Taco 007 pump speed

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chuck172

Minister of Fire
Apr 24, 2008
1,045
Sussex County, NJ
I know this has been talked about before, but I'm not clear on it. Can the taco 007 circulating pump speed be controlled with a cheap dimmer switch?
 
Circ pump motors, all brands, are built to operate at a % plus or minus the listed voltage. The Taco 007 is listed at 115V.

If you lower the voltage beyond the rated 115V plus or minus,the current draw (amperage) goes up. When it draws a higher current the motor will run hotter and overheat. This will shorten the life of that motor, depending on how much and how often you run it out of the voltage range.

They do make variable speed controls that use PWM pulse width modulation, or a simple pulse packet. Quick short pulses instead of the voltage chop. Some of the newer electronic light dimmers operate this way.

More expensive variable speed drives chop the sine wave and change the AC to pulsating DC. Different manufacturers use different methods to do this, that is safe for motors.

It's best to buy a speed control that is built for the job.

Most of the new solar differental controllers have a variable speed function built in.

hr
 
If you really have a good application for a variable speed pump they can be a good investment even given the higher initial cost. (One example would be a zone valve system) They operate with extremely low power consumption, have proven to be very robust in applications I have used them in and have about 3X the starting torque of a normal circ.
 
I use a celing fan speed controller switch for mine. Per Taco you can do this you just cant use a dimmer switch. I have used one on a 007 for 3 years now.


Rob
 
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