Does the pump for a rainwater tank have to be located close to the tank?
September 10th, 2009 | 
Author: I have external power at a location roughly 15m away from the tank, around the side of my home. I want to fit two taps near this location. I want a third tap next to the tank, but don’t mind if it is unpressured (save running another 15m of pipe back).
If the pump can pull the fifteen metres without reduced performance, will the tap at the tank (which would be on the supply side of the pump) be affected by vacuum? If so could this damage the pump?
you can put your pump anywhere you want as long as you install a check-valve close to the pump on the vacuum side.
Posted in Tank Pump
The pump can be quite far from the tank as long as it is not too much higher than the tank, and your lines are large enough. If your pump is not self-priming, it needs to be lower than the water level in the tank. Having the tap on the supply side is a problem, if the pump could ever be operated while the tap is open. It could ruin your pump. Can you put the tap on the tank, or a separate line?
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The main thing is to be sure your pump intake is no higher than the bottom of the water tank. This will insure you that your pump is always primed. A un primed pump can cause damage to pump, overheat, and burn up impeller.
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The only problem might be that you couldn’t
open that tap near the tank while the pump was running.
Depending on the flow speed and resistance in the
pipe, it might cause a problem.
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you can put your pump anywhere you want as long as you install a check-valve close to the pump on the vacuum side.
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