CASE STUDY
Municipal Water Treatment
City of Escondido, California
Eliminating Unplanned Pump Failures in Water Treatment
Municipal Water Treatment • Escondido, California • Partner: CP Crowley
Project Details
- Client: City of Escondido Water Treatment Plant
- Industry: Municipal Water Treatment
- Location: Escondido, California
- Plant Capacity: Up to 75 million gallons per day (MGD)
- Project Type: Chemical Dosing System Upgrade — Pump Replacement
- Application: Sodium Hypochlorite (NaOCl) Injection — On-Site Generation
- Equipment: Pulsafeeder Eclipse E25 & E125 Hypo Gear Pumps
- Previous Equipment: Peristaltic Pump Systems
- Solution Partner: CP Crowley (Local Pulsafeeder Representative)
Project Overview
The City of Escondido operates a large-scale municipal water treatment facility constructed in 1976, serving approximately 25,000 residential, commercial, and agricultural customers. Their On-Site Hypochlorite Generation (OSHG) system produces sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) from salt, water, and electricity, which is then delivered via a sodium hypochlorite dosing pump to the point of injection as a primary disinfectant.
The delivery of NaOCl had historically relied on peristaltic pump technology — a choice that would prove increasingly costly over time, ultimately leading to the adoption of a gear pump for water treatment as a more reliable and cost-effective alternative.
Unplanned pump failures are one of the most disruptive and costly challenges facing water treatment facilities. For the City of Escondido Water Treatment Plant — serving approximately 25,000 residential, commercial, and agricultural customers — frequent tube failures in their peristaltic pump systems were creating ongoing maintenance burdens, safety risks, and avoidable downtime.
The peristaltic pumps in service were creating significant operational and safety challenges. These issues were well known to the Senior Plant Systems Technician, who had previously encountered identical problems at the City’s wastewater treatment facility before transitioning that site to rotary gear pumps.
The Challenge
Frequent Tube Failures & Unplanned Downtime
Peristaltic pumps rely on a flexible tube as the primary wetted component. In continuous-duty, high-demand water treatment operations, these tubes require frequent replacement. Each failure event triggered unplanned downtime, requiring immediate response from maintenance personnel, emergency spare parts procurement, and labor-intensive repair work.
High Maintenance Costs
The combination of tube replacement frequency, associated spare parts, and man-hours required for repair translated into thousands of dollars in annual maintenance expenditure. These costs were compounding and were not offset by the pumps’ performance characteristics.
Pulsation and Vibration Management
Peristaltic pumps produce pulsating flow by design. At the flow rates required for a 75 MGD facility — up to 35 GPM per pump — this required oversize piping and pulsation dampeners to manage pressure fluctuations, reduce flow noise, and protect downstream equipment.
Safety Risks from Tube Failures
When a tube fails on a large peristaltic pump, it typically does so without warning. The failure exposes internal pump components to sodium hypochlorite, a corrosive chemical, often requiring replacement of components beyond the tube itself. Personnel were routinely exposed to hazardous chemical contact and difficult working conditions.
Our Solution
Working with local Pulsafeeder representative CP Crowley, the Senior Plant Systems Technician proposed a field trial of the Pulsafeeder Eclipse Series gear pumps as a direct replacement for the existing peristaltic pump installations. The trial confirmed advantages across all key performance criteria, leading to a complete changeover to Pulsafeeder Eclipse E25 and E125 Hypo Gear Pumps across the water treatment facility.
Step 1 — Equipment Selection: Eclipse E25 & E125 Hypo Gear Pumps
The Pulsafeeder Eclipse E25 and E125 were selected for their proven compatibility with sodium hypochlorite, their capacity to meter diluted hypochlorite at rates up to 33 GPM, and their smaller footprint and lower horsepower requirements compared to the incumbent peristaltic pumps. As a positive displacement gear pump, the Eclipse delivers consistent, measured output regardless of system back pressure.
Step 2 — System Simplification: Eliminating Pulsation Control Infrastructure
Because the Eclipse operates as a positive displacement laminar flow pump, the oversize piping and pulsation dampeners previously required by the peristaltic system were eliminated entirely. Laminar, pulseless flow allowed piping to be optimised to correct sizing, reducing water hammer, system noise, and stress on downstream infrastructure.
Step 3 — Installation with Front Pull-Out Design
The Eclipse’s repair-in-place, front pull-out design allowed the pumps to be installed without modifications to existing pipe connections. When maintenance is required, the pump internals can be accessed and serviced without removing attached piping — significantly reducing the time and cost of scheduled maintenance events.
Step 4 — Performance Baseline & Predictive Maintenance Setup
At commissioning, a characteristic curve was established for each Eclipse pump, defining the baseline relationship between pump speed and flow output. This enables predictive maintenance: as internal components experience normal wear, the pump compensates by running at slightly higher speeds. When monitoring identifies deviation from baseline, maintenance can be scheduled in advance with parts pre-ordered and service completed in minutes.
Results & Impact
Following the complete changeover to Pulsafeeder Eclipse gear pumps, the City of Escondido Water Treatment Plant recorded significant and measurable improvements across maintenance frequency, operational safety, system complexity, and infrastructure costs.
What Changed
Maintenance Frequency
In continuous-duty installations, Eclipse gear pumps can run 24/7 and, in many cases, operate for years before service is required. This represents a fundamental shift from the frequent, unplanned tube replacement cycle of the previous peristaltic system, saving the plant thousands of dollars annually in labor and spare parts.
Ease and Safety of Maintenance
The front pull-out repair-in-place design eliminates the difficult and hazardous maintenance conditions associated with large peristaltic pump tube replacements. Service is fast, clean, and can be completed without disconnecting the pump from its piping, reducing both man-hours and personnel exposure to process chemicals.
System Complexity Reduction
Eliminating pulsation dampeners, oversize piping, and associated monitoring requirements reduced infrastructure complexity across the facility. This translated into additional maintenance savings and reduced the risk of secondary failures in dampener bladders and associated components.
Predictive Maintenance Capability
The Eclipse’s characteristic curve-based performance monitoring gave the Escondido maintenance team a capability they had not previously had: the ability to anticipate pump maintenance requirements, pre-order parts, and schedule service on their own timeline, rather than responding to unpredictable tube failures under time pressure.
Before & After Comparison
| Parameter | Before Implementation | After Implementation |
|---|---|---|
| Pump Technology | Peristaltic pump systems | Pulsafeeder Eclipse E25 & E125 Gear Pumps |
| Maintenance Frequency | Frequent, unplanned tube replacements | Years between service intervals |
| Tube Failure Risk | High — unpredictable, hazardous failures | Eliminated — no tubes in wetted path |
| Pulsation Control | Oversize piping + pulsation dampeners required | Not required — laminar, pulseless flow |
| Piping Sizing | Oversized to manage pulsation | Optimised — correct sizing throughout |
| Maintenance Approach | Reactive — emergency response to failures | Predictive — scheduled, planned service |
| Maintenance Access | Complex — pump removal required | Repair-in-place front pull-out design |
| Personnel Safety | Chemical exposure risk during tube failure | Clean, controlled planned maintenance |
| Annual Maintenance Cost | High — labor, parts, downtime | Reduced by thousands of dollars per year |
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