ERICSON SAFETY PUMPS
INTRODUCTION

This is an emergency pump that can assist a sinking or swamped vessel. Applied Marine Hardwave is the Australasian agent for these pumps and they are an incredibly simple idea. Whilst it has taken a lot of work to develop these pumps they can now be purchased, fitted and hopefully forgotten. One thing is for sure, everyone hopes they will never need it, but sometimes strange things happen at sea.

The 3-08 pump (1" to 2.75" shafts) pump 40 litres per second (2400 l/min) at 1500 rpm, the 6-26 pump pumps 80 litres per second ( 288,000 litres per hour) at only 300 rpm.
This volume of water is beyond the capacity of normal bilge pumps and in many cases it is sufficient to keep a vessel afloat until it can reach help. Because the pumps are designed to work from the main propeller shaft, their rating is continuous and (for example) they are not dependent on battery storage or clutches or valves.
Pricing of the pumps starts at NZ$ 510


The Demonstration Unit above shows about 22 litres per second being pumped from the lower tank to the upper one. It drains back into the lower tank via three four inch diameter portholes. You have to imagine how much water could pour in during a real emergency. For the record, the pump is driven by a 5 hp Briggs&Stratton stationery motor air cooled. It drives at 3:1 reduction, so 2400 rpm on the motor is 800 rpm on the pump. Most vessels have much more than 5 hp so clearly there is ample horsepower for both the propeller and the pump.

This pump has an impellor clamped to the prop' shaft, it spins inside the housing without touching it, moderate shaft movement can be tolerated without the impellor hitting the housing. It just blows air around until the bilge is wet. The pump is always turning as long as the main engine is running, it needs no lubricant and it will pump all manner of material without clogging; it resembles a shredder. The engine must be in forward gear for the pump to work, unless a PTO is used. The pumps will in fact still work in reverse gear but output is drastically reduced.
Below is a picture of a pump taken apart to show housing and impeller both taken apart for an ESP.

The pump ABS type approval, it is approved by the Swedish National Board of Fishing as life saving equipment, it has ABS type approval. We have letters and newspaper articles from overseas where the pump has saved lives, we have photos of installations, we are keen to share these with you. Along with a VIDEO of a vessel with a 10" hole open in the hull!!! Please do NOT hesitate to ask for this information.


Ericson Safety Pump performance data

Model ESP2-05 Dimensions Shaft OD 25-50 mm Outlet 50 mm House OD 175 mm Width 254 mm Depth 120 mm Aprx wgt 3 kg RPM 800 1100 1500 Head 2 m 3 m 5 m Flow 3 l/sec 8 l/sec 25 l/sec 200 l/min 500 l/min 1500 l/min ********************************************

Model ESP3-08 Dimensions Shaft OD 25-70 mm Outlet 75 mm House OD 275 mm Width 354 mm Depth 175 mm Aprx wgt 10 kg RPM 600 800 1500 Head 2 m 3 m 12 m Flow 13 l/sec 22 l/sec 40 l/sec 780 l/min 1320 l/min 2400 l/min ********************************************

Model ESP5-16 Dimensions Shaft OD 50-130 mm Outlet 110 mm House OD 460 mm Width 540 mm Depth 240 mm Aprx wgt 20 kg RPM 300 400 500 Head 3.5 m 6 m 8 m Flow 57 l/sec 80 l/sec 80 l/sec 3500 l/min 4800 l/min 4800 l/min ********************************************

Model ESP6-26 Dimensions Shaft OD 70-160 mm Outlet 160 mm House OD 740 mm Width 790 mm Depth 330 mm Aprx wgt 40 kg RPM 150 200 300 Head 3.5 m 4 m 8 m Flow 50 l/sec 57 l/sec 80 l/sec 3000 l/min 3500 l/min 4800 l/min ********************************************

Tests carried out by ESP with different shaft diameters 50mm, 70mm, 130mm, 190mm. On the respective pump sizes. These are maximum shaft diameters and represent worst cases. The tests have been done with a normal volvo B-20 engine 60hp connected to the shafts. Testing 3-08, 5-16, 6-26 took place at Ockero during 28-30 March 1997. Testing 2-05 took place September 7 1998.

We can supply sketches to better describe the dimensions listed above. A vessel which is sinking would have a problem if it was tied up to a wharf with a fixed pitch prop, or damaged shaft. PTO installations are an option. M&I NZ have been keen on the PTO installation since the pump can operate then even if the shaft is damaged which with the addition of a strainer may enable the pump to be classed as a primary engine driven bilge pump. Normally, the pump is installed as a safety device over and above NZ Gazette statutory requirements. The pumps consist of four parts; impellor and housing each in two pieces. There are NO seals, NO filters, NO gaskets, NO electronic parts, NO clutch.
The pumps have ABS type approval.
Prop shafts which move significantly due to soft engine mounts may risk the impellor hitting the housing. In this type of installation, the housing should be mounted with the engine so as to move with the shaft. The pumps are made from Aluminium. We recommend zinc chromate paste "Duralac" to minimise electrolysis. In general the impellor and shaft are both dry and acting as a fan, The pump should only be wet while sinking which we hope is not often!

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