Solar Powered Pump Jack

[kthree]

We manufacture a line of Oil Well Pump Jacks,

http://www.CookPumpingJacks.com.

Because our line is at the smaller end of the spectrum, many of our Jacks are also used to produce ag and household water. Most of these water systems are 1hp, sometimes as high as 2hp. Occasionally we are contacted by individuals interested in pumping their well by solar power. Until recently we simply turned all these inquiries over to a company that enginered the system, and sold and installed the equipment. Sadly that business is now a recessionary statistic. At this time we have an active contact that is interested in building a solar powered water system and we have no where to refer them. What's the chance that somebody out there knows somebody, that knows somebody... I would appreciate any ideas, comments, suggestions, etc that anyone would care to offer. Thanks, K.

 

[IRstuff]

Costco's solar panel supplier, who just had a road show in southern California, is

http://www.recsolar.com/

But, it ain't cheap. The list price for a 5 kW system, which is overkill for your application, was about $33K, although our local utility gives a pretty substantial rebate, and there is a fairly substantial federal tax credit.

Looks like the closest office to you is Colorado.

TTFN

FAQ731-376

 

[berkshire]

This outfit claims to be the biggest and oldest solar outfit in the US. They do PV solar, swimming pools and water heaters so they do claim to have some pumping experience.

http://www.naturalenergyusa.com

they have licenses for California ,Nevada, and Arizona.

B.E.

 

[BigInch]

Grundfos makes a line of submersibles kitted out for solar and/or wind power,

http://www.grundfos.us/web/HomeUs.nsf/Webopslag/PAVA-589LGA

"The top of the organisation doesn't listen sufficiently to what the bottom is saying." Tony Hayward X-CEO BP
"Being GREEN isn't easy." Kermit

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpiIWMWWVco

http://virtualpipeline.spaces.live.com

 

[kthree]

Thanks Everyone. Appreciate your taking time to consider and respond to my post. One of our distributors is also a distributor for Grundfos and they speak highly of the Grundfos solar package.
Contrary to most street knowledge, oil is not a finite energy source. In the very early 80's, on-going research by one of the major oil companies, I want to remeber it as ARCO, estimated that the earth continues to make crude oil at a rate of 60M barrels per day. It was about that same time when the worlds daily oil consumption surpassed 60M bpd. While that finding makes a statement that oil is not a finite source, we can overuse the supply. Alternate energy sources that make use of what we label as renewable fuel, such as wind, solar, wave, temperature change, etc are more resistant to overuse then is oil. Because there are varibles that solar power does not handle well it is inaccurate to suggest solar power is THE cure, but I am comfortable in the thought that solar power will be among the cures for quite some time.

 

[BigInch]

Yes we just hope "the cure" will hurt less than the disease.

"The top of the organisation doesn't listen sufficiently to what the bottom is saying." Tony Hayward X-CEO BP
"Being GREEN isn't easy." Kermit

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpiIWMWWVco

http://virtualpipeline.spaces.live.com

 

[dcasto]

gee, we've had green powered water wells in the heartland of the US since 1867.

 

[BigInch]

Sorry I wasn't clear. I was referring only to the "withdrawal symptoms" that many think we will experience when we try large scale fossil fuel technology replacement.

BTW, most basic green technology is 2000 years old or more.

"The top of the organisation doesn't listen sufficiently to what the bottom is saying." Tony Hayward X-CEO BP
"Being GREEN isn't easy." Kermit

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpiIWMWWVco

http://virtualpipeline.spaces.live.com

 

[IRstuff]

I think that the cure will indeed be quite painful, given that we not only choose to ignore the problem, but we have factions that actively argue that there is no problem.

TTFN

FAQ731-376

 

[Sparweb]

You could dive into the Alt-energy world by picking up some back issues of HomePower, Mother Earth News, and the like. They feature articles about solar energy uses - I bet it's likely they've covered the kind of system you want in the past.
Anyone who has an array of solar panels on their house, and has a well, probably can claim that their well pump is "solar powered" to some degree. More so if they're off-grid - less so if they're grid-tied micro-generation sellers with not battery backup.
What you are asking about is really just a change in the SCALE of what's being done, not by a very large factor.
What RPM range is necessary on those pump-jacks?

Steven Fahey, CET

 

[BigInch]

More important is the power required. Large horsepowers (solar apps could mean large is 5 HP) and batteries at remote locations get expensive quickly, especially if you need to pump during 3 or 4 days of little or no insolation.

"The top of the organisation doesn't listen sufficiently to what the bottom is saying." Tony Hayward X-CEO BP
"Being GREEN isn't easy." Kermit

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpiIWMWWVco

http://virtualpipeline.spaces.live.com

 

[kthree]

As you would expect, the greatest amount of interest in solar powered pumping most often comes from predominately sunny areas - NM AZ CA. Likewise, Mexico and Africa have also been active areas over the years. What we have come to know as a common setup is a 1 or 1.25 Hp motor tied to solar panels. The pump jack is the same regardless of the form of power supplied. Generally, if it is household water, some form of battery backup is included. If it is stock water, there is battery backup much less often. Lately there seems to be increased activity due to a desire to become more green. More recently it was explained that if the supply of electricity was interrupted, daily activities could continue with small adjustments. However, an interruption in the supply of water would be much more serious. That customer was going solar as a step toward going Green alright, but also considered it as an additional insurance policy. Thanks SparWeb for mentioning Mother Earth News. As many hours as I have spent with my nose stuck in those mags I should have thought of that on my own. Thanks All, appreciate your help. K.