March Pump Fittings

I am going to be picking up a March 809 HS soon and I am wondering what you guys would recommend for fittings, should I go with polypropylene or would it be OK to go with a brass fitting?

Also I have an option here, I can order it from BMW (Which I would prefer) but the input side of the housing is a 3/4" MPT which may be hard to find a fitting to reduce it to a 3/8" barb. The other fitting on the pump is the standard 1/2" MPT on the output. The one that Austin home brew sells has identical input/output sides that 1/2" MPT, so this appears to be either an older or newer revision of the pump model. Which would would you guys recommend? I am looking to have both the input and output sides be reduced to a 3/8" barb.

Thanks,

-hUK

hukdizzle,
We beat this to death a few months ago. Here is a piece of that thread. This is the web address for the thread: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/polypropylene-couplings-117075/
Luck - Dwain

O.K.,
I've been researching this. I called March Pump. The March Pump Tech. said that he could not recommend a suitable material to use as a transition between the polysulphone (polysulphide) pump head and the stainless piping. He did say that the Guy that would know, wasn't in and asked that I call back later.
I worked in the chemical industry for many years. We routinely connected dissimilar materials. Even stainless and carbon steel to various plastics. We rarely needed anything to be food grade, so it normally wasn't an issue.
As most of us are aware, when dealing with high temperature, there is less danger of a "plastic" coupling failing than the chemical properties becoming unstable and "off gassing" into the product.
I spent quite abit of time with a Mcmaster-Carr Technical Rep. (Dave) trying to find a material that would handle 212F and still maintain its FDA rating. We looked at Polypropylene, Polyethylene, HDPE, LDPE, PTFE, Kinar, Nylon and sevaral others "blends" of Fluoroplastic fittings. The only thing that was close was schedule 80 CPVC. It is only good to 200F. The rest of the materials that started out FDA approved to begin with were only rated at 180F max. Kudos to Mcmaster-Carr's Tech. help section for all of their effort.
Then, I called March Pump back. I talked with Hans (apparently the Guy that knows), and he said that there was no problem hooking the pump directly up to the stainless piping. Just be sure that I didn't cross-thread, over tighten etc.. He said it would not void the warranty or otherwise violate the rules of international trade.
Sooo, I'm off to the shop to hook up my pump! Sorry for the long post, but I felt this was a very important piece of our hobby and wanted to get the straight info.
Now you know, and knowing is half the battle - G.I. Joe
Luck - Dwain

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Sounds good Dwain, Thanks for the dig on that thread. I am going to get some 1/2" NPT Stainless couplings and run them into brass 1/2" MPT x 3/8" Barb.

Scratch that I am already coming out of the boil kettle with a 1/2" barb so I"ll just go 1/2" into the pump and then 3/8" barb out of the pump into the chiller which is 3/8" copper tubing.

I don't know how much experience you have w/tubing, piping, fittings, etc. But, make all of your connections that you can without putting stress on the pump. As far as the couplings that I screwed onto the pump itself, I tightened them by hand and not real tight (tech. term). The pump head connections seal pretty easily. Post any questions/learnings. Good Luck - Dwain

The pump will run much better if you use 1/2" hose barb instead of 3/8. This is especially true on the return (input) side of the pump. You should have no trouble stepping down from 3/4" to 1/2" with common plumbing parts.

I've learned that one of the best rules of thumb regarding these mag drive pumps is to use the largest diameter hose possible and the shortest convenient hose lengths. I use 5/8" ID hose throughout. All priming and flow rate issues have disappeared completely long ago when I upgraded the hoses. It's more important than one might think. The problem I had making the switch was abandoning the previous fittings and buying everything a second time. I've come to realize that this is a frequent occurance when developing one's brewery.

Here is my setup for connections using the pump I sell.

Polysulfone Disconnects Garden Hose Male and Polysulfone Disconnects 1/2" Barb Female for the input.

For output I use a Blichmann 3pc stainless ball valves to a Polysulfone Disconnects 1/2" MPT Male and a Polysulfone Disconnects 3/8" Barb Female. Of course you can go with brass or SS disconnects instead of poly, but you should be able to get a good idea of how to connect everything.

Ed

Sounds like you're on the right track, the two most common setups are the polysulphone QD's or the Brass QDs from McMaster. I personally use the QD's from McMaster, and haven't had a problem...flow is good, seal is good, price is right. Cheers!

Those polysulfone connectors would be awesome and I will probably upgrade to those in the future but I just can't afford to drop 50$ on QD's right now. I like that setup you are using TwoHeadsBrewing, can you tell me what partnumbers those pieces are at mcmaster?

I also have a question for you guys, what type of hose should I use? Would reinforced vinyl be ok, or should I use something else due to the 212' liquid?

hukdizzle said:

Those polysulfone connectors would be awesome and I will probably upgrade to those in the future but I just can't afford to drop 50$ on QD's right now. I like that setup you are using TwoHeadsBrewing, can you tell me what partnumbers those pieces are at mcmaster?

I also have a question for you guys, what type of hose should I use? Would reinforced vinyl be ok, or should I use something else due to the 212' liquid?

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If you are going with the McMaster-Carr quick disconnects and do not need the internal valves, it's not going to cost anywhere near $50 if all you need is two sets. They cost under $9.00 a set. For hose, if you are pumping at or near 212*F you will need silicone tubing, perforably 1/2".

Male Quick Disconnect Part Number 6739K59 ($1.93 each): McMaster-Carr High-Flow Coolant Line Male to 1/2" NPT Male Quick-Disconnect Hose Coupling

Female Quick Disconnect Part Number 6739K64 ($6.47 each): McMaster-Carr High-Flow Coolant Line Female to Hose Barb Quick-Disconnect Hose Coupling

Looks like I may go with those QD's, cheap and effective. Does HD or Lowes carry silicone tubing in that size? I have been running reinforced vinyl on my hot side of my CFC for a while now and I am just now thinking that I am probably leaching off some nasty chems into my beer by doing this.

hukdizzle said:

Looks like I may go with those QD's, cheap and effective. Does HD or Lowes carry silicone tubing in that size? I have been running reinforced vinyl on my hot side of my CFC for a while now and I am just now thinking that I am probably leaching off some nasty chems into my beer by doing this.

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No....Buy that from McMaster-Carr also. It's a $1.35 a foot. McMaster-Carr 1/2" Silicone Tubing

Thanks sawdustguy for posting that info...damn work gettting in the way of my HBT!

I bought my silicone tubing from MoreBeer.com, but it's a bit more at $2.10 per foot. Same stuff I think, except the morebeer tubing is translucent (NOT transparent). This makes it easier to see the liquid in the line, and if you've got any air bubbles. Pricey, but I think it was totally worth it. I think I ordered 18': 2 x 6' sections, and 2 x 3' sections. Totally more than I needed, but i like the flexibility.

Vessel -> Pump In: 6 feet
Pump out -> Vessel: 6 feet
MLT -> BK: 3 feet
CFC -> Fermemter: 3 feet

You guys are awesome help, thanks so much. I will be putting my order with mcmaster asap!

The Mcmaster stuff listed there is 1/16" wall thickness. I think a few other on here have made that mistake before and regretted it. It kinks and can be ballooned out with a little pressure. The morebeer stuff is 1/8" wall and it's good stuff. Mcmaster's price for that is over $3 a foot.