Jabsco SQN Replacement Impellers

Material Types

• Neoprene: We recommend Neoprene as the first impeller choice for wineries, breweries, and distilleries. It works best in nearly every situation unless you're cleaning with ozone or pumping olive/vegetable oil. It has very good mechanical wear resistance and good general chemical resistance. Prolonged contact with ozone for cleaning will decrease its usable life. Operating temperature range: 45° F to 180° F
• Nitrile: Nitrile (a.k.a. Buna Rubber) is good for pumping wine and olive oil. It is less expensive than Neoprene, but has a shorter expected lifespan. It is not recommended for ozone. Products with higher alcohol content may cause nitrile to swell slightly over time with prolonged contact. Operating temperature range: 50° F to 180° F
• EPDM: EPDM is excellent for wine, spirits, and cleaning with ozone. It is very tolerant to high and low temperatures, but it is not recommended for oils. It also has lower mechanical wear resistance properties than Neoprene or Nitrile, so expected lifespans will be shorter than average. Operating temperature range: 45° F to 185° F
• Viton: Viton is a very resistant and durable substance with a wide range of compatibility, and excellent resistance to many aggressive chemicals. It is also resistant to ozone. It still does not have have as high Operating temperature range: 60 °F to 180 °F

So Which Impeller Material Should I Buy?

99% of the time the answer is Neoprene. Neoprene has the best wear and chemical resistance properties for use in wineries, breweries, distilleries, creameries, and general food-processing facilities. We use Neoprene impellers on new pumps that we build unless the customer specifies otherwise.

Other materials have their place. If you are sanitizing with ozone you will likely want a different impeller material: Viton & EPDM both work with ozone. If you are pumping olive or vegetable oil, Nitrile is the clear choice because of its compatibility with oils. If you are pumping aggressive chemicals, check your chemical compatibility charts for Viton. It is compatible with many chemicals.

Extending impeller life

There are a few steps you can take to make sure your impeller lasts as long as possible. First and foremost, remove it when the pump will not be in use for an extended period of time. Jabsco SQN pump heads are easy to disassemble and reassemble. Removing an impeller should take you about 5 minutes. Once you think you'll be done with the pump for a little while just unbolt and remove the head. Pop the impeller out, wash it off, and put it on the shelf.

Be careful about reversing the pump flow if it has been sitting for a while, particularly at start-up. The blades of the impeller will be used to their position if it has been sitting dry for a long time. Changing the direction of the impeller rotation before the head has a chance to lubricate will quickly tear the blades.

Don't run the pump dry (without liquid). Impellers are cooled by the material they're pumping. When you let it run dry, the impeller heats up, swells up, and tears itself apart. Depending on how fast you're running it, it could take 30-60 seconds for things to go south quickly. If you are trying to prime the pump dry, make sure the distance you're priming is no more than about 10-15 feet. If you are priming a thicker, more viscous substance then it should be even shorter.