia
System 1: PV- 410w Evergreen, Mppt- Blue Sky Solar Boost, Batt - 225ah Deka AGM, 12v led house lighting,
System 2: PV- 215w Kyocera, PWM - Morningstar PS30, Batt- 225ah Deka GC's, 12v led house lighting, Dankoff 12v water pump,
System 3: PV- 1.5kw Kyocera, Grundfos 11 SQF well pump, 3000 gal above ground water storage, dom water & irrigation,
System 4: PV- 6.1kw Kyocera, Mppt- Outback FM80-2ea, Inverter- Outback FX3648-2ea, Batt- 804ah GB traction, Grundfos BMQE booster pump 240v, Mitsibushi mini-splits 240v, 18k and 15k
Good Luck
in Georgia
System 1: PV- 410w Evergreen, Mppt- Blue Sky Solar Boost, Batt - 225ah Deka AGM, 12v led house lighting,
System 2: PV- 215w Kyocera, PWM - Morningstar PS30, Batt- 225ah Deka GC's, 12v led house lighting, Dankoff 12v water pump,
System 3: PV- 1.5kw Kyocera, Grundfos 11 SQF well pump, 3000 gal above ground water storage, dom water & irrigation,
System 4: PV- 6.1kw Kyocera, Mppt- Outback FM80-2ea, Inverter- Outback FX3648-2ea, Batt- 804ah GB traction, Grundfos BMQE booster pump 240v, Mitsibushi mini-splits 240v, 18k and 15k