How to Connect a Safety Cable to a Submersible Pump

Submersible pumps eliminate hand pumping for water.

One slip when lowering a submersible pump into a deep well can lead to the pump falling to the bottom of a water well and being lost. That one slip can cost hundreds of dollars unless you attach a safety cable to the pump housing. A safety cable allows you to retrieve the pump -- should it fall -- or pull the pump from the well housing when it requires maintenance. Properly connecting the safety cable to the pump housing ensures the cable does not pull from the housing and cause you to lose the pump.

Things You'll Need

• 1/8-inch diameter stainless steel rope
• 2 cable clamps
• Wrench

Instructions

1. Pull 6 inches of 1/8-inch diameter stainless steel cable through the hole located on the top plate of the submersible pump housing. Fold the end of the rope to create a loop.

2. Remove the hex nuts from two cable clamps. Separate the U-bolt from the saddle of each cable clamp.

3. Slide both U-bolts over the loop in the stainless steel rope with the arches of the bolt resting on the short side of the loop. Slide one saddle on each U-bolt. Thread two nuts on each U-bolt to hold the saddles in position.

4. Tighten the four hex nuts with a wrench. Ensure all four hex nuts are tight before lowering the pump in the well.

References

• Cheapapumps.com: Installing a Submersible Bore / Well Pump
• Onga: Submersible Bore Hole Pumps Installation and Operating Instruction