Electricity/pump Box

[pmastello]

Hi Everyone and particularly any sparkies out there,
I have just added a new pump to my Braumeister brewery for rapid immersion chilling (a la Jamils Whirlpool chiller) and with this addition of an extra cord and extra tubes with liquid, It's got me concerned with the risk of electrocution in the brewery.

So my next upcoming project is to be building something along the lines of this -
http://www.byo.com/component/resource/arti...oolbox-projects
and this
http://brokenglassbrewing.blogspot.com/201...mp-projekt.html

The functions of the box I want to build are
- housing of the pump to protect it from any errant liquid
- waterproof switch for pump power
- A power outlet to plug the Braumeister into
- Residual current device to prevent me getting electrocuted (and any other relevant fuses/overload switches)


Now I am pretty handy, but I am assuming I will be told to get an electrician to do this for me.

So is this doable? All of these projects I've read are US based, so I am looking for some Australian experiences and advice. What concerns me is the current the Braumeister will pull and running that with the pump on the same circuit - the power cord already gets pretty warm after being on for a while.
Also, should I build this in a tool box, or should I look into getting something else to house it all?

Cheers!

 

[dent]

There won't be a problem with the additional current requirement of your pump on top of the braumeister - another 100w or so isn't gonna make much difference.

Personally I think socket outlets are one of the least safe electrical items in the brewery - if they get a little wet they can easily conduct the active to the water, while remaining not earthed ( and thus, very dangerous ).

I think the better option is to use glands for your cables and keep any sockets inside your enclosure.

Also consider the insulation that the box will be giving to the pump - it may get pretty hot in there.

 

[roller997]

As Dent has already mentioned in his last point, I would worry about the temperature the pump gets up to in a confined space.
Mine gets extremely hot even when just pumping 78 degree mash liquor and this is while it has plenty of cool air around it. With computers the issue with heat is that he grease becomes

If you were to mount it in a box I would install at least one big 240V fan blowing directly onto the pump with exit vents so the pump can displace the warm air easily.

Regards

Roller

 

[bignath]

If it was me, i wouldn't be putting the pump in an enclosed space. Particularly as you mention having power hooked up to the box too.

Yes the pump could throw some heat, depending on the pump, but i think an even bigger risk if i read you post correctly, is that you'll have to have power going into the box that also contains the pump. If something goes wrong with the plumbing, i shudder to think of the potential for electrocution if it's spraying liquid around the inside of a box that has electricity connected to it. If it's a sealed box (to a point) you may not even be aware that there's an issue until it's too unsafe.

Definitely wouldn't do it.

Build a box with all the waterproof switches sure, but i'd have the pump no where near the actual control box.

my 2c....

I apologise if i have misconstrued what you are trying to achieve though....it's been a **** day, and i've had several pints of "medicine" already.

 

[Feldon]

I think the OP might be refering to US homebrew practice where the pump body is housed inside a toolbox but the liquid connections are outside. They can be a very neat set up. Low voltage PC cooling fans are often used to extract hot air from inside the toolbox.

Eg.

 

[labels]

A built-in RCD wouldn't be a bad idea for the little extra cost, cheap safety.

Steve

 

[Jono_w]

Hi Everyone and particularly any sparkies out there,
I have just added a new pump to my Braumeister brewery for rapid immersion chilling (a la Jamils Whirlpool chiller) and with this addition of an extra cord and extra tubes with liquid, It's got me concerned with the risk of electrocution in the brewery.

So my next upcoming project is to be building something along the lines of this -
http://www.byo.com/component/resource/arti...oolbox-projects
and this
http://brokenglassbrewing.blogspot.com/201...mp-projekt.html

The functions of the box I want to build are
- housing of the pump to protect it from any errant liquid
- waterproof switch for pump power
- A power outlet to plug the Braumeister into
- Residual current device to prevent me getting electrocuted (and any other relevant fuses/overload switches)


Now I am pretty handy, but I am assuming I will be told to get an electrician to do this for me.

So is this doable? All of these projects I've read are US based, so I am looking for some Australian experiences and advice. What concerns me is the current the Braumeister will pull and running that with the pump on the same circuit - the power cord already gets pretty warm after being on for a while.
Also, should I build this in a tool box, or should I look into getting something else to house it all?

Cheers!

Hey Mate,

Should you build this in a toolbox? no..


Remember in the US their mains supply is often 110v, although still very dangerous it's not as lethal as 240v..
Electrical enclosure and controls come with an IP rating. This rating determines the water / dust ingress into them to maintain safe operation. In a brewing environment i would expect minimum of IP67 this is 6 - Dust proof ,7 - water tight to 1 meter. Check any outdoor socket, it will be this. A toolbox has no such rating, it's for holding tools..... And to put a pump inside the enclosure is plain crazy.

Also an RCD is not going to help one bit if it's mounted in the tool box filled with liquid.

Get a correctly rated switch use water tight cable glands and have a sparky wire it up. Then build a small frame to mount pump and box together.

RCD are not an excuse for dangerous equipment.

Sorry for the bluntness but as an electrician seeing the things people are willing to do scares me.

 

[bradsbrew]

Great advice right there!

 

[pmastello]

Ok, so, consensus seems its not the best of plans. Thats ok, lets revise.

Instead of a toolbox, replace it with a weatherproof junction box. Cables etc go inside, Pump instead mounted externally. Now I am thinking of getting a wooden board and mounting the pump and electricity box to.
This box has power into it from the mains. It runs to a 10a RCD/MCB and then goes to a double switch (http://www.sparkydirect.com.au/p/4232629/nls---double-weatherproof-switch-16a-250v-ip56-rated---30172.html )
One controls the Braumeister, the other controls the pump. Both will have cables running directly from the box to the devices (directly to pump and to C14 plug for braumeister). All of the cables in and out will be protected with weatherproof (~IP66) glands.

What about this solution?
I am not sure of which box would be best for this. The switches I am looking at have IP on them, but the RCD's don't. I can find IP66 boxes with housings for RCDs but these don't have room to put a switch. Any thoughts?

I've also drawn up a schematic of what I am talking about too....