Pump running in reverse.

[moseley75]

Is there a way to reverse the polarity of the outlets on a Hydor wave maker? I have a small circulator that I want to pulse but it runs backwards when connected to the wave maker.

 

[Shaddow_wolf169]

It should run backwards half the Time due to the ac current. It's due to the alternating current. Wave makers are DC powered so they only run one way.

 

[billwill]

It should run backwards half the Time due to the ac current. It's due to the alternating current. Wave makers are DC powered so they only run one way.

That is absolutely incorrect!

 

[moseley75]

I'm no electrical engineer but I know that with DC motors if you change the polarity they will change direction. Not sure what would make an AC motor run backwards.

 

[Shaddow_wolf169]

That is absolutely incorrect!

Sorry I was half asleep

 

[Shaddow_wolf169]

If you search the Forum there a lot of guys that tried this and they talking about the pump reversing itself. In the DIY section they have a how to make it work.

 

[moseley75]

I have been doing some reading about this and RO/DI rejection rates. I feel as if my brain was squeezed in a vice.


I think I'll just purchase the pumps that are made to work with the wave maker.

 

[Breadman03]

That's an issue with AC pumps. They typically use a device at the end of the prop shaft that will prevent it from running backwards. It looks a bit like a saw blade, but circular. The idea is that when the pump starts backward, the prop moves toward the front, engages the device, then bounces in the correct direction.

RO rejection rates: think of it basically as a higher rate means it filters to a finer level. A higher rate means less TDS gets to your DI, allowing it to last longer because the DI resin can hold just so many "parts" before its full.

Think of the waste ratio a bit like it takes so much water (4 units waste:1 unit product) to clean the filtered TDS off of the membrane.

 

[moseley75]

Thanks Breadman03. This pump has the place on the shaft that is supposed to keep it from running backwards but it either locks up or just rattles. It was super cheep so getting the Hydor pumps are a better idea anyway. I want the Pico180 pumps b/c they are rated for just over 10X the volume of this tank. Not to expensive for two so it all works like it should. They have a better Mount too.

 

[Engloid]

This is why I hate Hydor powerheads. They have a retrofit kit to add the stopper in the front housing, but they seemed to pop back and forth so much they would knock the entire front end off the powerhead and shoot the impeller and shaft into the tank. They are bad about doing it after a power outage, and putting them on a wavemaker that intentionally turns them off and on all the same time is a bad idea, IMO.