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- Vacuum Pump - 12V
This vacuum pump really sucks! This pump operates at 12V and has enough suction for most small projects. We even used one to make our very own universal gripper using coffee grounds, balloon and some other parts.
- Diaphragm Type Vacuum
- Operating Voltage: 12V
- Working Pressure Range: -70KPA-220KPA
- Vacuum: >350mmHg
- Noise: 65dB
- Working range: 9-15LPM
- 500hr Lifespan
Vacuum Pump - 12V Product Help and Resources
IoT MOSFET Controlled Pump
We used this pump in a blog post on our web site. You can read about it here: Hardware Hump Day - Remote Smoke Machine Prank [ https://www.sparkfun.com/news/2344 ]
Mounting the pump
Unfortunately, we do not have an exact part in our catalog to mount the vacuum pump. Maybe you can cut a hole in the enclosure that you are using and use some zip ties? Or maybe you can find a mounting clamp that fits around the diameter of the motor. Looking online, there is a 3D model of a clamp that can be printed with a 3D printer [bracket - http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:996692 ].
Otherwise, the closest mounts in our storefront are the 37mm diameter motor mounts [ like Motor Mount Clamping - https://www.sparkfun.com/products/12407 and Motor Mount - Swivel Clamp - https://www.sparkfun.com/products/12524 ]. The clamps were designed to be used with the Actobotics gearmotors. Testing out the swivel clamp on the vacuum pump's motor, it was a little loose since the diameter was about 36.65mm. I had to switch the set screw to a smaller length to secure the motor to the clamp. Maybe you can add some material between the vacuum pump and the clamp for a better fit.
Gripper tutorial
Besides our tutorial that is on our site, you can look at this video tutorial online “DIY Robotic Gripper: Give Yourself A Hand ” - [ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5I9AZsZPwo ] .
1 of 1 found this helpful:
Power requirements
The best to power these would be to provide a power supply with about 12V with a minimum current around 0.40A. It pulls a maximum of 0.54A from a 12V variable power supply. If you adjust the voltage or current, the vacuum will provide less suction just like any dc motor. If you apply too low a voltage, the motor will not start, or will stop if you blocked the vacuum pump's nozzle.
Core Skill: Robotics
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Skill Level: Noob - You will be required to put together a robotics kit. Necessary parts are included and steps will be easy to follow. You also might encounter basic robotics components like bearings, mounts, or other hardware and need a general idea of how it goes together.
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Core Skill: Electrical Prototyping
If it requires power, you need to know how much, what all the pins do, and how to hook it up. You may need to reference datasheets, schematics, and know the ins and outs of electronics.
Skill Level: Noob - You don't need to reference a datasheet, but you will need to know basic power requirements.
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Comments
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Customer Reviews
4.6 out of 5
Based on 29 ratings:
1 of 1 found this helpful:
Works like I hoped it would.
I had an idea to make a device to draw air from storage bags to freeze homegrown vegetables . We have been drawing the air out by mouth with a straw and we both almost inhaled food particles. With the use of this pump, a power source, switch and an inline filter I now have what I need.
1 of 1 found this helpful:
Works really well!!
I bought this pump to turn a radio shack desoldering iron into a vacuum powered one one and it has the perfect amount amount of suction!!! Now only if I could get a desoldering tip for my Sparkfun branded iron...
2 of 2 found this helpful:
Great Pump
Using the pump for a personal project and it definitely serves its function. Not a lot of quality 12V pumps out there like this one.
3 of 3 found this helpful:
Works but need more vacuum
The pump works well, but for our lab use, it needs to generate more vacuum. The spec states 16"Hg, thought it would work with the vacuum cup grippers used in the robotics lab, but running through the lines and valve, creates just enough vacuum to pick objects up, but drops easily with just movement.
It works, but we have to really plan accordingly to make it function.
1 of 1 found this helpful:
Compact and Efficient
I received the vacuum pump within a few days and it was in an appropriate package. It started right up; works fine with chemical filtering setup of mine. Design could be improved by having small feet with holes so pump could be easily attached to a platform.
Because of the apparent quality of the pump. I'll be ordering other things from Sparkfun.
1 of 1 found this helpful:
Great Pump however
The power supply I bought from sparkfun 12 vdc barrel just does not cut it. I runs and stops. have to drain it completely the it will run again. on my bench top power supply it does not.
Hi, This pump needs 1A of power at 12V. If your wall wart is not rated for at least 1A it will not have enough current to run the pump correctly. Thanks
1 of 1 found this helpful:
Easy to work work
I use it in a couple of project. It is very reliable and easy to use. Also it is pretty quite and does not vibrate much.
1 of 1 found this helpful:
Vacuum Pump
Worked great right off. Whether sucking air or pushing it. I used it for a chip vacuum pickup where it can pick up even some larger chips. The tiny fish tank vacuum pumps couldn't do that.
1 of 1 found this helpful:
Loved it
Pump works very well. Best and cheapest pump I ever seen.
1 of 1 found this helpful:
Excellent replacement pump for a desoldering station
I purchased this pump when I could not find a rebuild kit for the vacuum pump on my desoldering station. I am very impressed. It has been working very well.
Inventor.
The pump works find and it is just the right size.I just need to experiment a little more with the application to see if it can work with suction cups to fulfill my requirements for the project.
A strong performer
I have this unit in my dosing system and it performs well.
I am very pleased with performance and reliability.
Entered the all school science fair!
My robotic gripper worked really well! As soon as my science teacher saw it she said you are entering the science fair!
Great little vacuum
I used it to filter wine and degas my fermented wine kit. Creates plenty of vacuum to draw my wine from the fermentation container, through a 22cm double plate filter #2 into a clean carboy. Presto job done. I powered the pump with a 12 volt 2amp battery trickle charger.
using in patented product invention
No good for solder sucker
Not enough vacuum for sucking solder but probably has other uses. I still gave it 3 stars since it does suck, just not enough for my project.
Good little pump
works great for small projects.
Well... Actually... it really sucks!
It does exactly what I was hoping it would do. Measured about 1/2 of an atmosphere on the vacuum gauge.
Work percent
0 of 1 found this helpful:
Excellent mini pump
VERY GOOD MINI PUMP
Strong and useful for vacuum and little pressure
I have not been able to wire it up yet, but I hope to use it to suck out the power steering fluid from the reservoir on our car and re-fill with new oil..
Reviewing Vacuum Pump - 12V
It is working very nicely. I am much satisfied with this product. Masroor
Works well
I bought it to make a gripper and it works very well for that as long as there is enough juice and the tubing is fairly short (the longer the tubing, the more airspace has to be cleared so the slower it grips.) It would be helpful if the inlets and poles were marked.
Awsome!!!!!
This tiny pump is "amazing", performed beyond my expectation.....worth the investment, so "buy" it. Thank you
Works well for my needs.
This pump is small, but powerful enough to do what I need.
Just perfect!
It really sucks! :)
WORKS GREAT
I am using this on my truck. It is taking the place of the truck's vacuum for my 4x4. Works better than I thought it would. I got a second one, just in case I needed it. So far, the one is working great
Works great
As advertised.
What tube size can be used with this product?
Anyone have an STL model of the bottom plate? mine broke when I put a piece of pipe over it... Hoping I could print a new one.
This look's pretty cool! Seems like a cheap way to create a vacuum for a Vacuum Filtering Flask. I will try it out and let you know how it goes!
Pump works great off an Arduino with an AMS1 shield in my project (https://hackaday.io/project/9055-jigsolve). When I turn it off or run it in reverse suction is not released. I've been told I might need a solenoid release vale added to the hose line. What solenoid do you recommend? Preferably something with 1/4" barbs like the pump to make integration easy.
What size are the threads on the side of the pump? I'm looking to add vibrational isolation mounts.
Can you add a small 5v vacuum pump to your inventory?
Out of all of Sparkfun's products, I think this is the only one that sucks.
Well played sir, but its one of many they sell that blow.
No, this blows the most.
Hey
Is it possible that you will stock small hydraulic pumps in the future? And some pneumatic / hydraulic actuators and motors?
I agree, I would really like to see some small hydraulic/pneumatic pumps/actuators/motors.
Thirded. I have always wanted to make a drinkbot, but the appropriate pumps are hard to come by.
If there was a nice little food grade pump and a solenoid valve, I'd be extra happy.
The original manufacturer of this pump (Ningbo Forever Electronic Appliance Co., Ltd.) lists the maximum continuous working time as 5 hours with a total lifetime of 500 hours on their Alibaba.com page. They confirmed those values via email. So, I wouldn't recommend running this pump for long periods of time. In my case, I need something that will operate for a minimum of 12 hours a day.
Can you give us a noise measurement? Something along the lines of x dB at 1 meter?
Can these be combined to get a greater vacuum?
has anyone tried to PWM this guy? I am hoping for a fairly-constant vacuum/pressure level that is a bit less than what I'm getting from it... I can't seem to get it to turn on for a short (10mS) interval, either.
To answer a few questions about how well the pump sucks, I hooked it to a vacuum gauge. The gauge read 760 mmHg before I powered it up. After turning it on and letting it equilibrate, the gauge read 218 mmHg. Thanks very much to my bro Mike Stephenson for setting up and letting me use the gauge and LabVIEW program for reading the gauge.
Transmorgrifying to other units, atmospheric pressure at that time was about 14.7 psi, and the pump made the pressure in the tube 4.2 psi. This is the thing I wanted to know, that there would be a 10 or so psi difference between atmospheric pressure and, for instance, the pressure in my coffegroundgrippermachine. I only have one of these vac pumps, so I could not perform any statistics, and I'll have to experiment anyway to figure out how to do stuff. In the words of the great philosopher Lemmy Kilmister "Take it or leave it."
Your mileage, of course, may vary.
Hmm, wonder how many Hg i need for a DIY breast pump? new arduino project coming up!
Damn, out of stock again. That blows!
Hey, could you expand on this more: '0-16" Hg vacuum range'
I was looking at vacuum pump measurements and it seemed like this means that the 30" hg at atm could be brought down to a vacuum of 14" hg. But then I got into looking and there are micron measurements for vacuums of 500 microns. Instead of subtracting this distance from the 30" hg they added from 0". This leads me to my question of what the zero in the 0-16" inches because this would either mean that the vacuum is perfect or that the vacuum doesn't work at all, none of which really make sense.
Thank you, Evangelista Torricelli, for covering your hands in mercury in the name of science.
...although I suppose people at the time were also covering their hands in mercury in the name of hats as well...
Science. Making people crazy since the 17th century.
-Taylor
To you guys unsure of the pressure range... This is really a common sense kind of issue. Does it make sense that the pump would generate 0" of vacuum, i.e. a PERFECT vacuum? No, of course not. It's a $15 part for hobbyists. This means that it generates up to 16" of differential pressure, i.e. at 30" of mercury atmospheric pressure, it can bring that pressure down to ~14" or up to ~46".
It's a range. Does this help:
http://www.ricinc.net/index_files/Page2163.htm
that doesn't help much, since that page also describes both systems of measurement! Does this pump produce a 16"Hg differential from atmospheric, or can it evacuate a chamber to 16"Hg absolute?
Wiml, enjoy an upvote for posting a really valid question.
here's a datasheet i found
http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/354079276/Electric_Air_pump.html
Thanks! That answers my question about it working as a regular pump instead of a vacuum pump!
So to clarify - this is not actually a vacuum pump, correct? It's just a regular air pump? Also where is the 16"Hg coming from? On the data sheet I see -70 kPa, which is -20.67"Hg. I'm assuming that given the 250 kPa upper range this actually a positive displacement pump that's hooked up in reverse to create vacuum?
Hi I used this pump in various applications it works(or sucks) very well, but now I want to know how can I get the relationship between the attached weight to pump to lift and the corresponding drop in pressure. Please provide such relationship if anyone has found it. Also I request SF guys to tell me same if possible.
How durable is this pump? Is it just for playing around? Could I potentially have this pump run for 5+ months at a time?
WIll anything bad happen if I power it using less than 12V? I got it running using a 5V battery bank. Obviously the power is less but will this damage or shorten the life of the product?
I bought one of these, attached it to a 12 v 2.5 A transformer and get only the most modest suction- about enough to loosely hold onto a piece of paper if put over the inlet. Is the pump function as one would expect and if not, does anyone have an idea of why it might not be?
How well does this perform if we're only providing it 7.2V rather than the full 12V?
Following up on my earlier question, I ordered one and I am happy to say that it does run on 7.2V quite well. My students and I did some ad-hoc tests and it works well enough we're going to try to build a coffee grounds gripper next. (Spoiler: Thankfully the pump is a pretty simple design and quite easy to take apart and remove coffee grounds from....)
How much does it weigh?
roughly 0.65 pounds.
Is that an inlet and an outlet on the pump? I'm trying to figure out how I might turn this is an actual, mini, floor vacuum.
I can tell you that it has the vacuum pressure, but not the total air flow necessary to really pick up much when used as a standard floor vacuum. If you had two flat surfaces, it could possibly be use in a pick-and-place machine, but not easily for ad-hoc picking up of small things.
hi this is aravind from India i planned to buy this motor for my ball picking robot project can anyone say the max ampere rating that shall be given to motor??
Any idea if this will produce enough vacuum to degass two part silicone or epoxies to reduce bubbles in casting?
Hey, does anyone know can this be used to as a vacuum pick up for automatic pick and place..
My students and I were able to play with ours a bit yesterday. If the pieces you're looking to pick up and move are small/light and you have a small (say 1/8") tip on the pick-and-place wand it would probably work. The vacuum produced is pretty constant, but low flow of actual air. If you have a very compliant rubber tip that would seal air leakage you might get away with larger components.
Has anyone used one of these in a portable project and can you recommend a good cheap battery supply which supplies the required 12V and 1A?
Again like some other before I have the question if this can also be used as a normal air pump not vacuum? It's not clear at all because the spec sheet lists air pressure and vacuum as 2 distinct specs and also on other sites it is listed as an air pump??
Will this work as a pressure pump?
I have some questions about this pump.
Q1 Does it suck from the inlet and below out the outlet. I seems to indicate this in the spec sheet as there is a Vacuum parameter and a pressure parameter . Can anyone confirm?
Q2 If i reverse the polarity of the vacuum motor will the inlet and outlet reverse also (ie suck and blow in the other direction) can anyone confirm?
thanks in Advance : Joe
Just got ours and I can answer both: A1 - Yes, there is a small flow of air out of the outlet. I don't have a vacuum/pressure gauge to give more specifics.
A2 - The motor is NOT polarity marked, and the design of the vacuum pump does not require the motor to run in a specific direction. No ability to reverse the inlet/outlet by simply reversing the wires.
Hello, is this pump able to handle small amounts of liquid?
I wouldn't as it's not designed to do that. The portion of the pump hooked to the motor does not appear to be sealed sufficiently to keep water out of the motor.
If by small ammounts, you mean just a couple drops during normal operation, then it might be possible. I would expect the droplet to follow the same path of least resistance and exit with the air. BUT as with any time you mix water and electricity, it's better to air on the side of caution. In this case, I'd suggest you put in some sort of canister or drying filter between the pump and the intake where it could pull in moisture.
thanks!
I wonder if i could I use this for vacuum filtration separating precipitate. Most minimalist vacuum filtration setups come with a cheap hand vacuum pump used for bleeding automotive brakes. A hand operated vacuum pump would work fine for filtering, but being able to keep a constant vacuum to help dry the precipitate is it's shortfall. Anyone else heard of using one of these 12V vac pumps for this purpose?
Hello! I want to make a roomba like robot, and I wanted to now if some of you think this has the suction for this? Thanks
Sadly no. Floor vacuums need high volume / low suction. This pump is designed for low volume / high suction. It wouldn't move enough air to budge your dirt. But you might be able to adapt our blower, which moves a lot of air. It inhales through the body (think of a hair dryer) so you'd need to glue some sort of duct to the center of it to achieve suction. Good luck!
I'm looking for a pump that can be switched from suck to blow with an electronic switch. Any suggestions? Thanks
This one will NOT work that way - the pump mechanism works in the same fashion regardless of motor rotation.
Any thoughts on valves and tubing for directing the vacuum to different lines over time? I want to see if I can get something to climb up a mirror.
Apparently what I'm after is called a solenoid valve.
I want an air pump for pumping a balloon, can I use this one for that purpose, if not, what do you recommend.
Hi, I need help. Electrical noob here. Can this vacuum pump have varying levels of suction force by varying the voltage applied to it? Connection to an Arduino board and programming it? Would that work? Much thanks.
If you hook this pump to a sealed container, it will produce varying pressure by varying the time that voltage is applied to it. Placing too low (or too high) of a voltage on any motor, including a pump, may damage it.
However, you can also hook this pump to a leaky container, and it will produce varying pressure by varying the speed of the pump's motor. You can use PWM (pulse-width modulation) of the voltage to change the pump's speed (an arduino has PWM libraries).
Is this item arduino compatible, & if so how would I program it to keep a specific amount of pressure, like when I am wanting something to be vacuum pressurized.
You can power this pump (or any motor) with an arduino and a transistor or relay. Sparkfun's tutorials should cover that.
If you hook this pump to a sealed container, it will produce varying pressure by varying the time that it is on. If you hook this pump to a leaky container, it will produce varying pressure by varying the speed of the pump's motor. Use pulse-width modulation to change the pump's speed. Do not use pulse-width modulation with a mechanical relay, or the relay will break.
To regulate the pressure, use a pressure sensor to tell the arduino when to turn the pump on or off. If you want to be accurate, try to find a sealed container, and pressurize it using the "leaky" method. Use the "sealed" method to fill a balloon or in cases where the actual pressure really doesn't matter.
What is the max psi this pump can make
RTFM. Or, in this case, RTF spec sheet. 32 PSI maximum.
next up: get photos of the inner workings/mechanism!
"This vacuum pump really SUCKS!" rofl hahahh
Am I reading the spec sheet right in thinking that at 12v and 1a the pump will pull the full 16" Hg of vacuum?
Had one of these turn up this week and I must say, if decibels were somehow related to Hg then this would be a winner. I reality they aren't. My DIY solder-sucker project sucks (and not in a good way)! Worth trying though, and learning by trial & error is not a vacuous thing...
If reversed will it work (for blow)? Some vacuum pumps seize up if run backwards (veined). I'm looking to build a picker, and would need a 'blow off' to break vacuum, and would rather not get into solenoid valves and such.
This one will NOT work that way - the pump mechanism works in the same fashion regardless of motor rotation.
I believe you will find one port (nipple) is suction, the other exhaust (blows).
!!! Refuel !!!
Hey was just wondering if theres a way to make the vacuum to suck then blow without swapping the hose. Can it be done by just the programming? Im using the Audrino Uno processor if that helps. Im a newby to all this so simple instructions would help :)
Maybe use a motor driver... they are used to drive a motor forward and backwards :-)
Hey Robert,
I'm planning on using a motor driver, but do you know for sure that running the motor backwards will actually reverse the flow of the air? e.g. will the pump actually work with reversed current? Thanks.
This is a diaphram pump, so reversing the motor won't reverse the airflow. I don't think reversing the motor to reverse the x-flow works on more than turbine or Tesla pumps.
Can I use this as an air compressor for an RC submarine?
Probably not. You could probably get a few psi out of it but I wouldn't bet on anything greater than about one atmos, or 14 psi max. You would need a huge air system to blow ballast tanks, which would in turn cause a bouncy problem.
A better solution, which I've used was to take a used threaded co2 cartridge from a bike emergency pump, bore out the center of the threaded area and and tap it so you can put a valve in it. Then you can pressurize it with an air compressor, and use it in your air system. An added bonus is that when you have three or four it looks like the HP air system on a sub. You can use 1/4" stainless as the air header.
Em2(SS).
Mine arrived with both barbs broken off. I think SF needs to find a better way to pack them.
Sorry about that. Have you already contact customer service for a replacement? cservice@sparkfun.com
Could this be modified for underwater use? I know it sounds silly but I think it would be useful for a project.
most electric engines can be used I have found, (is it the best for them) if you clean it out with fresh water and rubbing alcohol it should work just fine. Also use heat shrink on the connectors.
That depends on what you mean exactly. You may be able to enclose the unit to keep it watertight. However, I have no reason to believe it could pump water effectively.
Anything is possible, It'd take a good amount of waterproofing though.
Being the cheap bstrd that I am, I'm looking to make a motorized one man brake bleeder. There are pneumatic models on the market at about $100.00. I was hoping that this pump could be attached to a container, create a vacuum and be used to draw brake fluid out of the brake line. Sadly, I do not know how to translate the vacuum created by the pump into what is needed for the viscosity of brake fluid. Thanks, Jari.
how does this pump handle on pressurizing? what is its max pressure? does it require a check valve to fill a tank?
Amazing, I saw this in the new products list and the balloon grabber in the video was the EXACT purpose I had in mind for it when I clicked!
Can someone provide a Head/Flow diagram for this pump?
instead of hg rather use barA or barG....
Oh man.... giant gecko robot for sure:) Strap a huge solar panel on the back and it could walk up walls! New AVC challenge walk up and over the sparkfun building:)
Does this work in reverse as a small air pump?
-Taylor
EDIT. roybean's link shows that it does work as a pump.
Awwwwww! :( Why couldn't you post this earlier in the week? I tried and tried to hold out hoping a new product would be posted but I just couldn't wait. I knew this would happen lol. I want this.
Sparkfun usually has all their products posted by Thursday(new product post Thursday), so hold of on buying something new until then.
0-16" Hg
you missed the double prime key, lol
Can this pump be used for liquids?
If you wanted a high pressure pump that can pump liquids use a solenoid pump either from the internet, or buy a cheap espresso maker with a pump in it (70$ish, target)
if you want a low pressure water pump, get one that is for liquid cooling computers.
both of those will have tube in tube out
another possibility for pumping liquids is an aquarium powerhead. i dont think they work so well if you want any amount of pressure, but if you're just using it to move liquid they work quite well....
I'm not sure, but I would assume that it cannot.
Hey I saw the video with the gripper and I was wondering if you can put into the market this elastic ball you use to grasp
any object.
Is that possible ??? or at least tell us where we can find one.
It's a balloon filled with coffee grounds.
here