Bought pump, need advice on tubing connection

[GrandpasFootsteps]

I bought a pump on ebay. It sucks.

I have a question about how to connect the suction tube to the pump. I have a collection jar for it already and I know how to put the tubing from carboy to carboy to collection. But what do I need to get to connect the tube to the vacuum inlet? It is the small threaded hole by the gauge. Would I find something like that at home depot? I'm assuming it would be a round metal tube, threaded on one side and not threaded on the other side so the rubber tubing can slide over it?

 

[GerardVineyard]

Threaded on one side to screw into outlet on pump and barbed on the other to slide the hose over, will work nicely. Home Depot or any hardware store will have what you need. You'll find it in the plumbing aisle. Just be sure you know what size thread you will need, probably 3/8 but I am guessing.

 

[Arne]

Bet that is a 1/4 inch thread. Looks like the same size as the guage thread and usually those small guages are 1/4 inch. So you need a male adaptor that is 1/4 or 3/8 by the inside diameter of your hose. If you have an Ace hardware store around there they usually have a good supply of fittings. Otherwise the big box stores usually have the fittings you mite want, just usually harder to find. I would go with plastic fittings instead of brass. The plastic should not react with your wines where metel ones might. Arne.

 

[GerardVineyard]

Brass may react with wine, but hopefully at that point in his connection there should be no wine connect. His overflow cannister should have picked up any wine before it gets to that connection.

 

[Wade E]

I have the stainless steel 1/4"npt fittings that you could use but what you really want there is a screw in Hydrophobic filter to prevent any moisture from getting into your pump and ruining it. Below is a link to a place where I used to get them to sell here and also the hoses you really want to go with it. You will want a short hose (18") to go from that filter to the overflow canister and then a long one (6', 12', or 20' depending on where you keep your pump) to go from there to your dble drilled bung.
http://www.mountainside-medical.com/products/Suction-Machine-Bacteria-Filter.html
http://www.mountainside-medical.com/products/Connecting-Tubing.html

If you just want the stainless steel fitting I have let me know and Ill just mail one to you for free. You really do want 1 of those filters in there though!

 

[GrandpasFootsteps]

I got the fittings at Home Depot. I bought brass. This is on the pump side of the collection container so there won't be (hopefully) any wine going that far! I had to get 3 pieces total to make it work. A 1/4 male-male coupler to a 3/8 to 1/4 reducer, to a 3/8 barbed thing where the tube goes. Works great!

 

[GerardVineyard]

I am glad to see I am not the only one who has to buy 3 - 4 fittings where one would normally do the job, why is that?

 

[Wade E]

Because most places dont sell the right part to begin with. I had to do some deep searching to find all these right parts for these used pumps. Grandpasfootsteps, you really should sneak a hydrophobic filter in there before using that pump too much or you will ruin it. Its not fluid that gets in there its moisture and since you are sucking on a liquid at high vacuum it will be drawing moisture out and into your pump and those hoses I linked you are far better then any hose you will find at any store as they are designed for vacuum unlike the hose you probably bought and it will most likely collapse upon itself while trying to degas or rack your wine plus they are tapered ends so you dont need any hose clamps, they just pop on and pop off.

 

[GrandpasFootsteps]

I used this pump the first time this evening for racking. WOW. So much easier than gravity auto-siphon. And fast. I degassed the wine at the same time. I'm simply amazed. And the cleanup is actually easier than before.

I noticed two things. There is a lot of condensation moisture going into the pump and the tube I bought started to collapse under vacuum. I wish someone had thought to tell me that I should get a hydrophobic filter and some suction hoses. Oh wait, that's exactly what you said, Wade!

I have 6 batches of wine to rack & bottle after Thanksgiving and I plan to order these parts tomorrow.

Thank you for the advice!