Convert Water pump to 12V vs 110

[Mikie]

A lot of the pumps are 110, for one I am in Italy and 220 is the standard and I really want a 12v pump.

Can the cord be cut and the pump ran off of 12v line from the PS?

I have seen the PCI cards that have the bare cord connections, and the 110 outlet on the outside, but does that mean the pump is actually 12v? or can be 12v?

[Oliy]

Dude whatever you do don't put 110V through a PCI card :P

If you try and run a 110V pump from 12V it won't work, it simply won't draw enough current to operate.

You might be able to get 12V DC motors for pumps, try perhaps a pet store for a fish tank pump. They should come with a transformer and rectifier so you do not need to run it off your power supply, i'm not sure what kind of current they draw but you will probably need a fairly hefty (400W+) power supply to be able to do it.

[The*Q*]

If you want a 12V pump you can try an aftermarket automotive winshield washer pump. I wouldnt go cheap tho.

[Mikie]

No I know not to run 110 through a PCI card, but they make the relays for the auto on/off

And I thought if the card could step it down, then maybe skip that step and wire it myself.

Just checking all options for a water cooling setup

[ol' man]

12v bilge pumps for boats work. I have used them before.

[krupted]

youre talking about two different kinds of voltage, 220VAC in your house, and the bilge/winsheild washer pumps are 12VDC, a DC appliance will not run from an AC source without an inverter

[RDX]

Actually, an AC appliance won't run from a DC source without an inverter. To go from your 220 vac to 12 vdc you could use a transformer paired with a full bridge rectifier. Of course, buying a wall transformer would probably be a whole heck of a lot easier. They're cheap and fairly common. It should take just a little splicing to connect it to the PCI relay and the pump.

For instance:
http://www.pccables.com/86000.htm
(although you might want something rated higher than 300ma)

http://www.allelectronics.com/cgi-bi...212&type=store

This ones rated at 1 amp @ 12v, so it's probably good enough for your application, although you will want to check the power rating on the pump. Also, I see that's it's a British style plug so you might have to convert plug types, but that shouldn't be to big of a deal.

[Mikie]

I think Iam just going for a kit. I can get everything the way I want for the price I want. But the pumps are either 110 or 220, and the punps that are already 12v, are ~$80 vs the 30-40 for the 110.

I was just showing my true ignorance when it comes to actual electricity

[SexyMF]

The 12V pumps with a molex plug are useful for computer watercooling. That said, this is why they are more expensive.

[krupted]

er- thanks rdx, a little dislexic the other day i guess....