Adaptec 6840

[BoerBoel]

I have no experience with vacuum but I'm wondering if an Adaptec 6840 (6840-2J03-B221S) would work as a vacuum pump for a mix of 3/16 & 5/16 lines?

Any thoughts or would I be wasting my time with this pump?

[DRoseum]

Why not use a shurflo 4008 or 4048? Those are pretty proven and similar (if not lower) price point. I use one on a small set if taps (~20) and works great.

I also use an aquatec 8852 pump on ~80 taps on 4 lines of 3/16 and it works outstanding. I had it available after I built a bigger RO. Consistently pulls over 22 inhg at the pump when sap is flowing.

I believe your autocorrect changed the pump name. Google tells me it's a smaller /lower flow aquatec pump than the one I use. If you get it for free it's definitely worth giving it a try. If you are buying, you might want to try the shurflo or bigger aquatec. You will be limited in nber of taps that pump can support since its flowrate (even at open flow) is only ~0.75 lpm. The other aquatec has nearly 4x more flow rate (can support 4x the taps). The shurflow is like 12x more open flowrate.

[BoerBoel]

Yes, you were correct about the name of the pump. It's Aquatec 6840. I don't think I can change the subject line of this thread though. :(

The reason for using the Aquatec 6840 is that I have 2 of them lying around so no cost for the pumps.

I have about 120 taps. Approx. 50 on 5/16 currently going to a 3/4" main line. And approx. 70 on 3 3/16 lines (about 15-20' drop each line) currently connect to a separate 3/4" main line. both lines drain to a single collection tote.

I was thinking about eliminating the 3/4" main lines on both and trying vacuum...if these pumps would work.

The other problem I have is the bush is 25 minutes away. I don't make it out to the bush every day if I don't think there is enough sap to bring home. I have approx. 20 34.6 Ah batteries. I can hook several together to extend the run time and hopefully with a 100 watt solar panel I can extend the running time to several days. Would you know approx. how many hours of run time I would get off a single 34.6 Ah battery?

[carls47807]

What is the voltage of your batteries

[BoerBoel]

What is the voltage of your batteries
They're 12V. I believe the Aquatec 6840 (6840-2J03-B221S) pump I have is a 24V pump, so the batteries would need to be hooked up in series and parallel in order to get the 24V with enough Ah...some creative wiring.
http://mapletrader.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=22666&stc=1

[carls47807]

If you hook two 12v batteries in series for 24vdc you should be able to run the vacuum system for 17 hours at least. The pump should draw less than 2amp when used for purposes of vacuum. Possibly even closer to 1 amp depending on how much you set your recirculation to. A 100 watt panel should keep it topped off. You can get a cheap charge controller to disconnect load if voltage drops.

The aquatecs are shown to be 24v ac but they do in fact run off DC as well.

[BoerBoel]

If you hook two 12v batteries in series for 24vdc you should be able to run the vacuum system for 17 hours at least. The pump should draw less than 2amp when used for purposes of vacuum. Possibly even closer to 1 amp depending on how much you set your recirculation to. A 100 watt panel should keep it topped off. You can get a cheap charge controller to disconnect load if voltage drops.
I was hoping to be able to make use of maybe 10 batteries connected similar to the diagram below to get 3-4 days of use.
Do you think the 100 watt solar panel would be sufficient to keep them charged? I suspect it won't be enough.

Would connecting the solar panel to this battery array be as simple as connecting it to the 2 leads (+ & - 24V) coming from the battery array?

I have 20+ batteries so if need be I could bring out fully charged batteries every 3-4 days if needed. But that's a lot of weight (30 lbs. each) to be carrying out to the bush pulling a toboggan or wagon through a cow field and over an electric fence. Taking the fully charged batteries in might not be too bad (mostly down hill) but get the dead ones out will be more of an issue as it is up hill.
http://mapletrader.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=22669&stc=1