Has anyone had any experience with the Central Machinery 1 HP shallow well
pump that Harbor freight advertises as regularly $139.99 and sells for
$99.99. They advertise it as having a 1" discharge, automatic pressure
booster, set equipped with a 5 gal tank and stainless steel pump housing. I
have a lake behind my house and was wondering if maybe this would work for
supplying a garden hose. Rob Mills

PS, The ad read "pressure booster" but I suspect they meant pressure switch.

Not sure about the longevity of the pump, but in theory it will
work. You have to remember that you WILL need a filter at the lake end!
Central machinery is not the greatest and personally I wouldn't buy anything
electric made under that name. I have bought many things from HF and found a
few problems. I have never had any problems with the air tools though. I
just seem to have a problem with electrical items from them. Tractor supply
is where I get my pumps from. If I were doing what you are planning I would
buy a trash pump and a filter. I would also use a much larger than garden
hose. The first property that I looked at had a large stream on it, I had
the same thoughts as you. Now, I have a 3 55gal poly drum set up for
collecting rain runoff from my roof for watering my gardens. Who ever heard
of having to pay for water?... I have lived on well water all my life, until
now that is.

Searcher

i got a little gas powered water pump made by echo with a little 2
stroke engine.. that thing runs a garden hose great..and has lasted 10
years.i hang the intake down in a cistern..harbor freight is considered
low quality,at least everything i got from them was. lucas

http://www.minibite.com/america/malone.htm

"Shopdog" wrote in message
news:5RSag.3456$RY2.2155@trnddc02...

Central machinery is not the greatest and personally I wouldn't buy
anything electric made under that name.


wrote in message
...

harbor freight is considered low quality


You guys got it right, I'm a dab leary. I was hoping to find someone who had
bought one. For the money they are asking I would be happy with 4 or 5 years
out of it.
They have a store a mile or so from the house so I've bought quite a bit
(paint guns, multimeters and etc) from them over the years but nothing
really elect/mechanical so have had no problems so far.
Thanks for your input, Rob Mills

PS, the little multimeter that they run on special for 3 or 4 bucks every
now and then is a real bang for the buck. I've checked it's accuracy
against some fairly expensive analog and digital meters and it's right on
the money. No tears lost when you bounce one off the concrete.

"Rob Mills" wrote in
news:OB8bg.66212$IZ2.46330@dukeread07:




PS, the little multimeter that they run on special for 3 or 4 bucks
every now and then is a real bang for the buck. I've checked it's
accuracy against some fairly expensive analog and digital meters and
it's right on the money. No tears lost when you bounce one off the
concrete.



I just got a flyer saying that those meters are going for *$2.99* during a
sidewalk sale June 2,3,4.


"Full" price is $9.99.

A air nailer/stapler going for $13.99,2gal compressor going for
$49.99,touchup spraygun for $6.99,framing nailer for $59.99

Lots more good stuff,too!!


--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

Rob Mills wrote:
"Shopdog" wrote in message
news:5RSag.3456$RY2.2155@trnddc02...


Central machinery is not the greatest and personally I wouldn't buy

anything electric made under that name.


wrote in message
...


harbor freight is considered low quality



You guys got it right, I'm a dab leary. I was hoping to find someone who had
bought one. For the money they are asking I would be happy with 4 or 5 years
out of it.
They have a store a mile or so from the house so I've bought quite a bit
(paint guns, multimeters and etc) from them over the years but nothing
really elect/mechanical so have had no problems so far.
Thanks for your input, Rob Mills

PS, the little multimeter that they run on special for 3 or 4 bucks every
now and then is a real bang for the buck. I've checked it's accuracy
against some fairly expensive analog and digital meters and it's right on
the money. No tears lost when you bounce one off the concrete.




I suspect they get their stuff in many cases from the same factories in
China that make the fancy name brands.

--
The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to
minimize spam. Our true address is of the form .

Andy comments:

I got their 1/4 hp pump for 39.95 and have used it for almost a
year with no problems. It is very cheaply made, in a cheap housing,
and needs an input filter....... Hence, I had to be very careful
with it, but it has worked flawlessly. So, while I can't endorse it as

a high quality unit, it does what I needed, for the lowest price I
could find, and has been doing it for a year.......

and that's my opinion of Central Machinery stuff.....

Andy in Eureka, Texas

"Jim Yanik" wrote in message
.. .

I just got a flyer saying that those meters are going for *$2.99* during
a sidewalk sale June 2,3,4.

I've got 4 of them, can't always but can usually find one when i need it.


A air nailer/stapler going for $13.99,2gal compressor going for
$49.99,touchup spraygun for $6.99,framing nailer for $59.99

I have one of their up guns and it does just as well as a Binks I have,
maybe
not as pretty but works. RM~

"Andy" wrote in message
ps.com...

a high quality unit, it does what I needed, for the lowest price

Thanks Andy, that's what I'm interested in. My wife is a serious gardner,
has flower beds all over the place, stands around with a hose in her hand 4
or 5 hours a day. Our last water bill was over $100 and we have had lots of
rain during that billing cycle and it's not even gotten hot yet. I gotta do
something besides putting her in a straight jacket, she scratches and bites,
it would be tough getting her in it. :-)

"Rob Mills" wrote in message
news:m9abg.66217$IZ2.41088@dukeread07...

"Andy" wrote in message
ps.com...

a high quality unit, it does what I needed, for the lowest price

Thanks Andy, that's what I'm interested in. My wife is a serious gardner,
has flower beds all over the place, stands around with a hose in her hand
4
or 5 hours a day. Our last water bill was over $100 and we have had lots
of
rain during that billing cycle and it's not even gotten hot yet. I gotta
do
something besides putting her in a straight jacket, she scratches and
bites,
it would be tough getting her in it. :-)



It depends on relative utility rates and other costs, but don't be too
surprised if you find that you can't pump water as cheaply as your water
company can. A neighbor learned that with a gasoline powered pump and a well
many years ago.
Don Young

"Don Young" wrote in message
...

don't be too surprised if you find that you can't pump water as cheaply
as your water company can.

I have several neighbors who have been pumping and have done so at quite a
savings and they don't water as much as my wife does.The city just
hiked my sewer usage tax from $20 a month to $40 a month and that is based
on the amount of water used so I'm going to give it a try to cut the usage
tax and the water.
I'm convinced I can save $75 or more a month. There is plenty of water in
the lake (aprox 10 acres) as it is spring fed and stays up even during dry
times. RM~

yeah water is cheap, sewer costs a fortune

Jim Yanik wrote:

"Rob Mills" wrote in
news:OB8bg.66212$IZ2.46330@dukeread07:


PS, the little multimeter that they run on special for 3 or 4 bucks
every now and then is a real bang for the buck. I've checked it's
accuracy against some fairly expensive analog and digital meters and
it's right on the money. No tears lost when you bounce one off the
concrete.


I just got a flyer saying that those meters are going for *$2.99* during a
sidewalk sale June 2,3,4.

Good little meter. Refresh rate on it is a bit slow, but it's a lot
better keeping a $3 meter in the emergency kit in the truck than a $350
Fluke meter.

Pete C.



"Full" price is $9.99.

A air nailer/stapler going for $13.99,2gal compressor going for
$49.99,touchup spraygun for $6.99,framing nailer for $59.99

Lots more good stuff,too!!

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

"Pete C." wrote in message
...

but it's a lot better keeping a $3 meter in the emergency kit in the truck
than a $350 Fluke meter.

Right! I have several analog and digital Simpson's plus that Radio Shack
digital that interfaces with PC, it's a nice meter, think it was made by
Fluke but still haven't found any reason to hook it to a PC other than just
curiosity.
The last HF meter I purchased was a little nicer (just a dab), had an on/off
switch separate from the selector switch and nicer (more flexible) leads.
RM~

"Rob Mills" wrote in
news:gNpbg.67959$IZ2.56363@dukeread07:


"Pete C." wrote in message
...

but it's a lot better keeping a $3 meter in the emergency kit in the
truck than a $350 Fluke meter.

Right! I have several analog and digital Simpson's plus that Radio
Shack digital that interfaces with PC, it's a nice meter, think it was
made by Fluke but still haven't found any reason to hook it to a PC
other than just curiosity.

You could use it to monitor home line voltage variations over time,see if
you're subjected to "brownouts".


The last HF meter I purchased was a little nicer (just a dab), had an
on/off switch separate from the selector switch and nicer (more
flexible) leads. RM~

That is the model pictured in the flyer I have;model # 90899 $2.99 on Jun
2,3,4



--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

replying to Rob Mills, Jorge wrote:
robmills wrote:

Has anyone had any experience with the Central Machinery 1 HP shallow well
pump that Harbor freight advertises as regularly $139.99 and sells for
$99.99. They advertise it as having a 1" discharge, automatic pressure
booster, set equipped with a 5 gal tank and stainless steel pump housing.
I
have a lake behind my house and was wondering if maybe this would work for
supplying a garden hose. Rob Mills
PS, The ad read "pressure booster" but I suspect they meant pressure
switch.


I got one a year ago to pump water to my shop from a spring. Works great
for that! It is made to be a pressure booster for a exsisting water system
but it fine stand alone.

--
posted from
http://www.homeownershub.com/mainten...mp-111774-.htm
using HomeOwnersHub's Web, RSS and Social Media Interface
to home and garden related groups

On Thursday, May 18, 2006 8:48:49 PM UTC-4, Rob Mills wrote:
"Shopdog" wrote in message
news:5RSag.3456$RY2.2155@trnddc02...

Central machinery is not the greatest and personally I wouldn't buy
anything electric made under that name.


wrote in message
...

harbor freight is considered low quality


You guys got it right, I'm a dab leary. I was hoping to find someone who had
bought one. For the money they are asking I would be happy with 4 or 5 years
out of it.
They have a store a mile or so from the house so I've bought quite a bit
(paint guns, multimeters and etc) from them over the years but nothing
really elect/mechanical so have had no problems so far.
Thanks for your input, Rob Mills


My experience with HF power tools has so far been, well, for the most part, I got what I expected.

The 10" bench sander works fine for what I bought it for. I was making and selling some parts made from 1/4" x 1" aluminum flat stock. I was spending way too much time rounding the corners of the pieces by hand, so I figured I'd give the bench sander a try. It saved me a ton of time and paid for itself very quickly.

On the other hand, I bought a variable speed hammer drill that I almost threw out the other day when I tried to use it as - ready for this? - a drill! You see, I have a rather old Skil hammer drill that I really like. Last summer I needed a drill powerful enough to mix a number of 5 gallon bucket loads of concrete resurfacer. I didn't want to destroy the Skil drill or my cordless DeWalt, so I bought a sacrificial HF drill for something like $30. It served it's purpose as a mixer, so I was happy. The problem with trying to use it as a drill is the design of the variable speed mechanism. You turn a little knob in the center of the trigger to adjust the speed, but all it does is adjust the drill to that single speed, meaning it won't go any faster - or slower - than the set speed. There's is no "soft start". The drill is either off or running at the speed set by the knob. I was using a 2.5" hole saw in some 1/4" plywood and needed true variable speed to do what I needed to do. After I completed the job with my cordless DeWalt, I almost threw the HF drill out. The only thing that stopped me was the realization that it still works as a mixer and I have other drills that I don't want to use as mixers, so I hung onto it for those "special occasions" where I won't give a crap if it breaks.

The air powered brad nailer works fine. In fact, it works better than the electric Craftsman nailer I bought many years ago.

And of course, there's the variable speed Multi-Function tool which I love.

Good luck with the pump and tell your wife Happy Gardening!