What should I know about drum pumps?
Drum pumps are used to safely empty barrels and jerrycans. This way you avoid:
- compromised and slippery surface with risk of falling,
- burns (skin conditions) and poisoning from spillages,
- health problems due to inhalation of hazardous fumes.
Selection of drum pump
Which chemical do you want to pump? How big is the volume to be pumped? Do you want manual or powered pumping? When choosing the right drum pump, there are several factors to consider:
Type and size of packaging
- Pumps that work on the basis of overpressure (Pump-it) are ideal for pumping jerry cans and small drums with a volume of +/- 60 litres.
- Drum pumps are more suitable for pumping larger volumes, i.e. for larger drums (60-200 litres). Due to the different lengths of drum pump tubes, they can also be used with standard drums.
Pumping capacity and chemical resistance
Besides the type and size of the container, characteristics such as pumping capacity and chemical resistance are very important when choosing a pump. Not only must the pump and seals be resistant to the medium, in some cases certain environment-related regulations must be respected, such as Ex zones when pumping flammable liquids, for example.
Connection of drum pump
Unlike steel drums, which usually have a 2" fine thread connection, plastic packaging does not have a standard. As for those plastic drums, there are 2 options to address this connection problem:
- using adapter(s), the pump can still be screwed on
- By using a universal conical plug, pump tubes can be relatively well fixed.
Manual or powered pump?
Electric and pneumatic drum pumps are the best choice when larger quantities of liquid need to be pumped at a fixed location. Their high pumping capacity saves time and requires virtually no effort.
In some cases, the high cost of such drum pumps is disproportionate to their use or they have to be used in places where electricity or compressed air are not always available. It is precisely in such situations that manual pumps are a worthy alternative when pumping smaller quantities, they do not require facilities and have a good price-quality guarantee.