In the fifteen years that piston pumps have pumped high solids municipal sludge, the round double piston and 4-way poppet valve design have come to be the accepted standard. The round double piston design has engineering advantages and is part of the V-Ram design. The poppet valve design works, but it is complicated and very expensive to buy and maintain.
A simple, low cost valve design was needed. After one year of research, V-Ram spent four years proving the four-way ball valve design was better than the poppet valve design. The wear factor on the balls and seats has proved to be at least five to ten times longer than the poppet valves. The complex hydraulics that open and close the four poppet valves are completely eliminated.
Another major improvement in service life is the new ram design. The typical piston has been made with buna-n rubber, which usually wears out in 2-6 months and then the whole piston is replaced.
With V-Ram pistons, instead of replacing the whole ram, the customer replaces only the worn seals. The seals are 1/5 the cost of a complete piston and last at least 2-5 times longer than the typical buna-n piston. Including the saved labor of replacement, the V-Ram pistons cost 1/15-1/30 the maintenance cost of the typical buna-n piston.
