It was a great feeling to turn the new submersible pump on and see such a great result. Client in Dianella had a very large centrifugal pump down a 7 liner well. The centrifugal pump had failed and it was not practical or economical to replace or recondition the pump. Fortunately a few years ago the bore hole at the bottom of the old well had been redrilled and replaced with a 100 mm PVC casing. This was compatible with a new submersible pump. The 3 phase centrifugal system was converted to a submersible pump 3kw ( 4hp ) three phase. The old two stage starter on the wall was replaced by a new 415 vDOL starter. While we were at it we converted the gentlemans old manual gate valve sprinkler system to a modern automated one. A fully programmable reticulation controller now turns on the new submersible pump at the same time it opens solenoid valves to controll the 3 separate sprinkler stations. He had the old mountain mist metal disc sprinklers that are common with old well systems all over Perth. Those sprinklers use about 17 litres per minute each. We had to take this into account when specifying the new submersible pump for the old well conversion. We had to make sure the new pump had the power to adequately run all his sprinklers as configured without modification. As the picture shows its great when a plan comes together! Call us on 1300 734 300 for help with any Perth bore or reticulation system or visit our main Virgin Bores Perth website here.
Category Archives: Bore Repairs & Service
Perth Bores.
Perth bores are our passion. Because we install and repair bores AND reticulation systems we are Perth’s go-to guys for anything to do with water bores or watering systems. We’ve been drilling and repairing Perth bores for well over a decade. Our local knowledge guarantees you the best groundwater retrieval system tailored to suit wherever you are in Perth. Bores and reticulation systems are what we do. We are members of both Irrigation Australia and the Australian Drilling Industry Association (ADIA). Our experience means we can guarantee prompt and efficient Perth bore repairs in all suburbs from Lancelin down to Mandurah.
Call us on 1300 734 300 24/7 or visit our main Virgin Bores website here.
Bore running out of water Perth.
At this time of year we always get a handful of calls from Perth bore owners along the lines of ” my bore is running out of water” or “my bore works for a minute or so then the bore water runs out”. Sometimes it is not the bore water running out that is the problem but actually a problem with the reticulation system or pump but I address that in other blogs or call us on 1300 734 300 for help with other bore problems.
Sometimes it is in fact the yield of the bore itself and the pump is pumping water out faster than it is flowing in to the bore casing. Then it is truly running out of water. Knee-jerk reaction is to think the bore is not deep enough. Sometimes the water table has dropped and it is a depth related issue. Often though, it is that the stainless steel bore screen or slotted PVC bore casing of the bore (or spear) has become blocked. Sometimes the ground surrounding the bore has reduced the water it will “allow” to flow through it. These problems can sometimes be solved by air-developing a process where we pump large volumes of compressed air down the bore hole. Other times we chemically clean and restore the bore with a combination of special cleaning compounds, surfactants and clay dispersants depending on the conditions diagnosed.
Certainly if your bore is getting sluggish we can advise. Call our Perth BORE SERVICE HOTLINE on 1300 734 300 or for more bore help visit our mainwebsite here.
Can a submersible pump replace a centrifugal or jet pump in a well?
Old well near WanerooToday we got a call from Hamilton Hill and another from Dianella. Both wanted to know whether could we replace their old centrifugal pump in their well style bore with a modern submersible pump. It is a common question from all over Perth in older suburbs where centrifugal pumps or jet pumps were common in the old well style bores and now need replacing. Answer….sometimes we can substitute with a submersible pump installation but ONLY if the casing at the bottom of the well liner(s) that goes into the ground ( some people may refer to this as a spear ) is of 100mm ( 4 inch ) or more. Typically that would be when it has freestanding suction ( where the pipe from the existing centrifugal pump suction side goes in to the ground inside a larger outside pipe) or where the bore has been redrilled within the last 15 or so years. We can also substitute a centrifugal or jet pump with a submersible in the (rarer) older wells with open water in the bottom. Call our Perth bore service hotline on 1300 734 300 for free advice or a quotation. You can also visit our main VIRGIN BORES website here.
Bore repair Joondalup.
Got called to a water bore in Joondalup today. Quite deep for a Perth garden water bore even for the highest parts of Joondalup. Bore total depth was 66 metres with the pump sitting at 60 metres. Unfortunately the submersible pump that had originally been specified was inadequate for that depth. It had never had enough power to deliver the flow ( litres per minute is how we typically measure domestic bores). We winched it up and replaced it all in only a 4 hour turnaround. For bore repairs Joondalup, Connolly, Edgewater and surrounding suburbs give us a call on 1300 734 300 as we can normally attend promptly and with our local knowledge and experience have your broken water bore up and running with the minimum of fuss.
Lowara bore pump problem in Perth?
Lowara submersible pumps and motors are a good reliable Italian brand but, like anything, they can have their own idiosyncracies. We specialise in servicing Lowara submersible pumps and their stablemates, Centripro and Marlow. We have over a decade of practical in-the-field service and pump repair experience. A problem that does from time to time present itself with some of the earlier Lowara single phase motors is blown start capacitors in the bore start box. It is an easy fix for someone experienced in Lowara pumps and motors. Give our Perth bore service and repair hotline a call on 1300 734 300 and our mobile bore service team can help you. Or visit or main Virgin Bores website for more bore info and help.
Bore light stays on?
Familiar call today from a lady who happened to live in Sorrento, but we get similar calls from bore owners all over Perth. “the light on my bore box on the wall has stayed on even after I have turned the reticulation controller off “. This can turn in to a bigger problem so first things first, if you are reading this blog and your bore box light is on but there is no water pumping out anywhere please straight away turn the bore mains power off. Turn it off by either turning off the circuit breaker ( or pulling the fuse) labelled “bore” or “pump” that you will hopefully see in your meter box. Or turn off the bore box isolation switch that is located on the bore box on the wall. ( this is called a bore start box, not to be confused with the reticulation controller). Worst case if you can’t turn it by either of these two methods then turn off your mains power master switch and call us pronto on 1300 734 300.
What has most likely happened is that your automatic reticulation controller has correctly sent the 24 volt start signal to the relay in the bore start box and this has started the 240v bore at the same time as the reticulation controller has correctly sent a signal to open a solenoid valve allowing water to flow to the sprinklers. All good so far but then when the automatic reticulation controller has run through its cycle and shut the last solenoid valve the pump has continued to run. Most likely the start relay has stuck on and needs replacing. Prolonged operation of any bore pump with no water being able to flow (dead heading ) can cause a multitude of problems. Most commonly with submersible pumps the rising poly mainline will overheat and “blow”. With centrifugal well pumps overheating leads to several serious problems. Give our Perth bore service hotline a call on 1300 734 300 or visit our main website for more help on bores and reticulation.
Solenoid Valve Troubleshooting Perth – stuck open?
Sometimes we get calls from Perth bore owners thinking the pressure ( or more correctly flow ) is down a lot on their water bore. Often we find it is not a problem with their bore pressure or flow, but actually a problem with their irrigation or reticulation system. If a solenoid valve or valves have stuck open ( stuck on ) then more than one station or section of the sprinkler system will operate. Result…sprinklers don’t get enough water and perform miserably. This video produced by solenoid valve manufacturer Hunter of the USA has some very helpful tips. It equally applies to many other brands of solenoid valves installed in Perth.
Of course, if you would rather we send a reticulation serviceman to fix the stuck open solenoid valve for you, please call our PERTH SERVICE HOTLINE on 1300 734 300 or visit our main website.
Bore pumping sand?
We called on a client today in Attadale.
He had sand coming out of his old submersible bore and blocking sprinklers. Three scenarios spring to mind. (1) Worst case it could be that the screen at the bottom of the submersible bore has been perforated or cracked to such an extent it lets sand in. This would most likely mean a new bore hole would need to be drilled. Sometimes though, we try setting the submersible pump inlet higher up the casing with some success. (2) Sometimes we find the check valve on the submersible pump is no longer holding prime whilst at the same time there is a faulty solenoid valve, open gate valve or cracked irrigation main line that causes sand to be sucked back down the rising main when the pump is turned off. (3) there is ingress of dry sand falling down an incorrectly covered bore head or wet sand being washed down with incorrect bore head exposure and drainage. There are other reasons. All can be addressed.
For old well style bores there are different reasons again that we will cover in another blog.
In the meantime if you are in Perth or surrounds and you need help with any bore problem give us a call on 9246 0111 or visit our main website.
Bore runs out of water?
This week we got a couple of calls (Gosnells and Lynwood) which we more commonly get from Perth bore owners at the end of summer rather than end
of winter. ” Help, what can I do my bore has run out of water?” Mostly at the end of a few tests we find that indeed it was some other problem rather than the bore running out of water that was giving the false impression. “False” causes can include, but are not limited to, bore pump problems, solenoids not opening, thermal overloads cutting in and out, splits or leaks in rising main lines and pumps running backwards. If the bore actually has developed a problem with yield ( the flow of water pumped out is faster than the flow in ) we can fairly quickly determine this with a few tests. Sometimes in worst case scenarios the solution is to drill a new borehole. Often though, we can solve the yield problem by air development ( where we pump compressed down the borehole to help clear the screens) and sometimes we can increase yield by treating the bore with specially designed chemicals that both clean the screen and treat clays. Sometimes we use a combination of both. Give us a call on 1300 734 300 if we can help you with your Perth bore problem or visit our main website.
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