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Cheesefood

Cheesefood

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What can you tell me about a good pump for brewing? Needs to be able to handle water at least 170º. I'd like to order one soon for my next brew day. I figure it'll save my back and a lot of time, especially if I get into a 10 gallon brew.
 
It doesn't have a plug, so you can either wire it to a plug connection or directly into a switch, like a light switch.
 
That means that they don't give you something that plugs into the wall; it's got a 3 ft 3 wire cord that they suggest wiring into a switch. AHS says they guarantee the lowest price - see if they'll match or beat it.
 
The March pump is the best bang for the buck. It seems expensive, but the pumps that commercial brewers use (even small micros) cost over ten times what a March pump costs.

Pros:
Relatively inexpensive.
Handles hot liquid and doesn't get bogged down by a bit of grain or the occasional hop flower.
Magnetic coupling lets you control outlet flow down to a trickle (good for recirculating and fly sparging).

Cons:
Not self-priming, so you have to keep the pump lower than the liquid on the inlet side in order for it to work.
Not 100% duty cycle, so routinely leaving it on for lengthy periods of time (like during a fly-sparge) will wear the pump out.
 
Yuri_Rage said:
...
Magnetic coupling lets you control inlet flow down to a trickle (good for recirculating and fly sparging).
Click to expand...

Isn't that outlet flow?

Bobby_M said:
Check out Tate Engineering on ebay. $90 for a March 809 without the wire. Just hack a short extension cord up.
Click to expand...

I just got one from there. $86 plus $10 for shipping. It came with a cord.
 
Thanks for the tip on Tate. I just bought one. Looks like my brew-day troubles (of not getting enough wort transfer) are over!!!

These don't have a variable speed adapter built in, do they? If I want to slow it down, what do I need to do?
 
Bobby_M said:
Check out Tate Engineering on ebay. $90 for a March 809 without the wire. Just hack a short extension cord up.
Click to expand...

Do they have a store? If so, I can't find it
 
Cheesefood said:
These don't have a variable speed adapter built in, do they? If I want to slow it down, what do I need to do?
Click to expand...
That's the beauty of a magnetic drive pump. The motor runs at full speed all the time, and you can control the output with a ball valve on the outlet side of the pump.
 
Looks like the linked one doesn't have a bracket. Not knowing much about pumps, is that a big deal? Can you still use it if you're not going to permanently pipe it?
 
I bought all my tubing and valves etc. from McMaster. I screwed this valve right onto the outlet (4264K51). I use mostly this tubing (5392K39) on the inlet side. It is fairly rigid. Plus various fittings like these (5016K966) to connect tubing to valves. I have 3 valves in all for my set up. I also use some of this more flexible tubing (52035K27) as the first stuff is pretty rigid. In the photo it is all soft tubing. I've since swapped back to using the more rigid tubing on the inlet side of the pump as when I was chilling the hop residue, etc was plugging the filter enough to cause a slight vacuum and collapse the tubing.

onetier.jpg


To vorlauf after mashing I use the same set up with the chiller replaced by tubing. I recirculate until It's clear enough and then switch the valves to send it to the boil pot. I don't have room for a formal one or three tier set up so I still have to do a little lifting
 
Cheesefood said:
http://www.northernbrewer.com/allgrain.html

You have to scroll down, but they have the same pump for $117, but I don't get the last line about a 110 AC Switch.
Click to expand...

I just ordered this one. Whoohoo!

I wanted the mounting bracket to mount it on my stand, I planned to wire in a switch anyway, it's cheaper than AHS, and I don't have to pay taxes on it like I do from AHS!!! I would've gone for the one on ebay, but I didn't want to southern engineer some kind of sloppy zip-tied mount. :drunk:
 
Oh, and since the pump is not self priming, you will want to re-orient the head similar to the way I have it in the link above, with the inlet at 6 o'clock and the outlet at 12. This will prevent air from getting trapped, and killing your flow. Air is you enemy with these things.
 
May I suggest an Iwaki pump? Their magnetic drive models pack some serious power at a price you can find for much, much lower than a March pump. They are rated to pump corrosive chemicals at temperature extremes, and do have a duty cycle of 100%, so can run constantly. If you know anyone with an aquarium, chances are they will know about Iwakis as well, and are generally considered to be the premier choice in that field. I would recommend an MD-10, -15, or -20, which can usually be found on ebay for ~$60. I personally snagged an MD-30 (complete overkill) for a cooling project of mine at $45 shipped. Good search terms are Iwaki, magnetic drive, MD, and pump. Using the "search title and description" checkbox really helps, too!

Only downsides are that like the March, it's not self-priming, and you will need to regulate flow!
 
I found this on Iwaki's web site:

4. Temperature
The pump itself may not suffer a change in performance due to temperature fluctuation. However, the liquid may change in terms of viscosity, vapor pressure, and corrosive properties. Pay special attention to changes in liquid characteristics as a result of temperature fluctuation.
Liquid temperature range: 32 – 176°F (0 – 80°C)
 
Ok, you might have me on the food-grade; I'm not sure about the Iwakis. But I can tell you they can take temps down to -50*C without a problem, firsthand experience. My guess is that the upper temperature limit is due to a risk of overheating the unit; they do put out a fair amount of heat and really like a little airflow. But considering, perhaps the March pump is better.
 
Yuri_Rage said:
When would I ever experience that sort of temp in homebrewing?
Click to expand...


Perhaps if you wanted a heat exchanger based beer chiller so that you wouldn't need to cool the kegs themselves (ie could implement a switching valve and have a ridiculous number of beers on tap without a kegerator)? But even then, going that low isn't a good idea. I was simply trying to give and idea of how thermally sturdy these things are ;).

the-bird said:
F*ck the immersion chiller, I'm cooling with liquid nitrogen!
Click to expand...

Well, it is cheaper than milk these days!
 
Hopefully this thread will inspire me to get mine going soon.

I need a pump for my 15 gallon fermenter, because of the inlet valve. It won't support the wort wizard.

So...thanks for the motivation--I'll get mine going soon.
 
Yuri_Rage said:
When would I ever experience that sort of temp in homebrewing?
Click to expand...

Super-Lagering!!!!

It's not the -50 I'm worried about, it's the +176. I'm want 212º, which the March has.
 
Yuri_Rage said:
Magnetic coupling lets you control outlet flow down to a trickle (good for recirculating and fly sparging)..
Click to expand...

What type of pumps don't have flow control. I though you could always adjust flow by restricting the outlet. Right or wrong?

-Matt
 
OK, so as long as you keep the back pressure below the maximum for the pump, all is well. I used to work with dosing pump that used backpressure loops, but now I've got a sweet PD model that shuts itself down automatically.

So what about the March pump, can it be controlled with a valve the outlet?

Thanks for the reminder,
-Matt
 
Yes. Since it's magnetically coupled, the back pressure just causes it to slip. I think I have read that trying to control them with a rheostat will damage them.
 
My pump is waiting for me at home.

I'm so excited! Something new to be geeky about!!!

Question: for the cord, can I use a computer plug? I have extras of those and I'm assuming I can hack the end off of a three-prong and twist it to the pump leads.
 

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