A semi-continuous flow pump has a discharge of 8.3 GPM. What is the fixture unit load?

• A. 24 fu
• B. 27 fu
• C. 30 fu
• D. 22 fu

Answer: (B)

Fixture unit load is how we express a pump’s demand in a standardized way, so sizing the water supply isn’t tied to actual gallons per minute alone. For a semi-continuous flow pump, you don’t calculate fu directly from the GPM; you look up the pump’s discharge on a standard table and take the fixture unit value shown for that discharge. The problem’s discharge matches the entry for this type of pump on that table, so the corresponding fu value is the one to use in the design. The other options represent different table entries for other discharge rates and don’t apply to the given discharge.