Irrigation pump packing

Now that I have my hayfield cut it is time to irrigate for a second cutting.   I haven't started yet.  The ground still has moisture from all that rain we had in June.  So the hayfield is growing.  Therefore I can take my time setting out all the pipes.

Now I have been planning the past few years of getting aluminum pipes to replace the mainline steel pipes I set out in the hayfield.  I'm getting older and the 61 pound steel pipes are getting heavier.   This and that has got me off track of getting the replacing done.  My four inch steel pipes have three inch valves.  So my valve opener is a 3 by 3 opener.  Guess what.  Not common.  Four inch pipes usually have four inch valves.  The openers then are a 4 by 3 opener.  My irrigation guy hasn't found three inch valves on a four inch pipe.   This Spring I spoke with him again.  Still didn't find any.  But he had some used four inch aluminum pipes with four inch valves, and a 4 by 3 valve opener.   He figured it would be cheaper than trying to buy valves to attach to my aluminum pipe.

So I decided to go that route.  When I had talked with the irrigation guy it was at his day job.  Later when I showed up at his house I found he didn't have enough used aluminum pipes with valves.  I needed ten pipes.

So I went searching at the company I had bought replacement gaskets for my steel pipe.  I think I found three inch valves on a four inch pipe listed in their catalog.  But the price is $160 for each valve.   Ten valves is $1600.   Hmmm... let me think about it.   This year I am back to using my steel pipes.

In the meantime Donna suggested I should check on my irrigation pump to see if I need to replace or add packing around the pump's shaft.  It has been 6 years since I had the packing replaced in the pump.   I checked.  It was hard to check as I needed to use a mirror and flashlight to look at where the packing goes.   It appeared I needed packing.  I don't want to ruin the shaft due to a lack of packing.   The business I had do my re-packing and pump maintenance in 2016 suggested I bring in my pump.  Umm.... that is a major job for me, and also I plan to start irrigating soon.  So I got one ring of packing from them.

I put the ring of packing in the pump and it was the right amount.  Now to see if I did it correctly when I start my pump later.

This is where the packing goes.  I already had taken off the piece that holds the packing in place.  One tightens the piece over time to squeeze the packing in tighter.   Otherwise the pump won't start pumping water.

The piece used to hold and tighten the packing.  And the ring of packing material I got and placed in the pump.

Everything reattached and the pump should be ready to go.