Electrical Components Thread

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

lschiavo

This space for rent.
HBT Supporter
Joined
Sep 2, 2009
Messages
5,247
Reaction score
1,477
Location
Upper Peninsula
I have seen many good components come up in build threads. People are always recommending one thing or another but everything is scattered around in so many threads that it can be hard to find what you are looking for at times.

I was thinking that it may be helpful if we all make our recommendations in one place.

Link a site or a particular part that you thought was good quality/value.

To start off, I've been happy with this site:


http://www.elecdirect.com/default.aspx
 
The cheapest source I could find for a 30A DP GFI breaker was http://www.zorotools.com/.

They shipped very quickly, and the breaker was clearly new and not a fake. They beat the best price I could find locally from wholesalers that require an account by $40.
 
This ebay vendor has a good deal on 10/3 SOOW pigtails that are 9' long that comes with a 30A twist lock already on it for $17 - perfect for heating elements, and cheaper made than the seperate parts. I got 2, and they're good quality.


"9' Line Cord With Marinco L6-30 Loocking Plug 30Amp 250Volt 10/3 Soow Cord New"

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110793668558&ssPageNam e=ADME:L:OU:US:1123
 
Here is where I got the main components in my system. All items purchased within the last two months:

Selector switches: eBay user "jamesbondtb"
Pushbutton switches: http://www.auberins.com
Contactors: eBay user "hvacus"
PIDs: eBay user "2easy8"
Timer: eBay user "skiesmall360"
Alarm: eBay user "coolcheapworld"
PT100 RTDs: eBay user "procon-products"
PWMs:http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003L4KKF2/ref=sc_pgp__m_A38RBGMY2T2PWK_6?ie=UTF8&m=A38RBGMY2T2PWK&n=&s=&v=glance

And then, as a special note I would like to add that these: http://www.wago.us/products/2635.htm made for very easy splices in my control panel build, minimizing the amount of wire I would have otherwise run. I found them at Menard's, a local hardware store.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
31mPjULU0pL._SL500_AA300_.jpg


$20.
5500W Ripple Element: http://www.ronshomeandhardware.com/2963-5500W-240V-Ripple-Foldback-Heater-Element-p/808790.htm
 
good prices on 3-way ball valves...

http://www.directmaterial.com/3_Way_Stainless_Steel_Ball_Valves_Type_L_T_w_MP_p/dcvbs3l-fslash-t.htm

cheapest S.Steel motorized ball valves ive found, plus some other electronic goodies...

http://www.oscsys.com


good power cord and plug/receptical site...

http://www.lockingpowercords.com


camlock fittings (this is where all the brewing sites buy em from)

http://store.proflowdynamics.com/modules/store/-Couplings-for-Homebrewers-_C12074.cfm

for ~$15 RTD probes of various legnth, S.steel jacketed, 1/4" MNPT
search "pt100" on grainger.com; they are listed as "air handling temp probes" but they work great for other things too
 
good prices on 3-way ball valves...

like those 3 way ball valves... freakin' sweet.

For control panel gear in general this seller has a great deal (free shipping on all the 22mm lights and other h/w when you buy an enclosure). Drastically reduces the cost on the little extras ($3.99 per pilot light) which usually cost closer to $18 a pop. (this is the seller, but you have to buy an enclosure of any size to get this deal)
 
One thing to always consider is Amazon and the Amazon Prime. Prime is $70.00 a year but if you order as much merchandise as my family and I do from them that goes very quickly. If you are a member you can put members of your family on there and they get the same benefits.

What I am getting at is that it is wise to check the price of a part from where ever you find against what you'd pay for it with Prime at Amazon. If it's a Prime item you WILL get it in two days.

Locking Power Cords is a good one.
 
Can we Sticky this thread?Id hate to not be able to find it in a month or so.

I'v all ready found two great additions to my brewery I though I could not afford by looking through this thread. Digital flow meter $69, and three way valvs 3 for 130 shipped! Thanks guys.
 
Can we Sticky this thread?Id hate to not be able to find it in a month or so.

I'v all ready found two great additions to my brewery I though I could not afford by looking through this thread. Digital flow meter $69, and three way valvs 3 for 130 shipped! Thanks guys.

I have that flow valve and meter. I think I paid $14 for the set. Honestly. Shipping took more than a month though!
 
I have that flow valve and meter. I think I paid $14 for the set. Honestly. Shipping took more than a month though!

Really, who did you buy it from? I just got a UPS shipping notification but it might be for the three way valves I just ordered, but I can't tell just yet.

how do you like the meter...Don't tell me it sucks and was not worth $14...
 
Really, who did you buy it from? I just got a UPS shipping notification but it might be for the three way valves I just ordered, but I can't tell just yet.

how do you like the meter...Don't tell me it sucks and was not worth $14...

Worked fine, but I hardly looked at it long enough to see that it worked when I blew through the sensor. I bought a bunch of different flow sensor. I didn't need the meter, actually (I do my own electronics). I'll play with it again tomorrow and report back. I'll also look up where I bought it from. I was looking to replace a very expensive flow sensor that I use on something.
 
A sticky would be great just found the rest of the items I was looking for to complet my build:ban:
 
Thanks for posting the 3-way ball valves. What's the difference in the type T and L?


The L type has an L drilled in to the Ball, where the T has a T. The T ball valve will allow the flow to be selected to go 90º or straight through from the source. where the L you can only select the flow to go 90º from its source.
 
I found another source for huge new aluminum heatsinks on evil-bay...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/11-5-W-x-3-...ps=63&clkid=7309538215000337798#ht_724wt_1140


Advertised size was...

11.5"L x 3"W with fin height of 2.3"

I noticed in the description that they can cut to order, so I had them make it 5" wide for extra cooling capacity! They were able to black anodize it for $3 more! Sheez... you can't beat that.

This sucker weights about 5.5 lbs!

You can contact the seller via the ebay page (he lists his email in the description).


HS1.JPG


HS2.JPG


HS3.JPG
 
This was posted by another member in an older thread, but I bought a 60a and the price and quality is excellent.

http://www.globalindustrial.com

chose your size, 15a, 20a, 30a, 40a, 50a, or 60a GFCI Siemans breakers only $32.95 cost me about $42.00 shipped.

search site for: siemans gfci qpf
 
Really, who did you buy it from? I just got a UPS shipping notification but it might be for the three way valves I just ordered, but I can't tell just yet.

how do you like the meter...Don't tell me it sucks and was not worth $14...

http://futurlec.com/Flow_Sensor.shtml

FLOWMETER.jpg


Last one on that page. $19.60. It's exactly the same as the ebay one, except with a different model #... look at the specs. It was shipped from Hong Kong (I'm looking at the box right now.
 
I bought a bigger one from this vendor too (think it was 25+11 Shipping). As you can see on my avatar pic. They anodized for me for no extra charge because I switched to the "no fan needed" design on the sink. Larger gaps between the fins. Quality product for sure.

Any idea what the model number was for that sink?
 
http://futurlec.com/Flow_Sensor.shtml

FLOWMETER.jpg


Last one on that page. $19.60. It's exactly the same as the ebay one, except with a different model #... look at the specs. It was shipped from Hong Kong (I'm looking at the box right now.

only problem here is the 60C/140F max temp on it. I would love to find something like this to remove any need for sight glasses as I transfer from HLT to MT to BK.
 
Any idea what the model number was for that sink?

let me dig into my ebay account.

I won the HS-0710 but ended up going with the HS-0610 black anodized after contacting the seller (Length 10'' x Width 5.9'' x Height 2.38'').

This looks like a similar one, but the dimensions are a bit smaller on fin height. With two SSRs (2x 5500) at full blast this sink is barely warm to the touch on my set up.

Here is their actual site for specs - confirmed the dimensions on the one that was sent (Length 10'' x Width 5.9'' x Height 2.38'')

http://par-metal.com/heatsink.php
 
only problem here is the 60C/140F max temp on it. I would love to find something like this to remove any need for sight glasses as I transfer from HLT to MT to BK.

According to the data sheet from Proflow Dynamics where I bought mine from the PFT44 has a temperature range of 0-100ºC.

I just got mine today and it looks like the same material as my march pump. Maybe this weekend Ill test it out a little.

Edit!...Bastards...well sorta. They actually sent me a DigiFlow 8300-TT44 but the good news is it is temperature rated from 0º-80ºC which is 176ºF.
 
According to the data sheet from Proflow Dynamics where I bought mine from the PFT44 has a temperature range of 0-100ºC.

I just got mine today and it looks like the same material as my march pump. Maybe this weekend Ill test it out a little.

Edit!...Bastards...well sorta. They actually sent me a DigiFlow 8300-TT44 but the good news is it is temperature rated from 0º-80ºC which is 176ºF.

Well of course you know the question now... which one out there (for cheap) can survive 220F? I would think this is more about the sensor than the plastic tolerance, but I might be wrong.
 
Well of course you know the question now... which one out there (for cheap) can survive 220F? I would think this is more about the sensor than the plastic tolerance, but I might be wrong.

It's all about the plastic. There is an internal turbine that spins. It has a little magnet that passes a hall effect sensor, which then creates a pulse. The meter just measures the pulses per second and converts that to flow ( it must already be aware of the relationship between p/s and flow for this flow sensor).

The magnet and hall effect sensor are not affected by the temp. The temp rating is only for the type of plastic used.

March pumps use polysulfone, which is rated for boiling temps I guess.
 
It's all about the plastic. There is an internal turbine that spins. It has a little magnet that passes a hall effect sensor, which then creates a pulse. The meter just measures the pulses per second and converts that to flow ( it must already be aware of the relationship between p/s and flow for this flow sensor).

The magnet and hall effect sensor are not affected by the temp. The temp rating is only for the type of plastic used.

March pumps use polysulfone, which is rated for boiling temps I guess.

so you are saying if I bought that flow meter you posted for $20 bucks I would be ok, except for the plastic? That I would not fry the sensor (I ordered one by the way to see if it would survive a brew session)

When I read the specs of the prodynamics one for $199 it clearly states 212F
 
so you are saying if I bought that flow meter you posted for $20 bucks I would be ok, except for the plastic? That I would not fry the sensor (I ordered one by the way to see if it would survive a brew session)

When I read the specs of the prodynamics one for $199 it clearly states 212F

Right. That's what I'm saying. I don't know for sure, but it's an educated guess.
 
Right. That's what I'm saying. I don't know for sure, but it's an educated guess.

When I get it, I will hook it up and give it a try with MT and HLT activities. Worst case I will have wasted ~$20. Best case I will buy another and get out of having to think about installing sight glasses on my BK and HLT. For those activities I don't have to recirc at high temps for a long time. Just enough to fill/empty kettles. For the BK side I need something that could handle 212 because I need to recirc to sanitize my pump before the brew goes to the fermenter.

Man if I could get a robust one for the 212F rating for $100 I would probably do it. It would be cheaper than two of the nicer sight glasses from more beer and I prefer the technology approach as long as it works well.
 
When I get it, I will hook it up and give it a try with MT and HLT activities. Worst case I will have wasted ~$20. Best case I will buy another and get out of having to think about installing sight glasses on my BK and HLT. For those activities I don't have to recirc at high temps for a long time. Just enough to fill/empty kettles. For the BK side I need something that could handle 212 because I need to recirc to sanitize my pump before the brew goes to the fermenter.

Man if I could get a robust one for the 212F rating for $100 I would probably do it. It would be cheaper than two of the nicer sight glasses from more beer and I prefer the technology approach as long as it works well.

If you really want automation, a peristaltic pump would be a great way to go. By their nature they can pump a very specific amount. I have a small medical one that I used to use as a dosing pump for a fish tank. but the large ones can move some serious fluid and could be used to measure a specific amount to be pumped. I think there are members here (bobby_m?) that have large peristaltics that you could poll.
 
If you really want automation, a peristaltic pump would be a great way to go. By their nature they can pump a very specific amount. I have a small medical one that I used to use as a dosing pump for a fish tank. but the large ones can move some serious fluid and could be used to measure a specific amount to be pumped. I think there are members here (bobby_m?) that have large peristaltics that you could poll.

I don't think I am heading towards full automation (not using a software approach to brewing just yet). But I am interested in something that might allow me to more or less pump strike/sparge/preboil volumes on the fly to what I need for a given brew. i.e. Doesn't have to be automated, just a meter that says I have pumped 4.5g of first runnings, so I know I will then have to pump 8.5g of sparge water to get to 13g total preboil volume (trying to dodge sightglasses and have more accuracy).

Any p/n or links? Or should I check in with Bobby directly? Maybe time to start a new thread on the topic as we have hijacked this one :D.
 
I don't think I am heading towards full automation (not using a software approach to brewing just yet). But I am interested in something that might allow me to more or less pump strike/sparge/preboil volumes on the fly to what I need for a given brew. i.e. Doesn't have to be automated, just a meter that says I have pumped 4.5g of first runnings, so I know I will then have to pump 8.5g of sparge water to get to 13g total preboil volume (trying to dodge sightglasses and have more accuracy).

Any p/n or links? Or should I check in with Bobby directly? Maybe time to start a new thread on the topic as we have hijacked this one :D.

You guys want to move the conversation over here
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f170/flow-metering-317094/#post3942207
 
Back
Top