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I'm trying to get my all grain equipment together, toying with the idea of a counterflow chiller. Pumps are definitely the breaking point, I think an old hot water recirc pump would be an affordable option. Anyone know where I might find a pump? I'll probably try to get a pump first then match my chiller to suit it's flow rate.

March pumps aren't cheap, but I think they are worth the money. Throw a loonie in a jar every couple days, and you should have enough money in 6 months. And it's not a total write off, like consumables. Probably hold at least 65% of value....

Here's mine with a plate chiller. Small compact for easy transportation.

And I agree. Get a march.



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sleepyjamie wrote:Here's mine with a plate chiller. Small compact for easy transportation.

And I agree. Get a march.



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+1

I use two of them. Spend the money the first time and you won't regret it.

I also got a march pump and it's great. If you're looking for something cheaper some of the guys here bought some of the "Great Brew Eh" pumps. I think they run about $60 but are smaller and less powerful than the march. Hopefully we'll get a full review of one soon (maybe I missed it though).

RubberToe wrote:I also got a march pump and it's great. If you're looking for something cheaper some of the guys here bought some of the "Great Brew Eh" pumps. I think they run about $60 but are smaller and less powerful than the march. Hopefully we'll get a full review of one soon (maybe I missed it though).

Those pumps work pretty well. More difficult to prime than a March and definitely not anywhere near as powerful but its working pretty well for my purposes: moving around hot strike/sparge water, recirculating while cooling with my IC, and pumping into a carboy. I have a feeling that once I start with 10 gallon batches I'll be upgrading to a March pretty quickly.

My chugger has served me very well for the past 6 months. Tonnes of power, works well with the camlocks, stainless head.

sleepyjamie wrote:Here's mine with a plate chiller. Small compact for easy transportation.

And I agree. Get a march.

This looks like a great set-up. is that a 30 plate chiller?

do'h! pic didn't work

I think its 30 plate. I'd have to check.

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Reviving a somewhat old thread. I'll be purchasing a few pumps in the little while and was just wondering what everyone's thoughts are between the March 809 or Chugger.....both with the SS head housing? I haven't used either before, so just wondering if there are any pros/cons to either of them? Thanks.

I have a 2 March poly pumps. One is the center inlet generic brew pump. I also have a much larger March pump with the same characters. It was a good chunk coinage more but well worth it for volume and flow.
I have the company I bought them from here somewhere. If interested let me know.
Jeff

I have the march and I'm happy with it. I was having priming troubles at first, but I think it was user error; works like a charm now.

canuck wrote:Reviving a somewhat old thread. I'll be purchasing a few pumps in the little while and was just wondering what everyone's thoughts are between the March 809 or Chugger.....both with the SS head housing? I haven't used either before, so just wondering if there are any pros/cons to either of them? Thanks.

If you are thinking of getting the Chugger and pump HOT wort, do some research first. About the time I got my pump Chuggers were having issues when pumping hot (boiling) wort where they would seize because of thermal expansion of one of the pump head parts. The problem was widespread and well documented on the internet. I'm not sure if they have since corrected the problem but I'd hope so. There was a "fix" where you would have to take apart the head and drill out one of the pieces. That kept me from getting a Chugger and I got a centre inlet March 809 instead. It works great BTW, it's just that the Chugger is both SS and cheaper.

Where did everybody get their march pumps?

I have a center inlet Chugger with a stainless head assembly and recirculate boiling wort for the last 10 minutes of the boil to sanitize. I haven't run into the seizing issue so perhaps it's been corrected?

jeffsmith wrote:I have a center inlet Chugger with a stainless head assembly and recirculate boiling wort for the last 10 minutes of the boil to sanitize. I haven't run into the seizing issue so perhaps it's been corrected?

That's reassuring to hear.

May have worn itself in also.

bluenose wrote:Where did everybody get their march pumps?

I got mine last year at http://ihomebrewing.ca/march-809-hs-c-brewing-pump.html

Thanks for the replies everyone. These are the two that I'm currently looking at. As you can see, the March pump is quite a bit more expensive than the Chugger. Jeff, you're very happy with your Chugger it seems, aren't you?

http://morebeer.com/products/chugger-hi ... -pump.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://morebeer.com/products/march-pump ... using.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

canuck wrote:Thanks for the replies everyone. These are the two that I'm currently looking at. As you can see, the March pump is quite a bit more expensive than the Chugger. Jeff, you're very happy with your Chugger it seems, aren't you?

http://morebeer.com/products/chugger-hi ... -pump.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://morebeer.com/products/march-pump ... using.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Very much so, I've had it for probably 9 months with no complaints.

Just FYI brewhardware.com has Chuggers for $139 when they're in stock.

jeffsmith wrote:

canuck wrote:Thanks for the replies everyone. These are the two that I'm currently looking at. As you can see, the March pump is quite a bit more expensive than the Chugger. Jeff, you're very happy with your Chugger it seems, aren't you?

http://morebeer.com/products/chugger-hi ... -pump.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://morebeer.com/products/march-pump ... using.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Very much so, I've had it for probably 9 months with no complaints.

Just FYI brewhardware.com has Chuggers for $139 when they're in stock.

Awesome, thanks buddy. It looks like they currently have some in stock too!

I'm curious to know why the March pump is more than double the price of the Chugger.

What sort of shipping/duty charges does brewhardware typically end up with?

TimG wrote:What sort of shipping/duty charges does brewhardware typically end up with?

I've been lucky enough to not get hit with any duty charges on brewhardware orders so far.

I would avoid the "Great Brew Eh" pumps. Mine was an absolute piece of junk and a source of frustration. Flow rate was fine, when it flowed, but It often just stopped dead in the middle of pumping. It's now on it way to the landfill.