In this guide 6 sections
Record each test against its serial number and impeller trim, with the setup, instrument IDs, speed and a table of flow, head, power and efficiency at several curve points. Add the tester, the date and the result against the customer’s order, and keep the raw readings as well as the final curve. Reviewers ask for raw readings.
Start with the identity of the pump under test
A test result is only useful if it belongs to one pump, so record the serial, model, order number, customer and manufacture date before any reading is taken.
Add the build details that change the curve: impeller diameter after trimming, number of stages, motor rating, seal type and running speed. Two trims give two curves.
If a customer calls two years later, these fields find the right test in a minute, without anyone opening a filing cabinet or an old spreadsheet.
- Pump serial and model
- Order number and customer
- Impeller diameter after trim
- Stages, motor rating and rated speed
- Seal and bearing arrangement
Capture the test setup, not just the readings
Readings mean little without the rig behind them, so note the test bay, the suction and discharge pipe sizes, the water temperature and the instruments fitted.
Each pressure gauge, flow meter and power analyser carries an ID and a calibration due date, so an auditor can see every instrument was in date.
Record the standard or customer specification the test follows, such as an acceptance grade named in the purchase order or a buyer’s own test sheet. Never write a standard number from memory. Copy it from the order.
Record head, flow, power and efficiency at several points
One point proves little. Take readings at shut-off, at the duty point and at a few points either side, logging flow, suction pressure, discharge pressure, motor input power and speed at each.
Work out total head, hydraulic power and efficiency from the raw readings and keep both raw and calculated columns, so a reviewer can check any line with a calculator.
Mark the duty point against the order. A pump that meets the head but misses the flow has failed, however smooth the curve looks on the chart and however close it runs to the catalogue line.
- Flow, suction and discharge pressure
- Motor input power and speed
- Calculated total head
- Hydraulic power and efficiency
- Pass or fail at the duty point
Store the curve, the sheet and the sign-off together
Plot the measured points over the catalogue curve, because a visible gap shows trouble quicker than a table of numbers ever will. Save plot, sheet and vibration reading together.
The tester signs, a second person checks the sheet and signs again, and each signature carries a date and the person’s role. Rejected pumps keep their records too, with the cause of rejection, the rework done and the retest result attached to the same serial.
Link the record to the pump serial, so that service teams, dealers and the customer all open the same file when a complaint arrives.
Decide how long to keep records and who can edit them
Keep test records at least as long as the warranty and any contract requirement, and ask your larger customers what they expect, since some specify a longer period.
Lock a record after sign-off. Corrections become new entries that show who changed what, when and why, so an original reading is never overwritten, even by the tester who took it.
Start by building one sheet for your most common model, then test it on the next five pumps and correct whatever the testers found awkward.
Pump test sheet
A one page template. A header block holds serial, model, impeller trim, motor and speed above a setup block for bay, instrument IDs and water temperature. The main table has columns for point number, flow, suction pressure, discharge pressure, input power, total head and efficiency, with a sign-off line for tester and checker.
Open a blank worksheet to printQuestions owners ask
How many test points are enough?
Follow your customer’s specification first. Where none exists, take shut-off, the duty point and several points on both sides of it, so the curve shape is clear to any reviewer.
Do we need to keep failed test records?
Yes, because failed records show the cause and the rework, and they help the next time a similar fault appears on another pump of that model. Link them to the same serial.
Why store impeller trim with the test?
Trimming changes head and flow. Without the diameter, a record cannot be compared with another pump of the same model, a dealer’s test report or the catalogue curve.
Can the test rig feed readings straight into the record?
Often yes, if the instruments give a digital output, which removes copying errors, though a tester should still review every point before sign-off.