Carbonator questions (TIG torch cooler)

I finally received a carbonator pump. As a nice extra, included was a water/co2 charging tank, for which I have no use but will keep on the platform anyway.

Two questions

  1. Do I need a pressure relief valve, and if so, what kind. The water flows out of the torch return line quite briskly.

  1. There is a control box mounted on the pump, with a relay and integrated circuits and a signal transformer. It turns off the pump after about a minute. If I power the pump off and power it on, it restarts for another minute. It is trivial vor me to fully bypass this control thingy, but would I be exposing this pump to any dangers? (unlikely).

Later on, I would simply mount a 24V relay inside this box, to be controlled by the welder.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus4939
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Sigh...one of the acorn nut looking thingies on the side of the pump body is the relief valve. As Ive mentioned before..several times.

Mine runs the moment the welder gets turned on..until the weldor gets turned off at the end of the day, or the welding project. Every Bernard cooler uses a Procon carbonator pump..and they run nonstop.

Gunner

"Pax Americana is a philosophy. Hardly an empire. Making sure other people play nice and dont kill each other (and us) off in job lots is hardly empire building, particularly when you give them self determination under "play nice" rules.

Think of it as having your older brother knock the shit out of you for torturing the cat." Gunner

Reply to
Gunner Asch

Thanks. I am a little stumped, should that nut be removed to reveal some fitting to connect another return line? Is that what it's for?

i
Reply to
Ignoramus26745

I would expect the acorn nut to be covering an adjustment screw that will adjust the relief setting. The "return line" should be internal to the pump and feed back to the input side. You'll need a pressure gauge on the output along with a flow restriction in order to adjust the relief setting. The torch manual should indicate max pressure, but I think it should be no more than 60 PSI.

Pete C.

Reply to
Pete C.

I see. That makes perfect sense.

Thanks Pete. I will try to find a decent gauge. Barring that, I would adjust the pressure so that the stream would look like the stream Ihad with city water pressure.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus26745

look..... I am not trying to be rude, but we told you this just the other day, why are you keep askin'

I told you to use a "T fitting if you think the pressure is too much, you don't need to complicate things, remeber !!! keep it simple. if you are concern, install an inline water pressure gauge . better yet buy a 50 PSI pressure regulator RV valve wich will keep the pressure at 50 PSI all the time.

first, junk the electronics that limit running time to 1 minute , hook the pump to switch and to 110V

connect the water lines , fire up your pump / motor and see how far the pump will piss the water stream without the torch being connected. This will give you an idea about volume of water getting pumped.

like I said I ue d a "T" fitting out of the output side of the pump , one side of the "T" goes to the torch the other side returns the access water to the bucket. you can use a simple small 1/4 inch ball valve to control volume and pressure.

you don't need much volume. nor pressure.

in my cooler it seems that 1/2 of the water gets dumped back into the bucket and the other half of what ever the pump supplys goes through the torch.

any time I stop welding and touch the torch head with my hand the succer is cool to the touch. the cup is hot as hell. that is all I need to know.

I really don't care what pressure is in the hose. Never busted a torch hose yet.

I did weld without water (forgot to turn it on ) and still don't have a melted hose yet.

keep it simple. don't over complicate the darn thing.

you should be welding instead of dicking around with that cooler

:) :) :) :)

Reply to
acrobat ants

Yep. I will do it.

I already made the pump (and do not mind changing it a bit to accommodate the gauge and relief valve later). See my recent post with the story and pictures, or go here

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Yes, I junked that bullshit electronics. Now the pump is controlled by the welder. I do not have to remember to turn it on, it always comes on when necessary.

Very nice. It works for me too.

That's interesting.

I can now weld without running awkward leaky garden hoses all over, it is beautiful. I basically can turn the welder on and start welding, just like that.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus26745

ok, the subject is pretty much covered, and beaten to death. :)

one more final word, just this morning I examend the water flow coming out of the torch return hose.

as a reference: it appears the flow/volume is about same as I get out of my fridge water dispenser. may be slightly more. keep in mind this is not the full flow of the carbonator pump because it is "T" off (as mentioned earlier.) if you think about the small passages that are in the torch head , it is plentyfull water.

good luck

Reply to
acrobat ants

Yes... And I want to thank you for your input... I will look for a relief valve.

Well, my own reference point is the rate of flow from the torch when fed from city water. I know for sure that I have greater flow now.

What I am afraid of is hoses bursting from unexpectedly high pressure.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus12686

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