Which pump to install to increase the water pressure in the apartment

I live on the 5th floor of a five-story 40-apartment building. In March, in the basement of the house, a common pumping station broke down to increase water pressure in the water supply. After various surveys, the commission recommended a change of station. Since the station currently does not work for me and the residents on the fifth floor, there is practically no water from the tap (no pressure), because of the same reason, the gas boiler is often turned off (there is individual hot water supply and heating in the house), respectively often there is no hot water. Often the pressure drops below 0.5 bar. Will a household pump help me to increase the pressure if I put it on the inlet pipe to the apartment? Thank.

Sergei

Expert Answer

Good day, Sergey.

If by the phrase "household" you mean one of the small-sized centrifugal pumps with a wet rotor that are used for heating systems, then its performance is likely to be insufficient. In the best case, the unit will be able to raise pressure by 0.4-0.5 atm and ensure minimal water withdrawal from just one point. There can be no talk of any full-fledged functioning of the water supply system.

It is guaranteed to solve your problem only by installing an autonomous system with a self-priming pump. Most of these units are built according to the scheme with a built-in aspirator, on which guide vanes are installed. Just at the expense of the latter, it is possible to realize a self-priming function. Another class of units is pumps with a built-in ejector, thanks to which a pump can increase pressure not by tenths of an atmosphere, but several times. It must be said that specially designed units for increasing pressure work stably even if liquid comes from pipes that are more than half mixed with air. It is also important that the composition of such installations includes a hydraulic accumulator. Its presence will serve as a guarantee that you will have a certain supply of water even if it will come not only in critically small quantities, but also irregularly.

If you are interested in specific pumping stations that can be used to increase pressure, then offhand you can name a few popular and very reliable models - JP Booster, Grundfos JP. If you are interested in a budget solution, then you can take a look at the Jilex Jumbo installations.

As for compact pumps, Grundfos UPA, Wilo PB, Jemix (model W15GR) and Comfort (version X15-GR) pressure transmitters have proven themselves best. We recommend that you talk to plumbers from your management company. Perhaps it will be possible to get by with "little blood" and instead of a more bulky pumping station, the problem can be solved with the help of one of the small-sized centrifugal pumps, the models of which we presented a little higher.

You may also find useful material about the types of water pressure switches, their installation and adjustment:https://aquatech.tomathouse.com/en/vodosnab/nasos/nasos-stancii/datchika-davleniya-vody.html.