A pressure booster system is needed when the available street water pressure is insufficient to serve a building's plumbing fixtures and equipment. The design of a pressure booster system requires determining factors such as water flow, residual pressure needs, supply pressure, elevation changes, and pressure losses. Proper design also considers using multiple pumps for redundancy and more efficient operation, with options including simplex, duplex, triplex, and quadraplex configurations. Pressure-regulating valves and tanks are typically also components of an effective pressure booster system design.
A pressure booster system is needed when the available street water pressure is insufficient to serve a building's plumbing fixtures and equipment. The design of a pressure booster system requires determining factors such as water flow, residual pressure needs, supply pressure, elevation changes, and pressure losses. Proper design also considers using multiple pumps for redundancy and more efficient operation, with options including simplex, duplex, triplex, and quadraplex configurations. Pressure-regulating valves and tanks are typically also components of an effective pressure booster system design.
A pressure booster system is needed when the available street water pressure is insufficient to serve a building's plumbing fixtures and equipment. The design of a pressure booster system requires determining factors such as water flow, residual pressure needs, supply pressure, elevation changes, and pressure losses. Proper design also considers using multiple pumps for redundancy and more efficient operation, with options including simplex, duplex, triplex, and quadraplex configurations. Pressure-regulating valves and tanks are typically also components of an effective pressure booster system design.
A pressure booster system is needed when the available street water pressure is insufficient to serve a building's plumbing fixtures and equipment. The design of a pressure booster system requires determining factors such as water flow, residual pressure needs, supply pressure, elevation changes, and pressure losses. Proper design also considers using multiple pumps for redundancy and more efficient operation, with options including simplex, duplex, triplex, and quadraplex configurations. Pressure-regulating valves and tanks are typically also components of an effective pressure booster system design.
Give Me a Boost! James E. Stenqvist, CPD A domestic water pressure-booster • Residual Pressure. This is the mini- consider three-pump installations for system is required when the available mum pressure required at the most greater reliability and to reduce each street water main pressure is not suf- remote fixture in the plumbing pump’s horsepower. For systems with ficient to serve a building’s plumbing system (i.e., pressure at the highest extremely variable demands, consider fixtures and equipment. With the pleth- fixture). using additional pumps. End-suction ora of low- and ultra-low-flow fixtures • Static or Building Height. This is the pumps normally are used in small and used today, a requirement of 30 pounds elevation of the most remote fixture low-head installations, while multiple- per square inch at a flush valve is not above the incoming supply main. It pump units can be used for large uncommon. can be determined by the number of capacity requirements. End-suction Pressure deficiencies can be due to a and distance between stories or from pumps can be mounted vertically for number of dissimilar causes. A decrease architectural elevations. a compact design and provide eco- in water main pressure might occur • Supply or Suction Pressure. The nomical equipment packages. Split-case because of increased area population water service pressure available pumps are utilized on most medium- to or development or decreased distribu- from the local municipality must be high-flow applications requiring low tion pressure due to aging water mains. considered in the calculations. This to medium heads. These pumps are A backflow preventer on the incoming pressure should be taken after the heavy duty and offer extended product water service might have been added water meter and backflow preven- life. However, these units require more to the system. A service pipe might be tion device, as these devices can space than end-suction pumps. starting to leak and deteriorate, result- reduce the incoming supply pressure Systems are available in the following ing in low flows and pressures. Large by as much as 15 psi. most common configurations: flows being drawn from a system (such • simplex, in which one pump pro- • Losses. The friction loss calculation as spikes due to process flow or high duces all flow and pressure; should include losses within the peak demands) may result in reduced • duplex, in which the system flow pressure-booster system itself, pres- pressure. The majority of high-rise usually is split between two pumps, sure-reducing valves, and intercon- buildings generally requires a booster equally or unequally; necting piping in the package (typi- system due to the elevation head loss • triplex, in which the system flow cally about five psi). that a municipal water source does not usually is split among three pumps, provide. When the pumps’ pressure and system capacity differences have been equally or unequally; and A booster system takes the existing designed, it is essential to determine • quadraplex, in which large system street pressure and adds to it to attain the quantity, gpm flow rate, and horse- flows are split among four pumps, the preferred system pressure. System power of the pumps and other appara- typically unequally. pressure refers to the pressure in the piping manifold after the pressure tus that best suit the use. Normal water It is important to consider alternate booster. It is expressed by the following demand is typically less than 20 percent staging scenarios. Make certain that you formula: of peak demand (more than 70 percent have exhausted all possible capacity Suction pressure + Boost pressure – of the time). Due to this system char- splits. You may find that the total brake Pump losses – Pressure-reducing acteristic, a multiple-pump system or horsepower required on an unequal valve losses = System pressure a multiple-pump and hydropneumatic split (33/67%, 20/80%, 20/40/40%, Suction pressure is the available tank system can diminish operating 10/45/45%) may be less than an equal street pressure; boost pressure is the expenses considerably. These systems split (50/50%, 65/65%, 33/33/33%, required additional increase added to select the smallest suitable pump horse- 50/50/50%). the street pressure; pressure-reducing power to deliver the required normal When designing for redundancy, valve losses are the pressure losses demand, with additional pumps utilized overdesigning or including a safety through the pressure-reducing valves; when the demand rises toward the factor is discouraged. With a multiple- and pump losses are the losses through peak flow rate. pump design, you can make the best the booster system piping. Booster systems can be simple end- use of the pumping power and still A pressure-booster system design suction pumps or more expensive mul- have redundancy. For example, instead requires the determination of the fol- tiple-pump systems with variable speed of using a 65/65 percent capacity split, lowing variables: controls. For a small system (below which adds unnecessary capacity to the • Flow (gallons per minute). The pres- approximately 150 gpm), two pumps system when the lead pump runs, add sure booster must provide adequate providing a percentage of the total flow 15 percent redundancy to the design flow under a wide range of demand generally are considered acceptable load and suggest a 33/67 percent split conditions. because the resultant horsepower will where cost effective. The redundancy be relatively small. For large systems, still is built into the system; however,
50 Plumbing Systems & Design • May/June 2005
PLUMBING DESIGN by the NUMBERS the smaller pump likely will run most valves are installed elsewhere in the adjacent to the booster skid. ■ of the time. Consider variable-frequency system. References drives for large systems to allow con- You must install a hydropneumatic Armstrong Pumps Pressure Booster stant pressure regulation without the tank in systems that do not have a System Designer’s Handbook. Arm- need for pressure-reducing valves. continuous flow, so most projects will strong Pumps. For most applications, pressure-regu- require a tank. The tank does not keep lating valves are needed to maintain a up with the load; the pumps do. The steady system pressure. Pressure-regu- tank maintains pressure and accom- lating valves compensate for variations modates small demands, allowing the James Stenqvist, CPD, in suction pressure, pump performance pumps to be shut down and not con- is the former president curve characteristics, and pressure tinuously run. The tank provides low of ASPE’s Connecticut Chapter. To comment variations due to pump sequencing. system demand and maintains system on this article, or for Consider check valves in lieu of pres- pressure while the pumps are off, pre- more information, sure-regulating valves when the suction venting pump short-cycling, reducing contact articles@ pressure is constant (i.e., suction from pump wear, and providing energy sav- psdmagazine.org. a reservoir or tank), the pumps are of ings. Hydropneumatic tanks or draw- This article is meant to provide some basic equal size and their performance curves down tanks can be remote mounted at guidelines. Always check all relevant codes are relatively flat, or pressure-regulating the top of the building or field installed and resources for a particular project.
❑ Checklist for Booster Pump Installation Sequencing Devices
❑ Flow switch Before You Begin System Components ❑ Pressure switch ❑ Determine applicable codes. ❑ Pump and motor unit (starter and ❑ Current sensing relay ❑ Ensure the pump is absolutely disconnect) required. ❑ Pressure-reducing valve Controls ❑ Perform initial calculations. ❑ Pipe and fittings ❑ Main disconnect switch ❑ Space-proof and locate the pump. ❑ Strainer ❑ Power transformers ❑ Determine incoming water sizes, ❑ Controls ❑ Panel protection circuits locations, and pressures. ❑ Shutoff valves ❑ Pump selection and shunting circuits ❑ Incorporate plans for future expan- ❑ Hydropneumatic tank ❑ Alternator switches sion. ❑ Housekeeping pad ❑ Pump run indicators and motor con- tactors Verify Design Parameters Sizing Requirements ❑ Design conditions (dynamic head, ❑ Current sensing transformers and ❑ Static head or building height control relays flow requirements, etc.) ❑ Friction losses ❑ Minimum run timer ❑ Suction pressure from water source ❑ Pressure required at furthest point ❑ Aquastats and solenoid valves ❑ Building height ❑ Minimum suction pressure ❑ High and low suction pressure ❑ Pump type (end suction, vertical ❑ Pump capacity (gallons per minute) warnings inline, vertical multistage, vertical turbine, constant speed, variable ❑ Total dynamic head ❑ Pump protection circuits and alarms speed) ❑ Pressure-reducing valve losses ❑ Remote communication signaling ❑ Electrical characteristics (120, 208, System Manifold ❑ Explosion-proof controls (if environ- 240, or 480 volts) ❑ Cast iron, flanged ment is hazardous) ❑ Friction losses through pipe and fit- ❑ Type K copper ❑ Enclosure type (NEMA 3R, 4X, etc.) tings ❑ Type L copper Alarms ❑ Pressure required at top of building ❑ High system pressure ❑ Schedule 40, galvanized steel ❑ Emergency or standby power for the ❑ Low system pressure ❑ Type 304, stainless steel pumps ❑ High suction pressure ❑ Ground fault electrical protection Drawdown Storage Tanks ❑ Remote mounted ❑ Low suction level shutdown ❑ Skid mounted ❑ Motor overload ❑ Adjacent mounted Publisher’s Note: ASPE and PSD do not directly or indirectly endorse products or manufacturers. Material present in this magazine is for furthering the technical interests of plumbing engineers, designers, contractors, and other interested professionals. From time to time a product may be mentioned, or an article or the material from a professional or specialist from a product manufacturer may be presented. The presentation of this type of material is in no way an endorsement of the American Society of Plumbing Engineers or of Plumbing Systems & Design magazine. The material has been reviewed by PSD professionals who provide technical editing services to the Society and is deemed to be of sufficient or significant interest to the plumbing industry and profession.
