downhill_biker Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 So I just got my new reeflo barracuda and the label says 115/230v, which is the same as 110/220 or 120/240 right? I would like to tie into the dryer line in my basement and see if I can run it at 230v, to save electricity. Questions: #1 Can the dryer outlet handle the dryer and the pump? It is bridged across 2 30A breakers in the box. Is this 2x30A or is it 2x15A equalling 30A? The pump is rated at 2.4A, and I dont know what the dryer uses. #2 If the circuit can support the pump and the dryer, how would I go about making another plug in my dryer line? Do I need another box or is there some kind of splitter on the market? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downhill_biker Posted June 30, 2009 Author Share Posted June 30, 2009 nevermind. for some reason i was thinking that if you went to 240v it would use less wattage, but it is the same either way. i wont even deal with it. just run 120v. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 Yes, (110, 115, 120), (220,230,240) are essentially the same thing. Not sure why there isn't consistency in the labeling of them. The 30 amp breakers are going to be 30 amps per wire. (Basically 2 110v wires combined to make 220v) Since each wire will only handle 30 amps the circuit is only capable of 30 amps. I.E. You can't multiply the amps by the number of breakers in use. To know whether they will handle it safely you need to get the actual amperage draw from the dryer. Since the pump only draws 2.4a I would guess that it will handle it but the question will be how safe it is if it does. It's doubtful you will find a splitter for this however it is pretty easy to buy the parts at Lowe's, Home Depot, etc. to build one. Putting a new box in on it's own breaker would be the safest option and eliminates the danger of the pump quitting if the dryer circuit gets tripped. Done properly though building a short extension split out to two plugs is okay as well. (I've done this to run my welder however only one or the other can be in use at any given time, trying to run both at the same time will trip the breaker) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nyles Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 As a Rule for sizing electrical motors when I order them for my work (for long life) it has to do with HP (1 hp is aprox 746 watts / or watts divided by volts = A), if its over 1 hp I order it 240v if its under 1 hp then I order it 120v. This is simply to keep the motor running cooler, however fishy pumps are water cooled so, if it was me, just plug the thing into 120v Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downhill_biker Posted June 30, 2009 Author Share Posted June 30, 2009 ya, i am definitely just going with 120v. i was only going to do this because i thought, for some reason, that the wattage would decrease. that isn't the case, so there is no reason for me to change it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef165 Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 The wattage may not change but the amps do, I beleave the amps will be cut in half and I may be wrong but dosnt electricity cost per amper hour not per watt hour? Im not saying that I would go eather way. What is it going to be used for? return or closed loop? My 2 cents, your return pump dosnt need to be much more gph than your skimmer, and for a closed loop, what dose that pump run in watts and gph ? and how much did the pump cost and the pluming? I would bet that ya coulda got several of the Koralia power heads for way less than ya paid for the pump, they would use way less energy and they can be moved as your tank and corals mature , sure they may seem unsightly but the savings and versatility out weigh it plus, if you have a beautyfull tank they will just disap. into the background! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef165 Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 I know, you already have the pump, but people reading this looking for advise may be interested in the logic ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krux Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 if the amperage on the outlet could handle it, you could get a 220 to twist lock adapter, and then they make twist lock y adapters Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downhill_biker Posted July 1, 2009 Author Share Posted July 1, 2009 The wattage may not change but the amps do, I beleave the amps will be cut in half and I may be wrong but dosnt electricity cost per amper hour not per watt hour? Im not saying that I would go eather way. What is it going to be used for? return or closed loop? My 2 cents, your return pump dosnt need to be much more gph than your skimmer, and for a closed loop, what dose that pump run in watts and gph ? and how much did the pump cost and the pluming? I would bet that ya coulda got several of the Koralia power heads for way less than ya paid for the pump, they would use way less energy and they can be moved as your tank and corals mature , sure they may seem unsightly but the savings and versatility out weigh it plus, if you have a beautyfull tank they will just disap. into the background! Electricity is charged by killowatt hour. As voltage increases amperage decreases. So going from 120 to 240 is double and amperage is cut in half. Too bad the wattage is a multiple of the two, meaning 120v x 1A is 120w, and 240 x .5A is still 120w. This is my return pump. It is a rather large pump, but extremely energy efficient for what it does. I need to be able to pump from my basement up to the main tank, 200g upstairs. I also am feeding a frag tank, 72g bowfront downstairs, and most likely will feed a skimmer, Aqua C EV-1000. The pump should be able to do that being rated at 4500gph. I have 4x koralia 4 powerheads in the 200g tank. I have a seio 2600 in the 72g frag tank. If I need more flow at any point in time I have a seio 1500 and 3 more koralia 4's. The pump does use a fair amount of electricity, but it will be replacing a return pump on 2 tanks, and a skimmer pump. I think I am actually going to save wattage by using this pump. The cost was pretty high though. Marinedepot sells them for around $400 and the plumbing was probably around $75. That being said, I have a very professional and clean system that is built to last. I am a firm believer in koralia powerheads, but have had several fail on me. I still use them, but keep that in mind too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef165 Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 Your's is a special app! running many things and up a floor. As for your Koralia ph's that have failed, there is a thread here, abought how good they are abought fixing or replacing there product. Really, they need your broken ones so they know how/what to fix for future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downhill_biker Posted July 1, 2009 Author Share Posted July 1, 2009 Your's is a special app! running many things and up a floor. As for your Koralia ph's that have failed' date=' there is a thread here, abought how good they are abought fixing or replacing there product. Really, they need your broken ones so they know how/what to fix for future.[/quote'] Sent the 2 in and got new ones. Very good customer service. They had bad voltage leaks, around 12-20v each. The new ones seem good, but as with every piece of equipment there is a chance of failure, and seems powerheads and heaters are on the higher end of those chances. Powerheads do transfer heat to the tank, and do have direct electrical contact with the water. The external pump doesn't. There are certainly pros and cons of each. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nyles Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 Correct on amp loads.... You don't save by going bigger voltage, but you do reduce the breaker size and typically (I say this loosely) you reduce the heat. I deal with some motors that if I purchased in 120v they would be around 100 amp, but by simply going up to 460-480 volt or other I can drastically reduce that amp load in the panel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downhill_biker Posted July 1, 2009 Author Share Posted July 1, 2009 Correct on amp loads.... You don't save by going bigger voltage' date=' but you do reduce the breaker size and typically (I say this loosely) you reduce the heat. I deal with some motors that if I purchased in 120v they would be around 100 amp, but by simply going up to 460-480 volt or other I can drastically reduce that amp load in the panel.[/quote'] with stuff that size i definitely understand doing this. it also reduces the danger involved when messing with the motor. less amps, less death. with a 1/4 hp motor, i dont think it heats up much anyway, and since pump and motor are distant to eachother that shouldn't be an issue. amp draw is 2.4A, so not really a high demand either. but with your industrial applications there is certainly good reason to jump voltage and decrease amps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nyles Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 As stated before, your pump is water cooled, so I see no reason to go higher volts unless it was over a 15 amp draw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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