Qustion for someone experienced with Grundfos SQ-FLEX [RE-wrenches]

[Steve Willey, Backwoods Solar]

I have an unusual application requested for a nearby Forest Service
campground project. They have a fine hydro site for a Harris unit, probably
yielding 300 - 350 watts (170 foot head on full 4 inch pipe with more than
enough flow).  The unusual part is the application:  a submersible pump to
pump minimum 1000 gallons per day up 270 feet head through a 1 inch pipe of
great length from a 4 or 5 gpm drinking water well source. The hydro turbine
and well are located together, and about 25 miles from commercial power.
This replaces an engine generator manually started each day. The hydro
driven pump is intended to operate full time, no start or stop except in the
event of dry-run protection.

My first thought was ETA or Grundfos Flex pump. The SQ-Flex pump 3SQF-2
seems well able to deliver over 150 gallons per hour at a 266 ft lift using
270 watts.  All good numbers showing more than enough water at the lift
head, volume still within the well source's capability, and just under the
probable hydro output with one nozzle.

The big unknown is whether it would be possible to power the pump direct, no
batteries, from a Harris turbine DC output. I have not used the Flex pump
before and am
not familiar with SQ Flex power requirements regarding surge (none),
noise tolerance, and inductive nature of rectified alternator output power.
I do happen to have in stock a 300 and
a 600 watt Hydromax adjustable LCB control that could be used to interface
and control voltage loading of the alternator, but the pump is claimed to
have built in MPPT for solar. Grundfos also offers an IO-102 control for H80
windmill connection, that might just be the solution here. I wonder how it
would respond to the power
curve and noise of rectified DC from 3 phase alternator output.   We hope to
avoid batteries here, but I know addition of batteries would certainly
remove the questions from this installation.... until the batteries go bad
and no one has noticed. And it would take a lot of batteries for the 110
volts to meet the charted performance specs. Does anyone have experience
coupling a Harris type alternator DC output directly to a
Grundfos Flex pump in the power and performance ranges listed above?

Steve Willey,
Backwoods Solar Electric Systems
steve at backwoodssolar.com

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