Various manufacturers make water flow alarms. My company sells this one which has the added bonus of not only cutting off power to heated system but also t
he water flow to it:
http://www.safetyemporium.com/20902 That should shut down your system AND prevent a flood. I suppose the vulnerability there is that you could have a leak on the water supply to the monitor itself, heh. But you would presumably plumb those with secure connections,
Minimal protection (alarm only) is afforded by inexpensive battery-powered water flow alarms. I have one of similar to these on the floor next to my water heater in my basement:
I have never had a hose pop off a condenser that was properly wired on. I used 16 or 14-gauge copper wire. Properly twisted and aligned with the ring in the hose barb it=E2=80™s basically fool-proof. But some folks get lazy and don't inspect their wiring job afterwards - if that wire loop slips on top of the barb then it's really not secure. I also took the time to bend over the snipped end afterwards to avoid getting slashed on the hand when working with the apparatus. But this method also requires a pair of wire cutters or pliers to disassemble everything.
We had these simple metal clips when I was at MIT and I have never figured out if anyone still makes them. They are a loop of metal that had a rounded end that would fit perfectly into the middle serration of a hose barb once you had your Tygon tubing on it. Squeezing the other end let you latch the clip shut. Easy on, easy off with 95% of the security of the manual wire method.
And, of course, condensers are now available that have screw-on screw-off connectors that mean you only have to make that tubing-barb connection once so you can take the time to make sure it's done right. All the major manufacturers offer those; one example at my company's web site here:
http://www.safetyemporium.com/cg-1206-hc
Rob Toreki
======================================================
Safety Emporium - Lab & Safety Supplies featuring brand names
Fax: (856) 553-6154, PO Box 1003, Blackwood, NJ 08012
Hi, all,
We recently had a flood due to an insecurely attached hose on a water-cooled condenser set up overnight.
So I am on the hunt for ways to reduce this risk, besides attaching the hose more securely. I know there are recirculating system options, but I don't know what's suitable for overnight cooling.
All input welcome,
Thanks,
Melinda Box, M. Ed.
Organic Chemistry Lab Supervisor
Chem Dept Safety Officer
North Carolina State UniversityDepartment of Chemistry
Fox 328
Tel: (919) 515-2537
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