Carver Pump Company, headquartered in Muscatine, Iowa, was a manufacturer of centrifugal pumps for industrial, commercial, and marine service — including bilge pumps, ballast pumps, and general service pumps used in the US Navy aboard surface ships and auxiliary vessels. Carver pumps appeared in the bilge and general service pump applications aboard a range of Navy vessel types, with their centrifugal pump designs used for bilge dewatering, ballast transfer, and auxiliary system fluid transfer throughout the fleet.

Asbestos in Carver Pump Components

Carver centrifugal pumps used asbestos-containing gaskets as standard sealing materials:

  • Pump casing gaskets — Carver centrifugal pumps used asbestos sheet gaskets sealing the pump volute casing halves and at the pump casing cover, disturbed during pump impeller inspection, wear ring replacement, and pump casing maintenance
  • Suction and discharge flange gaskets — asbestos-containing gaskets at the flanged suction and discharge piping connections to Carver pumps, disturbed during piping maintenance and pump replacement
  • Stuffing box packing — Carver pump shaft sealing using braided asbestos packing in the stuffing box for pump shaft sealing in auxiliary service applications before the transition to mechanical seal designs

Bilge and Damage Control Applications

Carver bilge pumps and general service pumps were used in damage control and bilge applications aboard Navy surface ships:

  • Bilge dewatering — Carver and other manufacturers’ bilge pumps were used to dewater bilge spaces during normal ship operations and during emergency damage control flooding response. Damage Controlmen (DCs) and Hull Technicians (HTs) operating and maintaining bilge pumps performed routine pump maintenance involving asbestos-containing casing gaskets and shaft packing
  • Emergency dewatering — emergency portable pump deployments in damage control scenarios involved connecting and operating portable pumps with asbestos gaskets at the pump connections

VA Claims

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure from pump maintenance in Navy service. Engineering and damage control ratings who performed maintenance on Carver and other manufacturers’ centrifugal pumps with asbestos-containing gaskets and packing and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.