Condenser water inline booster pumps

[cleancondenser]

I have a new site with a six story building.
Water cooled units on each floor
The Computer room A.C. (CRAC) units 2 - 3 tons each have
Condenser water in line booster pumps coming off the main C,W,supply riser

The new facilities manager wants to turn the booster pumps off and open the bypass
to save electricity.
One example he is using are two parallel 3/4 h.p. B&G pumps
The strainers were removed from the pumps for over 6 months (water issue)
He feels pumps are obsolete because there is no change in discharge pressure when they
turn off the pumps.
and the CRAC units continued to run without
tripping out on High Head
Although, they did trip out on High head this morning.
I argue to him that
1)All the booster pumps are necessary(why were they installed)
2)Many buildings use them
3) The two B&G pumps are probably damaged although they draw amps
due to long running without strainers
4)Booster pumps will provide some flow even if the 24/7/ main pumps shut down
5)Flow can be present even if there is not a noticeable change in discharge pressure
6) the pumps will keep the units running in the event of low water flow
dirt strainers or clogged pipes

[double bogey]

Do the main (building) pumps shut down at night? do they ever shut down? I am sure your pumps are there for redundancy. 3/4 hp pumps dont use much power. sooner or later you may regret removing the strainers.

[blabath]

Check two things....
1. The CRAC unit manufacturer's specifications on flow requirements for the units.
2. The actual flow through the condensors. If there is not a flow station... put one in.
This will tell you if the main pumps are keeping up with the unit's requirements. If they are not, the booster pumps need to be repaired and the strainers replaced. After that, the strainers need to be blown down and inspected on a regular basis. Also.. a 3/4hp booster is a big bad boy for one piece of equipment. Can you get by with a smaller, fractional horsepower booster?

Hope this helps...

[calypso]

HVAC CLOSED LOOP QUESTION: I have been playing around with this site for the past 20 minutes attempting to navigate to a place where I can post my question. I have to get back to work. Is there anyone who has experienced soluble iron content in a closed loop hvac unit that has clogged strainers in a multi unit complex?