Controlling 12v pumps

[HowbeckAles]

Hi,

I have just completed my first brew in my formerly gravity fed, now supercharged garage brewery which now includes 2x 12v mini pumps to distribute sparge water into the mash tun and sweet wort into the boiler during the sparge.

I thought I could control the flow of the liquid by varying how open the taps were but it appears that's not the case and, one stuck sparge later, I'm looking at ways to slow down the pumps.

Found one of these on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01MDUUIC3?psc=1

Is it as simple as buying two of them and hooking them up to the pumps then using the knobs to vary the speed of the pumps to deliver a proper sparge?

Cheers. :

 

[Bigcol49]

Hi!
You shouldn't need to control the flow by controlling the voltage of the pump.
You need a tap on the outflow side of the pump. Fully open the tap from the HLT or mash tun and restrict the flow by adjusting the tap on the pump.

 

[HowbeckAles]

Hi!
You shouldn't need to control the flow by controlling the voltage of the pump.
You need a tap on the outflow side of the pump. Fully open the tap from the HLT or mash tun and restrict the flow by adjusting the tap on the pump.

Simple as that! Thanks, I'll give it a go.

 

[Fil]

fwiw i use an ebay tattoo gun psu like http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tattoo-Po...hash=item1a007040d6:m:mzCtT_GPnqd1LV0HwfV41xQ

fit a 1/4" jack to each pump power led and plug in, flick a switch or press a button to select which pump to power and control with a simple dial up and down knob, 2 x outputs but only 1x powered at a time.. you also need to fit a shorted jack plug into the footswitch socket to bypass that feature.

 

[HowbeckAles]

Thanks Fil. I do like gadgets so I'll give it a go if I don't have any luck with my extra tap.

 

[umfana]

If the pumps are direct drive and not mag drive then restricting the flow will knacker them fairly quickly. The PWM controller you posted is a reliable alternative. You will probably need to start the pump on higher speed then throttle it back otherwise they can stall.

The variable voltage idea also works, but I find the little 12v solar pumps more consistent with pwm of the full rated voltage.



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