# which hand pump to buy



## plgrass

I posted before on this subject - tommorrow we are making a decision - Thanks to all - well driller in ohio really had good advice. We drilled 46 feet a brand new well just for a hand pump. they hit gravel at 28 and went another 16 - the static water line is 12 feet - I thought we could go with a shallow well pump but the bison ladies tell me to use the deep well as it does not freeze etc. I will spend about 250 more for the deep well - they are quoting 1,504. 

I could also go with Baker out of Wisconsin for around 1,137. That would be the 11HD which is the " most popular hand pump" in America iwth a sealed packing ideal for drinking water.

Also Lehmans has a deep well double acting pump for 624 but you have to buy a cylinder for 200 and I am not sure if it is "sealed" etc. The amish seem to like it

I dont mind spending 300 some bucks more for the bison vs baker - but then again I might. What say all of you bison or baker or should I go for the cheap Lemans? This is a great website that I have only begun to get into - will show my wife tonight about "what to do with the relatives" post - very interisting. Thanks.


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## Country Living

We're going with the in-line Bison deep well hand pump with a quick disconnect. 

The Bison folks have been great to work with these past several weeks while we figured out all the specs. We have never felt pressured into making a decision to purchase the Bison pump even though we've tied up some of their resources with endless questions. They have an amazing amount of patience!

We took a serious look at the Lehmans pumps; however, the Bison quality just seems to stand out a bit more with minimal to no maintenance. 

Our static water level is 35 feet. We like the idea of having an in-line pump so if the electric pump goes out we can manually pump water into our holding tank so we can still use the faucets and toilets. If we have an extended power outage, we'll release some of the air from the holding tank (it has a bladder for water pressure) so we can put more water in the tank than we normally keep with the electric pump.


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## plgrass

a quick disconnect? What is that? We already have a regular well and I paid almost 2,000 to have a second drilled 10 feet from our regualar well - I know - it is possible to use our regular well and put a hand pump on it - but the well guy said we couldn't even though simple pump people said we could etc. - so I drilled a new second well and here we are - I am leaning bison but might do the baker -
thanks for input btw the bison has the ability to add a hose i like that idea


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## Country Living

http://www.bisonpumps.com/quick-disconnect-hand-pump.html

We're using the same well - just adding the inline pump to it.

ETA: our well guy said he was NOT impressed with the Simple pumps.


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## Country Living

Let me clarify the ability to manually pump water into our holding tank with the Bison in-line pump. A ball check value on the Bison pump controls whether the water goes through the water line (the electric pump uses) directly into the holding tank or out the spigot. 

You don't have to run a hose to fill the holding tank. You can connect a hose to the spigot or you can fill a bucket directly from the spigot.

It will probably be another month before we get the pump and get it installed.


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## BadgerPeak

We chose the Simple Pump for a few reasons that may or may not benefit you.


Easiest to pump (least hand pressure required)
Capable of deepest depth (if we move some day, it WILL work with our next well)
Only pump that can pressurize our existing plumbing so we can use faucets, toilets, showers, etc.
CNC machined (not one-off hand made) so we can order replacement parts if needed and they will fit.

We've been very happy with ours. Here is a write-up of our install.


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## Country Living

BadgerPeak said:


> We chose the Simple Pump for a few reasons that may or may not benefit you.
> 
> 
> Easiest to pump (least hand pressure required)
> Capable of deepest depth (if we move some day, it WILL work with our next well)
> Only pump that can pressurize our existing plumbing so we can use faucets, toilets, showers, etc.
> CNC machined (not one-off hand made) so we can order replacement parts if needed and they will fit.
> 
> We've been very happy with ours. Here is a write-up of our install.


Interesting. We went with the Bison pump for the same reasons (except for the deep-deep well and we don't have one of those).


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## BadgerPeak

Country Living said:


> Interesting. We went with the Bison pump for the same reasons (except for the deep-deep well and we don't have one of those).


Can the Bison now pump into pressure (at least 60psi)?


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## Country Living

BadgerPeak said:


> Can the Bison now pump into pressure (at least 60psi)?


Yep, we'll pump into 65psi.


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## BadgerPeak

That's great news! Has something changed in the design since they produced this chart on their website?

Most of the actual pumps on that chart would be too difficult to pump, for the average person to get much water even without the added exertion of pumping into a pressurized tank. I'm 6'2" and strong, but I'm not running a 60 pound handle for very many strokes (none the less some of the heavier ones).

I'd be genuinely excited about a newer/better pump design!


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## plgrass

wow good stuff people. This website makes me realize how much we have to learn. Thanks.


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## Country Living

I just found out we won't be able to have the quick disconnect on the Bison pump we're going to order shortly. The quick disconnect is on the tandem pump and we need an inline pump. That's OK... a quick disconnect would have been convenient; however, not getting one is not a show-stopper.


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## Country Living

BadgerPeak said:


> That's great news! Has something changed in the design since they produced this chart on their website?
> 
> Most of the actual pumps on that chart would be too difficult to pump, for the average person to get much water even without the added exertion of pumping into a pressurized tank. I'm 6'2" and strong, but I'm not running a 60 pound handle for very many strokes (none the less some of the heavier ones).
> 
> I'd be genuinely excited about a newer/better pump design!


It won't be that much effort because we only need to pump about 40'. If we were pumping 200' we would be having a different conversation because that would be a whole new level of effort.

The Bison folks have been great. They are, without a doubt, one of the best customer service companies we've dealt with in a long time. They are very proud of their product and they don't mind spending time with a (potential) customer working on specs so the end product is something with which the customer will be happy and satisfied.

We'll wait until just after the first of the year to finish our order. I'd rather not be caught in the Christmas UPS rush.

I'll be happy to post back in a few months to let you know about the installation and the pump itself - if there is an interest. We are going to use our well guy for the installation just because we have to pull the electric pump and it's going to be messy.


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## plgrass

we went with the baker monitor cast iron pump about 1,100 it has a seal/shroud and a hose spot connection of some type they are going to set the thing that pulls the water at about 30 feet.


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## Country Living

I know you're glad to finally work through everything and make a decision on the pump that will best fit your needs. If you can, post a picture after it's installed. I think we're going to start seeing more hand pumps on water wells in the not-so-far future.


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## Well_Driller

It's been happening here more and more for the last few years. I've put in several, other well drillers I know are installing them in this area too.....


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