solar pumps

[Wendy1971]

can anyone tell me what power supply you use with these pumps
http://www.solarproject.co.uk/page2.html

according to the guy who i emailed he said

Unless you need a higher flow rate then most brewers go for the 8 watt as it is the best value. So long as the PSU outputs DC and at least 750 milliamps then it will work well with the pump, allowing you to tweak the flow rate to suit. It is also fine to restrict the flow physically with a valve, you won't burn the pump out or strain it.
so would a variable plug in power supply be ok im no electrician

Thanks

 

[hairybiker]

You can use a variety
There was a thread on here about them and the various ways of controlling them.

I use an LED dimmer controller (from ebay about £3) and a plug type psu delivering 12V @ 1A. This allows me to control the speed using the knob on the controller. Others use a feedback valve on the o/p to i/p to adjust the flow, others use a train set psu :shock:

 

[snail59]

Think a model railway contoller would be your best option wendy.

 

[Wendy1971]

Thanks guys :thumb:

 

[Wendy1971]

how does the led dimmer work does it need a 240 volt supply?

 

[Aleman]

My Brew Rig controller has on OLD computer PSU inside, and I run my Solar Pump from a 12V Rail on that . . . . Also via an LED Dimmer. I use my Solar Pump for recirculating Hot Liquor while the HLT is heating up to eliminate dead spots, and get an even temperature, plus driving my spinny sparger, so speed control is important to me

The LED Driver needs a 12V supply to work with

 

[Wendy1971]

Thanks we were thinking of a plug in variable dc 500ma power supply the manafacturer of the pump says 750ma though we are not too hot with electrics

 

[JagCrusher]

Power = Current X Voltage or Current = Power ÷ Voltage

8Watts ÷ 12Volts = 0.667 Amps (in an ideal world ). Hence the recommended 750mA (0.75A) supply. Obviously you can use a higher current supply - e.g. 1Amp - but going lower could overheat the supply or shorten it's lifespan.

Something like >>THIS<< from Maplin as an example of a fixed voltage adaptor. Or >>THIS<< for "variable" voltage (currently on special offer!)

 

[prolix]

I just use an old 12v psu I think it was once for a printer or old monitor, it is rated 4 amps so can drive two pumps at once

 

[Archtronics]

I would advise not using a pc power supply I have been tinkering with them for 5 years now and unless you have a good quality one (100 pounds +) they hardly ever give the stated power output. If Jamesb is hovering around he can most likely give the safest answer.

 

[lancsSteve]

I contacted supplier who confirmed that one of the 'high power multi-voltage' ac/dc adaptors on Maplin (currently on offer @ £20 down from £36) would be fine. Maplin site being rubbish so can't post link

 

[markp]

I considered using one of those Maplin controllers.
In the end I managed to get an old Hornby train set controller off the well know auction site......only used it once so far, but it seemed to work well.

 

[Wendy1971]

Bought a variable plug in power supply 1500ma which will be great :thumb:

 

[lancsSteve]

So long as the PSU outputs DC and at least 750 milliamps then it will work well with the pump,

I burned my one out which was only 300mA

Bloke said:

You need a power supply of at least 1400mA to run a 14 watt pump, so I am confident that you will have fried your adaptor. If you plan to buy a new one look on ebay for a 2 amp 12V dc switched mode mains adaptor. The pump uses a little over 1 amp, which is 1000mA so it is best to get something rated at well over that to ensure you don't burn it out (like you just have!)

 

[Wendy1971]

The plug we bought has both ac and dc output and it was only a Tenner

 

[pjbiker]

It is also fine to restrict the flow physically with a valve, you won't burn the pump out or strain it.

I used an old peugeot 306 battery to power mine, and physically throttled the outflow to about 0.9L/min during the sparge. Eventually it stopped working. Maybe a car battery provides too great a current?

 

[hairybiker]

If it stopped I would open it up and check for the presence of hops/debris in the impeller.
A car battery is no way to "powerfull" the motor presents a constant load no matter what you plug it into (with in reason) as long as it is 12V (ish) and can supply 750mA+ DC then fine. :

As I said earlier I use the led dimmer to give me flow control as it supplies 12V constantly but varies the ON/OFF (mark/space pwm modulation for us techs) times to slow the motor. I looked at building one but the ebay one was WAY cheaper than the parts just for the pcb never mind the case etc. :thumb:

 

[Loetz]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ws/eBayIS...250722722210&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSA:GB:1123

This looks a lot like the solar pump that people in the UK tend to buy. Does anyone have any experience with this seller?

Also, how do you guys prime your solar pumps? Are there any great tricks? I'd like to use one to recirculate my wort for the mash.

 

[pjbiker]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ws/eBayIS...250722722210&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSA:GB:1123

This looks a lot like the solar pump that people in the UK tend to buy. Does anyone have any experience with this seller?

Also, how do you guys prime your solar pumps? Are there any great tricks? I'd like to use one to recirculate my wort for the mash.

Exactly. No experience with this seller but top tip for priming is to mount the pump at the lowest point in the circuit so that any air in it can naturally rise and be replaced with liquid.