What is a self-priming centrifugal water pump

A self-priming centrifugal water pump is a centrifugal pump that has the ability to pump an air water mixture.

Standard centrifugal pumps
Standard centrifugal pumps needs to have the impeller surrounded by only water before the pressure differential is created that is needed to pump water.

Air is the main enemy of these types of pumps. When air gets inside the pump it can cause the pump to stop pumping. When a pump gets air-bound it needs to be primed manually before the pump will start functioning properly again. If the pump gets air bound the impeller will spin in the air bubble and this can cause the motor to get damaged.

Self priming centrifugal pump
The self priming centrifugal pump has the ability to mix the air with water to create a mixture that has similar properties to normal water. This mixture can then be pumped out until all the air has left the system. This process is called "Self-priming"

Please note that a self priming pump needs some water inside the system before the self priming process can happen successfully.

Have a look at our centrifugal pumps at Superpump South Africa.