Circulator pump Question.

Jason_15

I have a Weil-Mclain VHE ( 67,000 BTU ) hot water baseboard system. About 20 years old, appears to be a single loop system. It's doing a fine job heating a 100 year old 2-story house. The circulator pump is just starting to drip a little bit every so often, although the pump is still running smooth with no vibration. I'm assuming it's going to fail soon? It is a Bell and Gosset 1/20 HP rated at 2900 RPM. All the replacement pumps I can find are higher horsepower and lower RPM's. like around 1/8-1/4 HP @ 1700 RPM. What is the difference? how far from original should I go on a replacement without affecting the system performance? Thanks, Jason from Wisconsin.

Steamhead

What Model #

is your pump?

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Jim Bennett

Jim Bennett

Jason_15

It's an LR series. "little red booster pump" Are these compatible with the 100 series??

jbplumber

circulator

Thats a wet rotor pump Jason where is it leaking from and what makes you think it will fail soon.

Jason_15

It seemed to be leaking more out of the center, rather than at the flange. It was only a drip-drip however. and now it hasn't dripped for a few days at all. A service tech was here a few weeks ago to install a honeywell universal module, due to no heat. He said that the pump should be replaced because of the drip. I figured that would be so because of my experience with automotive water pumps. I am looking to possibly buy a replacement pump to have on the shelf for the future. If a once in a while drip isn't an indication of failure, I would rather not bother. (I have been scouting pumps on ebay)

dan_21

LR-20 is available

The LR-20 pump is available.
contact your local B&G representative for information
refer to following link to locate your B&G rep

http://www.bellgossett.com/Distrib_US.stm

dan_21

LR-20 is available

the LR-20 is available
contact your local B&G representative for information.
to locate your B&G rep, go to the following address: http://www.bellgossett.com/Distrib_US.stm

[Deleted User]

The LR

is B&G's last gasp to keep an oilable single piece pump.
The NRF-22 B&G is a wet rotor pump that will do the same job. 2 gpms more at the top & bottom end. RPM is 2940. Only 92 watts.

Chuckles_3

It is not that expensive and not a big deal to replace a pump, IF you have shutoff valves close to both sides of the pump.

You can't go by hp or rpm; you have to compare pump curves. But you don't need to do that yourself since other people have done that for you: see Ron's post below. An NRF-22 is an excellent replacement, as he says, and you won't ever have to oil it. A Taco 007 will work fine too. Look around on the web and on ebay, you'll find better prices than you'll get from the local plumbing supply store. The newer pumps are much easier to find on ebay than the out-of-date Little Reds.

Finally, the Grundfos 15-58 is a three-speed pump whose middle speed has a curve that matches your old pump. I bought one of those for $70 on ebay, and then I found by trying that the lowest speed was still enough to get heat to the zone. If a lower speed works, it uses less power and there is no benefit to pumping harder, that won't heat the house significantly faster. Many houses have not only oversized boilers but oversized and thus power-wasting pumps.

One thing to know about Grundfos is that some of them have check valves built in, and having more than one check valve reduces the flow for no additional benefit, so if you buy one of those you will have to pop the plastic valve out with a screwdriver.

Jason_15

Thank you so much. I found a Taco 007 pump. I'll go ahead and get that and install it as soon as the heating season is over, assuming my B&G keeps going that long. I don't have the shutoff valves near the pump, so I guess it will be a big bleeding job. That's why I'll try to wait until spring !!! Thanks again, Jason.