Water Circulator Question - For Winter Dock
 

Anyone have knowledge about circulators - little fans placed in water to prevent ice around dock for winter time.

Anyone know of source to purchase one? Brand names? Types? I will be putting in myself so I don't need names or service companies or installers.

Thanks.

I use a P500 (1/2 HP) Ice Eater by Powerhouse. It works great an recommend it. Looking at the specs. their 3/4 HP draws less current then the 1/2 HP. It's either a typo or a better motor. Next time I'd go with the 3/4 HP.

Tehir web site is http://www.thepowerhouseinc.com/

Lakepilot,
How many amps does the 3/4 motor draw?

Thanks

I have a pretty nice 1/2 hp water circulator with a new blue propeller and one of those time/temp controls that I need to sell off so will shortly figure out a selling price and put it into the classified ads. It's one of the units where the motor is housed within a large white pvc tube that gets suspended by two lines. It can be inspected and water-tested at my cottage which is close to the Cattle Landing town dock if anyone is interested. It looks identical to the Powerhouse ice eater posted by Lakepilot in post #2, so it must be a Powerhouse Ice Eater 1/2hp-110volts. It did a good enough job of protecting a 30' dock and a ten foot wide boat lift.

Reason for selling: have gone back to total removal of dock and boat lift after getting smacked up with ice damage to the dock at end of ice-out last year when the ice sheet plowed into the dock propelled by the wind........ugh!

Seasons
 

Can I respectfully ask that we revisit this issue in the fall:)

Good suggestion.

Except it was last Fall when I started looking around here and found none available.

Their data sheet indicates the 3/4 HP motor draws 4.7 amps while the 1/2 HP draws 5 amps.

Assuming 120V motors, the 3/4 HP unit would be operating at 100% efficiency to achieve 3/4 HP at a 4.7 amp draw. The 1/2 HP unit would be operating with 62% efficiency.

Horsepower ratings on small motors are almost always misleading, or misapplied.

1 HP = 746 watts. A standard 120V 15A circuit can supply 1800 watts (actually, less, you generally don't run a circuit continuously at it's max rating), or 2.4 Horsepower. That is assuming 100% efficiency (impossible) and not taking into account power factor.

They don't say how they got the ratings, but my guess is that the 3/4 HP unit would use more like 7-8 amps in operation.

Here's what it says on the side of the big white pvc tube housing of the ice eater.

Ice Eater P500, 7 amp, 1/2 hp, new blue propeller, and home made hardware cloth wire screen on bottom to keep the sand and gravel from being sucked up through the propeller, which is what damaged the old propeller. The water was only about four feet deep where it was used and the device was close to the bottom and the screen worked out good. About 40' extension cord of oem black 14-3 grounded wire made for Ice Eater

Price- --------( got to research the prices)

...............

Kasco C-20, time & temp de-icer control

Price -------- (ditto)

Condition is very excellent including original box for Kasco and should be lasting for long long time of many worry free dock maintenance winter months. Just set the Kasco C-20 time/temp and head south to Miami!

If only there was a way to not click on this thread during the summer...:)

For some of us, the summer is all we have to deal with the entire year of things to do.

General rule of thumb
 

At full load a 120 volt motor draws 10 amps per HP, so a 3/4 would be in the 7.5 range

Sorry to hear about your ice damage. You replaced your little inexpensive pump with a pricey circulator? :confused:

Over the last 18+ years, my installer has replaced a half-dozen of his circulators :) at no cost to us, :cool: so I wouldn't dismiss installers as an option. This installer says the reason for propeller failure is due to underwater sticks being drawn into the propeller as the sticks drift by: some are shoreline cuttings. :eek2:

If you replace your "permanent" dock with a temporary dock, be sure to guard it against winter's winds as in this suggestion. The aluminum dock in this photo had the usual cable lifting it up for winter—and two substantial lines east and west—but the base shifted instead, in this photo taken yesterday. Something else broke off under water: note the peculiar angle of the dock to the water.

More Winnipesaukee reading on this subject here.