Can I bury a pump in insulation?

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bpirger

Minister of Fire
May 23, 2010
632
Ithaca NY Area
I want to box in and insulate the piping behind my Garn on the way to the insulated buried pex. Can I bury the Taco 00R circulation inside insulation in my box? Or will the high heat with no "way to escape" end up hurting the pump? I suspect the environment inside the "box" would easily get up to 160 or so....and that's starting to get high for electronics, in a sustained operating temp. Obviously much of the pump would be even warmer, i.e. water temp, but not necessarily whatever electronics may be inside . I haven't opened one up yet, but I assume there are at least a few caps, wiring, etc.

Thanks!

Hoping to have the Garn plumbed into the existing system by the end of this weekend. Bad news is that Garn's digital controller is not shipping unit the end of the year (if everything stays on schedule).
 
I think those pumps are rated for 240F water, I don't know about air temps. Most electronics are good to about 120F max. I think it's a bad idea, and no doubt will shorten the life of the pump if it doesn't fail quickly. Box it off with some foam board, then vent it with some PVC/steel pipe to outside the insulation. Top and bottom for some air flow and you'll be good.
 
Above and beyond heat buildup in the pump, which I'd want to avoid, you want to be able to get at the pump in order to be able to spot leaks, should one ever occur, and to service or replace the pump if it fails. Keep it accessible.
 
Pumps do fail. I'd definitely vote to keep your pump in an easily accessible location.
 
This is what Grundfos lists.
 

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The pump would always be accessible....just behind a cover say...but I agree it sounds like I need to be a little more creative with my carpentry and keep it out. Thanks all.
 
Not acceptable. Ambient will be too high and I would assume serviceability will be a factor.......often.

Wet rotors are in fact "cooled" by the water within them but you'll find all manufacturers will specify a maximum ambient temp in one way or another.
 
Wiring would be a problem for starters. Most wire is rated at 75C or 90C is it not?
 
I read al the "against" post here, but I am not sure about that. On several displays I have seen solar pumping stations that are a self contained unit with valves and circulator all encaised in a hard foam insulation housing.
http://www.resol.de/index/produktdetail/kategorie/3/id/22/sprache/en

The link above is such a unit, I have seen some with Grundfos aswell. I think the key could be the exposed face and the foam comes off in two or more pieces.

Henk.
 
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