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Self-priming garden pump: comparison with manufacturers' data

Updated 11 Oct 2026 · WaterTally

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Self-priming surface pumps sit outside the water and draw from a shallow well, a tank or a reservoir. They are also the ones with the data sheets that are hardest to compare.

What to look at

Data missing from the table is data the manufacturer does not declare in the documents we have read: we do not estimate it.

Your system

The water
From ground level, the same reference as the outlet height. Above-ground tank or water at ground level: 0.

How do I measure it?

Lower a weighted string until it touches the water, with the pump off, and measure the distance from ground level. If you measure from the well rim, subtract the rim’s height above the ground: otherwise the depth comes out larger than it is. Repeat after drawing water for a while: the level drops while pumping, and the lowest one counts.

Where it has to go
The highest point to reach: sprinkler, tap, raised tank.

0 if the water flows out freely, for example into a tank.

Where do I find it?

For sprinklers and drippers it is in the datasheet, in the flow–pressure table of the nozzle you will use. For a plain garden tap you can enter 0.

The delivery hose

Where do I find it?

Use the inner diameter, not the outer one. Garden hoses sold as “1/2 inch” are usually about 13 mm inside and “3/4 inch” about 19 mm, but it varies: check the hose datasheet or measure it.

How much water you need
Sum of the flows of the sprinklers running together.

Work it out with a bucket and stopwatch

Result

Enter depth, height, hose length and diameter and pressure to see the estimates.

Curves “read from the manufacturer’s chart”: points read from a published chart, not a table, rounded to the precision of the reading. For these pumps the calculation uses the lowest and the highest curve the reading allows: the flow is a range, and “enough” or “not enough” holds only if it holds for the whole range. The same applies to reaching the head. “Declared” curves: points published by the manufacturer. “Max values only”: the manufacturer gives only maximum flow and head, joined by a straight line: an indicative estimate, not a confirmation. Depth and height are measured from the ground: the lift is their sum, and for surface pumps the depth is compared with the maximum suction depth as if the pump stood at ground level. Assumptions: clean water at 20 °C; smooth hose (roughness 0.007 mm, a high value for PVC and PE); fittings, bends, filters, valves and the suction hose are not included, so real flow will be lower. For surface pumps the real suction depth is lower than declared with a long or narrow suction hose. No extrapolation beyond documented points. This is a hydraulic estimate, not a system design. How we calculate and what we do not know

ProductDeclared maximum flowDeclared maximum headMaximum suction depthDeclared input powerOutlet connectionWhere to find it (ad)
Pedrollo JSWm 2A (single-phase, 0.90 kW at the shaft)4,200 l/h [10](last point of the manufacturer's table, at 28 m head)58 m [10]9 m [10](manometric suction lift, value for the JSW series)not documented1" [10]Ad · search for the model at: Amazon · ManoMano
DAB JET 82 M (single-phase, 0.6 kW at the shaft)not documented47 m [11]9 m [75](value for the JET family (“self-priming up to 9 m”), no test conditions stated)850 W [11]1" BSP [11]Ad · view the product at: Amazon; Ad · search for the model at: ManoMano
DAB JETCOM 82 M (single-phase, 0.6 kW at the shaft)not documented47 m [12]8 m [12]850 W [12]1" BSP [12]Ad · search for the model at: Amazon · ManoMano
Lowara BGM7/C GARDEN (single-phase, 0.8 kW motor)not documented45.6 m [13]8 m [13]1,040 W [13]Rp 1 [13]Ad · search for the model at: Amazon · ManoMano
Ebara JEXM 100 (single-phase, 0.75 kW)not documented45 m [14]8 m [14]1,330 W [14]G 1 [14]Ad · search for the model at: Amazon · ManoMano
Gardena Garden pump 5000 Silent (item 9080-20)5,100 l/h [15][16]37 m [15][16]8 m [15][16]not documentednot documentedAd · view the product at: Amazon; Ad · search for the model at: ManoMano
Einhell GC-GP 6538 (item 4180280)3,800 l/h [17][18]36 m [17][18]8 m [17][18]650 W [18][17]R1 male thread, about 33.3 mm [18][17]Ad · search for the model at: Amazon · ManoMano
Kärcher BP 3 Home & Garden (1.645-353.0)3,300 l/h [19]40 m [19]8 m [19]800 W [19](rated input power)G1 [19]Ad · view the product at: Amazon; Ad · search for the model at: ManoMano
T.I.P. GP 3000 INOX (item 30111)2,950 l/h [21][20]42 m [21][20]9 m [21][20]not documented1" female thread [21]Ad · view the product at: Amazon; Ad · search for the model at: ManoMano
Trotec TGP 1000 E3,300 l/h [22]42 m [22]7 m [22]1,000 W [22]1" female thread [22]Ad · search for the model at: Amazon · ManoMano
Güde GP 6035 (code 93917)3,200 l/h [23]35 m [23]7 m [23]600 W [23]1" female thread [23]Ad · search for the model at: Amazon · ManoMano
WilTec Stainless garden pump 3800 l/h 1200 W (item 51551)3,800 l/h [25][24]48 m [25][24]8 m [25][24]1,200 W [25][24]1" female thread [25]Ad · search for the model at: Amazon · ManoMano

Sources

  1. Water - Dynamic (Absolute) and Kinematic Viscosity — The Engineering ToolBox, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  2. Surface Roughness Coefficients — The Engineering ToolBox, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  3. JSW1 - JSW2 Elettropompe autoadescanti "JET" - 50 Hz — Pedrollo S.p.A., retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  4. JET - Elettropompe centrifughe autoadescanti, scheda tecnica — DAB Pumps, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  5. JETCOM - Elettropompe centrifughe autoadescanti, scheda tecnica — DAB Pumps, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  6. BG Series - Close-coupled self-priming centrifugal pumps, 50 Hz — Xylem (Lowara), retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  7. JEX Data Book 50Hz — EBARA Pumps Europe S.p.A., retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  8. Pompa da Giardino 5000 Silent — GARDENA, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  9. 5000 Silent / 5200 Silent / 5400 Silent - Istruzioni per l'uso — GARDENA, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  10. Einhell Pompe da giardino GC-GP 6538 — Einhell, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  11. GC-GP 6538 - Istruzioni per l'uso — Einhell, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  12. BP 3 Home & Garden - scheda prodotto — Kärcher, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  13. Gartenpumpe GP 3000 INOX — T.I.P. Technische Industrie Produkte GmbH, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  14. Gebrauchsanweisung Gartenpumpe GP 3000 / 4000 / 5000 INOX — T.I.P. Technische Industrie Produkte GmbH, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  15. Istruzioni per l'uso pompa da giardino TGP 1000 E / TGP 1000 ES — Trotec, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  16. GP 6035 93917 Originalbetriebsanleitung — GÜDE GmbH & Co. KG, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  17. Pompa da giardino autoadescante acciaio inox 3800 l/h 1200 W max 48 m — WilTec Wildanger Technik GmbH, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  18. Manuale articoli 51548 - 51551 — WilTec Wildanger Technik GmbH, retrieved 11 Oct 2026
  19. JET, JETINOX, JETCOM, AQUAJET, GARDEN-JET - Istruzioni per l'installazione e la manutenzione (60197625) — DAB Pumps, retrieved 12 Oct 2026
  20. BP 3, BP 4, BP 5, BP 7 Home & Garden, istruzioni per l'uso originali (59910120, 01/22) — Alfred Kärcher SE & Co. KG, retrieved 12 Oct 2026