Anyone tried adapting dishwaher drain pumps for aquaponics? I can get then surplus for $20 each and they look to be perfect, assuming I can fab up a water tight housing for the motor. Specs are 120VAC 140 watts. 14' shutoff head, 7.5 GPM at 7', runout flow 10 GPM. Hosebarb connections 1.5" in, 1 3/16" out. Rated for continous duty, but they are built to cycle too, being for a dishwasher.

That sounds like a good pump to try. Being used for dishwashers, they are also designed to be able to handle some solids as well.

That does sound interesting....
Badflash, you mentioned about building a water tight housing for them. Are you planning on using them 'in' the water....or just to protect them from the elements...?

The price sure is great. It would be hard to beat that.
Does the wattage sound a 'little high' for the flow rate...?

Just to protect them from splashes and such. In a diswasher they are protected buy the enclosure of the dishwasher.

Yep the efficiency sucks, only around 8%, but the wasted enegy shows up as heat in the water.

....'Winter pumps' or 'basement pumps'....!


Now you got my thinkig....I wonder about the pumps in a washing machine......Hmmmmmm ?

Are these out of a commercial dishwasher? the inlet and outlet are awful large for a domestic dw .... they were always 1/2" in and out when I did appliance work. I've got a dw pump motor from a commercial one, but just the motor and pump, no pump housing ..... I was going to redneck a housing for it and use it for my big tank .... (if'n I ever get a chance to go back to work on it ). I redneck just about everything I do ......

What are they made of.