I have a new steelhead pump, with quick connect fittings and a ball valve (from one of NB’s promos). I have it inline with a counterflow chiller I made. My (stupid) question is- which side of the pump does the valve go on? Input or output? :?
Usually to restrict flow the valve always goes on the output.
As HD stated put it on output. With that said I put a “tee” fitting on input with a ball valve so I can bleed off air if I get cavitation.
Duh, Thanks guys for the input.
No we said output… OUTPUT! 
I got a steelhead for Christmas and used it yesterday for the first time with my plate chiller. I didn’t get a valve and the beer ran too fast through the chiller and ended up not cooling it down well. I had to sit the carboy in a bucket of icewater to get it down to normal pitching temps.
My question is, what kind of valve fits it and how much restriction should we put on the flow? Does that negatively impact the pump when you restrict flow like that? Anyone know what valve is best to plumb on? Thanks!
This is the valve I have
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/stai ... e-1-2.htmlI ended up cracking it about half way and that seemed to work pretty well for me. I also have a garden hose valve on the water inlet to the counterflow chiller, so I end up trying to find the optimum balance of wort in/water in to get the right out temp of the wort. Worked slick on all 3 batches I did last week. Only used about 15 gallons of cooling water, took about 20 minutes to cool from start to finish.
Hope this helps.
[quote=“ruinah69”]I got a steelhead for Christmas and used it yesterday for the first time with my plate chiller. I didn’t get a valve and the beer ran too fast through the chiller and ended up not cooling it down well. I had to sit the carboy in a bucket of icewater to get it down to normal pitching temps.
My question is, what kind of valve fits it and how much restriction should we put on the flow? Does that negatively impact the pump when you restrict flow like that? Anyone know what valve is best to plumb on? Thanks![/quote]I am a centrifugal pump engineer so I feel qualified to answer your question. For the input side of the pump, you always want the least amount of restriction. This means no valves, elbows or long lines. Also go as big as the pump inlet for diameter of hose. Restriction on the inlet induces cavitation and can cause permanent damage to the pump. (look it up on Wikipedia)
On the outlet side of the pump, you can restrict anywhere from full flow (minimal restriction) to near shutoff (max restriction) without damaging the pump. I would monitor the temp on the output side and restrict the flow until you reach your target temp.
Use a 1/2" full port 90 degree ball valve. Here is a picture of mine so you can see the additional valve to help purge air while starting the pump. It is not necessary but helpful if you have trapped air in the pump. Also, make certain you have the inlet down and the outlet up (12:00 position) to help vent air at start up.
thanks guys. That’s just the info I needed. I’ll grab a valve and plumb it on the output and do a test run with water before my next batch. I have a valve on my kettle but I did everything in my setup as 1/2" so try to stay consistent. The pump worked great and really moved the wort fast, just too fast. It was warm and I only have a shirron so the cooling is not quite as great as some of the other chillers.
