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Debate: Is it better to run a dredge pump at full throttle all shift or back it off sometimes?
Had a chat with a retired operator at the coffee shop in Plaquemine last weekend. He insisted keeping the pump at full bore wears out the impeller twice as fast and wastes fuel, but I've always thought slower speeds cause clogs. Who's got real numbers on this from their own meters or wear records?
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juliahall1d agoMost Upvoted
My old Cat 3406B logged 14,000 hours running a 10x12 Warman at the gravel pit, and we kept a spreadsheet on wear rates. We tried idling it down to 1400 RPM once during a wet spell and got a deadhead clog in 20 minutes that took two hours to break up with the backhoe. @ericgonzalez idea about easing up sounds nice in theory but in practice that impeller clearance starts opening up way faster when you're fighting variable flow. The real trick is matching your throttle to the specific gravity of the slurry, not just full bore or backed off. If you've got a decent density meter and keep the solids at 50 percent or above, you can drop maybe 200 RPM without risking a plug and still save fuel.
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