Dry vs. Wet

[pyroknight]

Dry pump or wet pump under 32F? What problems have you had?

[INDY FIRE]

We keep em wet in Indy with no problems. We were having some freezing problems when we were draining the pumps...

Be Safe...

[FIRE549]

Our deparment runs a wet pump all the time. We always remind the drivers to circulate the pump when they arrive at an incident when the weather is below freezing. I can't recall anyone ever having a problem except for one time. A driver was parked at a building for an extended period and forgot to circulate the water and the pump froze. We were lucky there was no damage. He let the pump thaw out and ran the primer a couple of times to clear out the blockage.

[JON SOMMESO]

ITS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THE BIGGER PROBLEM IS FREEZING THE TINY TUBES TO THE GAUES. OUR MECHANIC LECTURES ABOUT GETTING ALL THE POSSIBLE H20 OUT OF SYSTEM OR ELSE NOT PARKING IN THE COLD. (NOT ALWAYS POSSIBLY.)
PERSONALLY I'VE NEVER HAD OR HEARD OF A PROBLEM IN OUR DEPARTMENT.

[chief4102]

Good morning to all;
We run with dry pumps when temp is below 32F. The drains are left open until we are actually going to pump at a scene. We also have heat pans under our mid-ship pumps. We have had no problem with freezing using this policy.

Be Safe
Dan

[Drive P17B]

Our pumpers remain wet and circulate the pump in freezing weather. Our Trucks drain theirs if they have them.

[Brian Pratt]

We run with wet pumps and circulate when sitting still outside. Our pumps are checked every morning and a pump full of water takes longer to freeze than a wet, empty pump.

My views...not EFD

[NUMBY]

We leave our pumps wet year round. The logic behind the theory is that a large volume of water takes longer to freeze than a small amount. We have not had any problems with leaving them wet. If we are out for an extended period of time in cold conditions we just circulate water through the pump.

[tmr91]

Our department will run the pumps wet but drain the front suctions. Any time the engine is taken out in temp. at or near 32F, the engineer will engage the pump and circulate through the tank and pump. As long as we've done this, i never remember having a pump freeze up.

[cmiller]

We run wet pumps year round. Never had any problems with freezing if the operator keeps the water circulating. Once the tubes to the gauges froze but no problems occured as a result.

------------------
HAVE A NICE DAY!!!!!

[D. Anderson]

We've got to be one of the coldest areas in the country and we run with wet pumps all the time and circulate the pumps at calls. We also drain the tanks on our ladders that have tanks on them except for the Haz Mat Ladder 9 whose tank is full of foam. We also have heated pump panels so our gauges don't freeze. I've heard some of the old guys talk about dumping the tanks out at big defensive fires when their engines won't be used on orders from the chief, but haven't seen that personally.

[LHS]

We use pump and roll pumps and simply keep the rig in pump during cold weather while driving. We can run as far as 167 miles one way at 20 below. Typical runs are 5 to 10 miles each way. To address standing water all front and rear discharges have a 5/8 recriculating line to keep the water moving. Automatic drains are on all lines. We keep the pump wet. A pump heater and placement of the hydraulic generator in the pump compartment all help. None of out pressure gauges uses a water line they all use phone lines. Same is true with water level sensors.

[mtnfireguy]

Wet here....... no problems

[Lieutenant Gonzo]

Wet Wet Wet and keep the pump circulating!

------------------
Take care and be safe...Lt. Gonzo

[Spirk]

Here in Vermont we run with dry pumps. The main reason we drain the pump is to actually drain the water out of all of the "External" plumbing. (ie suctions, gates, valves etc.)
It is true that if the pump is full of water it will take a very long time to freeze. If the pump has water in it the possibility of the valving freezeing is high and this has happened to us so, we drain everything.
We still circulate water if we are standing still at a scene for any length of time. Remember, even a "little" bit of water, expanding as it freezes, can disable your truck. (ie the small copper lines).
I guess either wet or dry will work if you know your trucks and your environment. Dry pumps are just a little more work back at the station. I hope what you do in your Dept. will work for you. Take care.

Bill Spirka, Capt. Wil. F.D.

[GIFD34k4]

We have run with wet pumps just in the last 5 yrs. and we have't had one problem. We use anti-freeze on all of our valves,gates,discharges or what ever you want to call them.Anti-freeze is also good for the hose couplings.It acts as a lubricant as well.E-one incorporates the muffler into a box below the pump which is very effective, works well. By the way we are 20 miles south of the Canada border in northern Vermont.

------------------

[turbotim66]

well down here in the land of "ICE" we are trying to go with wet pumps all the time. this is the first winter we will go with wet pumps but so far it is working good. In the summer we are lucky for the temp to get up to +32f Normally we work in the negitives for most of the year. The coldest we have had while I have been here is -80f, that we went out on a call. in that temp the gauge lines freeze in the first 3 min of running. Even if you are recirc'ing. We have pump panel heaters and belly pans. We don't have a problem with the gauges after they un freeze they work fine again.
last winter we ran with dry pumps, it worked fine also, You just have to make sure that all the water is out of the pump and drains. That way you don't have to recirc your pump when you get on scene. a couple of problems we saw when running dry pumps was we were geting alot of rust in the pump. the other problem was getting a prime in the real cold temps.
just remember to be consistant. Later Tim

------------------
safety is not luck it is a decision

[LHS']

...in that temp the gauge lines freeze in the first 3 min of running. ...

Consider buying digital gauges that use phone lines instead of water to read pressure. They don't freeze.

[Ward Watson]

Wet without problems

[goshen392]

We run our pumps wet all the time. If you have a new pump and you have an SOP that requires you to run dry make sure you have packing and not a mechanical seal. A mechanical seal needs to be wet at all times or it will be damaged from running dry.

[Daniel Barr]

We run Wet Pumps in Pennsylvania. We do have a policy of immediately shifting into pump upon arrival on scene and circulate water. As for gauge freeze up, We use gauge heaters and lines. Heater come on automaticly when sensor reaches its preset temp.
We also open all discharge bleeders upon arrival back at station to remove water from plummbing, remove caps and wipe off. This was our biggest problem, Caps frozen on discharge pipes.