Looking for a 12 volt vacuum pump for hydraulic systems. Deere has one and Wirtgen Group has one, but I would rather get one from a third party if possible. Has anybody ever gotten one elsewhere? Also, is putting a vacuum on a plastic hydraulic tank an issue? Does it need to be regulated, and if so what is the best way to do that?
Would a shop vacuum and a suck bucket serve the same purpose ?
Yes, a vacuum pump on a hydraulic tank can cause problems, google rail tank car "implosion" if you want to see how. A shop vac with or without a suck bucket will only produce 2-4' of water head, so will not damage anything on heavy equipment if that's enough for what you're doing. Need a little more info on the intended purpose.
Yes it is for heavy equipment. Trying to put a kit together for a reasonable price. I work in a hydraulic shop rebuilding pumps, etc. and get sent on service calls occasionally and would like be prepared as best I can for what I might see but cannot spend an arm and a leg on it.
I have that tank car saved as a gif. Can't upload it. Its amazing how 1 atmosphere can change things for the worse.
If you have a decent sized air compressor you can use a venturi to pull a vacuum on tanks.
A small 120 volt generator will power a shop vac. Then you have the versatility of all the other uses of it.
I bought a little fitting that I hook into my compressor and that attach to the top of the hydraulic tanks. As long as the air compressor runs, the oil stays in the tank.
I thought there was a specific reason the OP wanted electric. As mentioned by everyone else, i have a pneumatic ventruri . They're like $15-20 at the harbor fright tool store. 90psi inlet produces 24-28" at 5-6 cfm. With that you can swap out a -12 hose with no caps. Just monitor the tank walls. Plastic will let you know much sooner than steel. I would think, any more than 12" on plastic would be asking for it. On real full size equipment with steel tanks, i go for 24" the parts are bigger and gravity never takes a break. Good luck Break all that plastic off to get at the core fitting, that's where the magic happens. And its cheaper than i thought.
That vaccum pump will run easy on my 1500 watt inverter changing out the valve with a full tank of fuel Freon tank to receive any liquid
That's some grade A hillbilly engineering there. I like the slobber can to protect the pump.
What do you use to control the amount of vacuum?
Well you can either use a small air pressure regulator on the inlet of the Venturi style, or a tee fitting on the vacuum side with a small ball valve to bleed off some of the suction by letting it get air.
12V electric is the way to go, no need to have the service truck close to the machine or messing with inverters. Just a small pump with cig lighter adapter or alligator clips to hook on to the machines batteries.
If you want 12v, and this is for a small vacuum to keep fluid from draining out of the tank while you remove a fitting below the oil level, then I'd get a VW or Volvo smog pump, put it on a board with a cage for protection, and add power cables with clamps and a switch. It will not produce enough vacuum to hurt anything, and will produce enough volume for the task. https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/air-pump-fix-tutorial-volvo/ If you're evacuating moisture, then you need a refrigeration pump, or one of those venturi pumps and a big compressor.
Ok, I will investigate. Thanks
This little puppy will pull 20"+ on full air and it is whisper quiet. For sensitive things like plastic tanks I just regulate the air going into it to regulate how much vacuum I want out of it. It is a shame that Milton doesn't make this anymore. The best vacuum tool I own.
I never said my rig was quiet. That would be so nice. I have 4 shop rags zip-tied to mine as a muffler. That's cool.
Did you make that adapter yourself?
The vacuum tool I had to add the hoses, and the adapter on the excavator reservoir I made from a reservoir cap.
A compressor from any kind of ac or refrigerater makes a good vac pump.
Do you have a specific one in mind?
It looks good.
Cat sells the 5P306 and I’ve been using this set-up since Grunge. Plus a dozen or so modified caps. I like air. Intrinsically safe.
This is the other one I use. Actually have multiples. CKT cv—15. Like $30 on the Amazon. This is what I use for doing the EPA- Method 27 vacuum test on cargo tanks. Haven’t imploded one, yet. lol. Yeah, I’ve watched those videos too, during PHMSA training.
Kennedy makes one the shop I worked at used them. You may find one on the interweb. Also years ago before we had a pump we put a tee on the brake booster line on service truck and ran a hose from there to hyd. tank to pull vacuum.
I had to replace a hydraulic line out in the middle of nowhere with no air to work the homemade vacuum tool I have so out of desperation I came up with a solution. Service truck had a gas engine and I had some rubber hose. So I popped off a vacuum hose on the engine and connected a hose from the truck engine to a fitting on the top of hyd tank. Got line swapped with only a few drips of oil. However as I started to drive back to the shop saw that the tuck engine had apparently caused enough suction to have got a good amount into the intake. Lucky I was out in the sticks and could run it good and hard to burn off the oil before I got near any houses! I don't think there was a mosquito in that area for a few days!