A pressure boosting system is designed to increase low pressure in a water system in order to achieve sufficient water flow and pressure to consumers.
Pressure boosting systems generally consist of one or more pumps which are installed in a booster system to increase the pressure in a system to a certain point independent of flow and inlet pressure.
Pressure boosting systems are available in various system configurations, each offering different advantages and characteristics such as comfort level, initial investment cost, running costs, flexibility and supply assurance.
Examples of pressure boosting configurations:
- Direct boosting systems: A system where a booster set connected directly to the water mains serves the whole building or only the upper parts of it.
- Zone divided systems. Here, a number of boosters connected to the water mains or a common break tank serve their own pressure zone.
- Roof top tank systems. Here, a booster fills up a roof tank from where the water uses gravity to run to the consumer. This system often has a separate booster set serving the upper floors where the pressure is too low due to insufficient geometric height.
- Series connected system with intermediate break tanks. Here, every booster serves its own pressure zone in a building, drawing from its own break tank which is located on a separate floor.
- Series connected system without intermediate break tanks. Here, the boosters are connected directly in series.
Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) controlled systems
VFD controlled systems can deliver the exact needed amount of water thus ensuring that only the needed energy is consumed. These systems also have the advantage that the set point can be altered according to the flow, ensuring that the energy loss due to resistance in pipes is reduced. So even though the initial investment in such a system is higher than in a non-VFD system, the low running cost, the high comfort level and the flexibility of the system often justify the investment.