Drum pump

I use my brew kettle as a mash tun and have a plastic lauter tun. Has anyone used a drum pump to move mash from one vessel to another? As I understand a 1/2" march pump is not up to the task and these are 3/4" I.D.
http://www.harborfreight.com/12-gpm-air-operated-barrel-pump-93755.html

At twelve gallons per hour (likely best case with something much less viscous than a mash) I doubt anyone would have tried that...

Cheers!

I haven't seen this used ... Slick idea, though ... Any idea if its food safe?

Hmm, the ad can't decide if that's a 12gph or 12gpm device. I'll assume it's actually supposed to be 12gpm.

Either way, the problem with this device is the mash tun has to be sealed and able to sustain the working pressure needed for the device to work. Ie, it's not actually a pump, it's more like a Sanke spear dip tube, and as such the mash tun has to act like a sealed keg for this thing to work at all.

And good luck with that...

Cheers!

yea, no way to recirculate even if you had a completely sealed vessel, and it would really only work on a sealed drum.

why is a march pump not up to the task? it sure works for everyone else who uses it for that purpose...

Thanks for the quick responses. To clarify I am not looking at this to recirculate wort in a mash tun, rather to move mash from one vessel to another. Also, the air is to actuate the pump pneumaticly not to pressurize the vessel. Am I wrong in thinking a march pump cannot move mash?

Climber said:

Thanks for the quick responses. To clarify I am not looking at this to recirculate wort in a mash tun, rather to move mash from one vessel to another. Also, the air is to actuate the pump pneumaticly not to pressurize the vessel. Am I wrong in thinking a march pump cannot move mash?

Click to expand...

I wouldn't expect a centrifugal pump the size of a Chugger or March to be able to handle a full mash.

And you're quite wrong about how that "drum pump" works. Do some homework. It requires a sealed vessel to do anything...

Cheers!

Climber said:

Thanks for the quick responses. To clarify I am not looking at this to recirculate wort in a mash tun, rather to move mash from one vessel to another. Also, the air is to actuate the pump pneumaticly not to pressurize the vessel. Am I wrong in thinking a march pump cannot move mash?

Click to expand...

It looks to me like you put this in the drum, make an air-tight seal, apply air pressure which pressurizes the airspace inside of the drum, and due to the fact that there's less air pressure outside of the drum, the liquid flows through the tube. So basically this thing is a big racking cane and a stopper.

You could apply this same method to moving beer with a racking cane, a carboy cap and a CO2 bottle.

I see that now, thanks. We have drum pumps at work that are hand driven and I thought this would be similar, but for lazy people. I think I will go in a different direction anyway. The comment about whether it's food grade worried me more than anything else.