Okay, so I needed to move some acetic acid around for a project I was tinkering with in the garage. Nothing super strong, basically concentrated vinegar, but enough that you don’t want to splash it everywhere. Pouring it carefully from the big jug was just getting annoying and messy, frankly. I kept thinking there had to be a better way.
That’s when I decided to get a pump. Didn’t need anything industrial, just something small to transfer the liquid from container A to container B without the usual spills. I hopped online and found a little pump, pretty basic looking, that claimed it could handle mild acids. It wasn’t expensive, which was good because this was more of an experiment.
Getting it Running
When the pump arrived, it was pretty much what I expected. Small plastic thing, couple of nozzles for tubes, and a power wire. No fancy manual, just the basics. First job was cutting the tubing that came with it to the right lengths and pushing them onto the inlet and outlet nozzles. Seemed straightforward.
I hooked it up to a little power supply I had lying around. Before putting any acid near it, I tested it with plain water. Stuck the intake tube in a cup of water and flipped the switch. Whirred to life and started pumping water into another cup. The flow wasn’t exactly powerful, but it worked. Good enough sign.
The Acid Test (Literally)
Alright, time for the real thing. Got my gloves on, put on some safety glasses because even vinegar fumes aren’t fun up close. Placed the intake tube into the acetic acid container. Put the outlet tube into the target container. Took a breath and turned it on.
It started pumping the acid, success! But hold on, after maybe ten seconds, I noticed a drip. Then another. One of the tube connections on the pump outlet nozzle was leaking. Not pouring out, but definitely leaking. Not good. Switched it off fast. Wiped up the small puddle.
Lesson learned: those push-on tube fittings weren’t quite cutting it. The pressure, maybe? Or the acid making things slippery? Who knows. I grabbed some small cable ties, the tiny ones, and cinched them down really tight around the tubing where it connected to both pump nozzles. Pulled them snug with pliers.
Tried it again. This time, solid. No drips, no leaks. The acid flowed smoothly, if slowly, from one container to the other. I let it run until I had transferred the amount I needed. Much cleaner than pouring, that’s for sure. The pump body felt a little warm, but nothing alarming.
- Checked connections again – still dry.
- Monitored the flow – slow but steady.
- Kept an eye on the pump temperature – stayed just warm.
Cleanup and Final Thoughts
Once done, the most important part: cleaning. I immediately ran clean water through the pump for a good couple of minutes. Flushed out all the acid residue. Didn’t want that stuff eating away at the pump internals while it sat idle. Dried it off and put it away.
So, the acetic acid pump? Yeah, it worked out in the end. Took a bit of fiddling with the leaky tubes, but the zip tie trick sorted that. For a cheap little pump, it did what I needed it to do. Made the process less messy, which was the whole point. Just goes to show, sometimes you gotta tweak things a bit yourself to get them working right, especially the budget options. It’s now a handy gadget for those specific tasks.