New Replacement for March Pump

[BrewBeemer]

Just going to have to stick with all gravity at my house for now.

I've had "gravity" failures at my house brewing that way for some reason, rather odd huh?

 

[sco999]

I was lucky enough to receive a free pump with stainless head from Mike. I used it for the first time this past Saturday, and it worked flawlessly!!!! It has now replaced my little giant 2-md. One thing everyone needs to make sure they do is disassemble the head and clean. There was a lot of residue from the manufacturing process. Also go out and get yourselves a watts auto air vent. That thing kicks ass. No priming problems whatsoever.

Big thumbs up to Mike on these chugger pumps. I think I might have to actually buy one for a back up, or in case I decide to start fly sparging. Here are some pics of the pump with the auto air vent.

Thanks again Mike!!!!
These pumps Rock :rockin:

 

[Mellman]

I was lucky enough to receive a free pump with stainless head from Mike. I used it for the first time this past Saturday, and it worked flawlessly!!!! It has now replaced my little giant 2-md. One thing everyone needs to make sure they do is disassemble the head and clean. There was a lot of residue from the manufacturing process. Also go out and get yourselves a watts auto air vent. That thing kicks ass. No priming problems whatsoever.

Big thumbs up to Mike on these chugger pumps. I think I might have to actually buy one for a back up, or in case I decide to start fly sparging. Here are some pics of the pump with the auto air vent.

Thanks again Mike!!!!
These pumps Rock :rockin:

Any details on the parts you used to connect that air vent? Thanks!

 

[boo boo]

I use those all the time on hydronic heating systems. I have yet not had the need to take an auto float vent apart. How do you clean yours?

 

[truckmann]

Very nice. Wish I would have seen the free pump deal in time as I can't really afford to buy one right now. It sure would make some things easier.

 

[Hermit]

Very nice. Wish I would have seen the free pump deal in time as I can't really afford to buy one right now. It sure would make some things easier.

Doesn't matter. It seems to have been 'pick and choose'. Getting an email off early did NOT guarantee you a pump. Personal experience.

 

[truckmann]

And with my luck I wouldn't have been chosen anyway...lol

 

[sco999]

@ the pump outlet I have a ss 1/2" Tee, on the horizontal of the Tee I have a closed SS nipple then a SS valve then a "F" SS camlock. On the vertical of the Tee I have a "B" SS camlock, then on the Air Vent I have a 1/4" - 1/2" bushing then a "A" SS camlock.

Hope that helps!!

 

[BrewNinja1]

How do you clean it though? Thats what has been stopping me so far from getting one.

 

[BrewBeemer]

Four screws hold the pump to adapter, remove them then the four cap screws holding the SS pump back cover. Keep an eye on the "O" ring stuck on the cover step. Impeller slides off the post plus the small nylon thrust washer do not lose it.
Dish washing soap everything, rinse then assemble all of 15 minutes time.
You'll wash out production machining oil as well some fine stainless flakes.
Good to go without any oil in your brewing.

 

[klyph]

I was lucky enough to receive a free pump with stainless head from Mike. I used it for the first time this past Saturday, and it worked flawlessly!!!! It has now replaced my little giant 2-md. One thing everyone needs to make sure they do is disassemble the head and clean. There was a lot of residue from the manufacturing process. Also go out and get yourselves a watts auto air vent. That thing kicks ass. No priming problems whatsoever.

Big thumbs up to Mike on these chugger pumps. I think I might have to actually buy one for a back up, or in case I decide to start fly sparging. Here are some pics of the pump with the auto air vent.


Thanks again Mike!!!!
These pumps Rock :rockin:

If you clock your head 90 degrees clockwise, the outlet of the impeller housing will be at 12 o'clock and it should prime without a bleeder. Your impeller outlet is at 9 o'clock and is likelytrapping an air pocket in the impeller housing.
Obviously not an issue for you, but people with priming issues might keep that in mind.

 

[BrewBeemer]

klyph,
actually to be more accurate the pump discharge port is at the 1 O-clock position inside the pump. Those who repositioned their pumps to the vertical discharge position, internally the port is then at the 10 O-clock position trapping more air than horizontal.
The best position to place the discharge threaded end up from horizontal at a 30 degree angle this also allows uphill for air to escape into the pump inlet port out thru the discharge when the pump is not running.

 

[Catt22]

Install a bleeder valve and you can position the head any way you like without problems. The bleeder valve is also a handy place to take wort samples. I also use the bleeder valve to dump excess of whatever. Usually this will be something like excess strike water when I sometimes overfill the mash tun. IOW, a bleeder valve can be multi-purposed and IMO is a handy thing to have and not something that needs to be eliminated from a system. It's also essentially invisible when not needed.

 

[Kegwizard]

i recirced PBW with 200 degree water for about 25 minutes. then again with plain water at 200. then again cold with iodine. hope that was enough...

 

[WAORGANY]

But.....it's green

I like the GREEN!!!:rockin: Another sold customer here, I will be ordering two Chugger pumps. I am gathering the gear for my HERMS build and was on ebay looking at 'other' pumps when I ran across the Chugger Pump so I came back onto HBT to read about them and found this thread.

Quote:
Originally Posted by GC89 View Post
Theses pumps were looking almost too good to be true, especially considering the seemingly great customer service but at this point Im really not impressed. Communication or attitude wise, Oh well back on the market for a little giant.
Based on the comments of the past few posters, if I were in the market for a pump I think I would have a hard time buying from anybody but Chugger.

Based on the comments of the past few posters, if I were in the market for a pump I think I would have a hard time buying from anybody but Chugger.

+1 You got to love a company who gives away free pumps, ships fast, and listens to their customers, in today's business world that is huge. Thanks to Mike and all the people out there using these pumps, I can't wait to get mine, mounted, pumping and brewing all the best.

 

[WalterAtMarchPump]

Greetings!
My name is Walter, and I work for March Pumps here in Glenview IL. I have recently got a few calls regarding these Chugger pumps from a number of people in the past two weeks. I Never heard of them till now and dont know anything about them, so I was doing some surfing on the net to see what they were about and found this posting. Took me quite a while to read through all the posts but I felt compelled to just register and clear up a few things mentioned in the postings.

1. ALL of our castings for the pumps we make are made right here in the USA! Our 316 stainless is made in Pennsylvania. Our Bronze castings we get from a major mfg of household faucets in that's headquartered in WI. And for all our plastic pumps, we buy the raw materials and do the injection molding right here in-house.

2. For beer brewing applications, you really don't need anything more then the Polysulfone plastic pump. Unless you have rigid plumbing putting stress on the plastic fittings, or want sanitary fittings, would you need to get the stainless pump. The polysulfone is food grade plastic, but we do NOT have NSF certification for the pump. Why you ask? Well to get an NSF rating the pump would need to be nailed down for one specific application. Like lets say beer brewing...but the first time someone puts any other compound through the pump (like a cleaning/sanitizing fluid) the rating would be null/void. We have a number of company's we supply to that have gone through the NSF process for their systems that use our pumps, and we have yet to have any one come back saying they were not granted NSF rating due to our pump! Also for anyone thinking about using a brass/bronze pump for handling anything you will be ingesting, I would call the mfg and ask what the lead content is.....most company's will cast the bronze with up to 6% lead content. Also keep in mind that when used for hot water recirc systems, the bronze does not get exposed to hotter temps then 140* +/- 10* from your hot water heater. So when you guys are brewing beer and moving 205*F+ liquid through a bronze pump is there any risk of lead leaching out of the casting and into the liquid???

3. I have seen the Little Giant 3-MD pump mentioned. That's the same as our Series 3 pump. Our Polypro pump has a rating of 190*F and our Kynar is rated to 200*F. Yes there is a "fudge" factor built into the pump and for short runs you probably wont have any problems.......but we do not warranty anything hotter then the rating because we have no way of making sure its being used properly by the consumer. We do however have parts made from Polysulfone for a number of our other pumps...we just don't advertize everything or we would have a catalog as thick as a dictionary!!!

If you are looking for a pump that has a bigger output then the 809 or the #3 pumps then you should check out the new AC-5B-MD beer pump: 17 gpm and will do 27' of head height and made from the same Polysulfone as the 809 is.

Oh and one more thing I can mention that may help in your brewing adventures. During the mfg process each part has tolerances that must be met. For the impellers there will be a min/max of the inside diameter of the shaft bore. Same will go for Outside diameter of the stainless shaft the impeller rides on. If you by chance get an impeller on the "tight" side and a shaft on the big side the pump will still function properly at first....but if its not cleaned out properly after each use then you can get a sugar buildup between the two and the impeller will seize up on you eventually and wont pump. I see one of these almost monthly in Service and Repair. Easiest thing you can do to keep this from happening is to go to your local hardware store and get yourself a 17/64 drill bit and pass it through the bore of the impeller opening it up slightly. It wont hurt anything performance wise and will help in the long run to keep everything clear and clean.

If anyone has any questions, or needs any help with trying to size a pump, or needs part numbers to maybe convert a March Pump for beer brewing, feel free to call me at March or PM or email me.

Cheers!
-Walter

 

[DakotaRules]

Greetings!
My name is Walter, and I work for March Pumps here in Glenview IL. I have recently got a few calls regarding these Chugger pumps from a number of people in the past two weeks. I Never heard of them till now and dont know anything about them, so I was doing some surfing on the net to see what they were about and found this posting. Took me quite a while to read through all the posts but I felt compelled to just register and clear up a few things mentioned in the postings.

1. ALL of our castings for the pumps we make are made right here in the USA! Our 316 stainless is made in Pennsylvania. Our Bronze castings we get from a major mfg of household faucets in that's headquartered in WI. And for all our plastic pumps, we buy the raw materials and do the injection molding right here in-house.

2. For beer brewing applications, you really don't need anything more then the Polysulfone plastic pump. Unless you have rigid plumbing putting stress on the plastic fittings, or want sanitary fittings, would you need to get the stainless pump. The polysulfone is food grade plastic, but we do NOT have NSF certification for the pump. Why you ask? Well to get an NSF rating the pump would need to be nailed down for one specific application. Like lets say beer brewing...but the first time someone puts any other compound through the pump (like a cleaning/sanitizing fluid) the rating would be null/void. We have a number of company's we supply to that have gone through the NSF process for their systems that use our pumps, and we have yet to have any one come back saying they were not granted NSF rating due to our pump! Also for anyone thinking about using a brass/bronze pump for handling anything you will be ingesting, I would call the mfg and ask what the lead content is.....most company's will cast the bronze with up to 6% lead content. Also keep in mind that when used for hot water recirc systems, the bronze does not get exposed to hotter temps then 140* +/- 10* from your hot water heater. So when you guys are brewing beer and moving 205*F+ liquid through a bronze pump is there any risk of lead leaching out of the casting and into the liquid???

3. I have seen the Little Giant 3-MD pump mentioned. That's the same as our Series 3 pump. Our Polypro pump has a rating of 190*F and our Kynar is rated to 200*F. Yes there is a "fudge" factor built into the pump and for short runs you probably wont have any problems.......but we do not warranty anything hotter then the rating because we have no way of making sure its being used properly by the consumer. We do however have parts made from Polysulfone for a number of our other pumps...we just don't advertize everything or we would have a catalog as thick as a dictionary!!!

If you are looking for a pump that has a bigger output then the 809 or the #3 pumps then you should check out the new AC-5B-MD beer pump: 17 gpm and will do 27' of head height and made from the same Polysulfone as the 809 is.

Oh and one more thing I can mention that may help in your brewing adventures. During the mfg process each part has tolerances that must be met. For the impellers there will be a min/max of the inside diameter of the shaft bore. Same will go for Outside diameter of the stainless shaft the impeller rides on. If you by chance get an impeller on the "tight" side and a shaft on the big side the pump will still function properly at first....but if its not cleaned out properly after each use then you can get a sugar buildup between the two and the impeller will seize up on you eventually and wont pump. I see one of these almost monthly in Service and Repair. Easiest thing you can do to keep this from happening is to go to your local hardware store and get yourself a 17/64 drill bit and pass it through the bore of the impeller opening it up slightly. It wont hurt anything performance wise and will help in the long run to keep everything clear and clean.

If anyone has any questions, or needs any help with trying to size a pump, or needs part numbers to maybe convert a March Pump for beer brewing, feel free to call me at March or PM or email me.

Cheers!
-Walter

Walter I just want to say thank you for clearing up some mis-information and taking the time to read everything

 

[BrewBeemer]

I find it strange with "Walter" in the pump manufacturing business with now a stainless steel Chugger pump head available for a while that can direct fit March pumps having "Walter" not knowing anything about the name Chugger. I bet "Walter" has a stainless head Chugger pump on his desk in pieces plus Chugger may have reduced March pump sales. Step up to stainless that is now available or step aside.

Maybe March pump or "Walter" should produce a Made IN USA stainless pump head for their pumps for those wishing to hang a pump without the head breaking off or operated in boiling conditions beyond the pump head rating us brewers encounter? JMO's as I see the Chugger in SS a winner including its lower cost.

 

[tjferris]

Maybe March pump or "Walter" should produce a Made IN USA stainless pump head for their pumps for those wishing to hang a pump without the head breaking off or operated in boiling conditions beyond the pump head rating us brewers encounter? JMO's as I see the Chugger in SS a winner including its lower cost.

like this? http://morebeer.com/view_product/17319/103556/March_Pump_-_With_High_Temp_Stainless_Steel_Housing

however you hit the lower cost right on the head!! I could get 4 SS chugger pumps for the price of one March. The only Unknown at this point is the long term reliability of the chugger. But for the cost differance it's worth a shot and chugger has great service as well. Although I have never owned a march pump, the two chuggers I have seem very well built. I'm sure march is a great company to deal with as well but in this tough economic time everyone is looking to save a buck where they can, especially when it comes to hobbies!

 

[CollinsBrew]

It seemed to me that "Made in the USA" was the point he was trying to get across. While this may be beside the point, it's the reason China is kicking everyone's ace in manufacturing. They make it and ship it half way around the world for cheaper than we're willing to do it here. The sad part right now is that a lot of Americans just can't afford to buy American.

 

[Kegwizard]

well then "Walter" where are you now?

maybe "walter" should give some march pumps away?

 

[DakotaRules]

I have a funny feeling that if march was to offer a give away they would get flooded with emails due to all the people now watching this thread.

 

[BrewBeemer]

I especially like that March stainless pump head with the center inlet and the volute over a impeller design inside, it's the high price I can not come to terms with purchasing two of them.

 

[BrewBeemer]

I have a funny feeling that if march was to offer a give away they would get flooded with emails due to all the people now watching this thread.

Their email box would spontaneous combust, i'll now be watching this thread.
Walter you have your computer on HBT?

 

[WalterAtMarchPump]

You are correct with the "China" stuff kicking everyone between the legs.....what we buy our stainless castings for here in the US (and that is even before we do the final machining) is barely cheaper then what they are selling the complete Chugger pump heads for!!!

BrewBeemer, we do not have one here at March (yet ) but we are curious about them...From the pictures they look like a direct copy (Reverse engineered) of our pump head. Its only a matter of time before the company decides on if they even want to check them out....more then likely they wont bother...there have two others that have done this in the past. Unfortunatly theres nothing we can do about someone copying us on this design. The pumps have been around for over 30+yrs now and patents only last for 17yrs..and they have long expired. We have made our name in the industry and are known for the quality. And i can proudly say that at least for the past two years while i have been filling in for our service guy that is out due to a bad motorcycle accident that i have "taken care of" many a brewmeister that has messed up their pump that would not normaly be covered under warranty and made them happy
I did notice the Chugger pumps only carry a 6 month warranty from date of purchase...ours carry a 1yr warranty from date of manufacture....We can only go by the serial numbers on the pump motor for that and some distributors may have old stock laying around. BUT if you return the warranty card that comes with the pump you can have the warranty start from date of installation and will be covered for 1yr from the day we get the card back here at March.
If anyone is "doubting" that i work for the company feel free to give me a call direct
800-323-0791 if the operator doesnt answer and you are put through to the automated system you can reach me on ext 28.

Cheers
-Walter

 

[WalterAtMarchPump]

Their email box would spontaneous combust, i'll now be watching this thread.
Walter you have your computer on HBT?

I am currently at work. This is from my work computer

-Walter

 

[WalterAtMarchPump]

I especially like that March stainless pump head with the center inlet and the volute over a impeller design inside, it's the high price I can not come to terms with purchasing two of them.

Understood...but keep in mind that you are not limited to purchasing them through any one source. We have distributors in almost every state. And if you happen to have an account with McMaster they can also get them. The list price on the 809-Stainless is $423 and most distributors sell them for cheaper.

 

[Scut_Monkey]

It seemed to me that "Made in the USA" was the point he was trying to get across. While this may be beside the point, it's the reason China is kicking everyone's ace in manufacturing. They make it and ship it half way around the world for cheaper than we're willing to do it here. The sad part right now is that a lot of Americans just can't afford to buy American.

Lets all remember that homebrewing is a hobby and not something that is required for daily living. If someone wishes to buy American they have that choice just as they do to spend the gobs of money we do for homebrewing in general.

 

[WalterAtMarchPump]

Lets all remember that homebrewing is a hobby and not something that is required for daily living.

True, although i have talked with more then a few guys that would argue that one! LOL

 

[WalterAtMarchPump]

Although the 809's are the most popular with the home-brew crowd, we have sold many of the 5.5S-MD pumps for the micro brew companys. And theres a few of our 7S pumps i know in one main stream supplier