Panic in Ireland over Tucson circulation pump - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: paul cotter
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 05:25:18 pm
content: There is a panic in Ireland currently(and probably elsewhere) over a circulation pump whose power lead can be reversed which puts the live on the case, if fitted incorrectly. In my experience this would simply blow a fuse as all pipework I have ever seen is bonded to earth(ground), usually in multiple locations within a house. I think it is a "storm in a teacup" and there is no danger unless fitted to a very shoddy installation.

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 05:39:16 pm
content: Isn't that the same for any mains device which has an earth connection?

author: Siwastaja
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 05:43:31 pm
content: "if fitted incorrectly", what do you mean by that?If it comes with a prewired plug which connects live (either line or neutral) to chassis, then it's close to terrorist-tier illegal deathtrap. If you mean some idiot wiring live to the chassis themselves (e.g., by doing a miswiring within a correctly labelled junction box), then... that's what can happen with any device, and which is exactly why wiring up things by amateurs is... again illegal.What is exactly this mystery device?

author: langwadt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 05:50:00 pm
content: doesn't EU require an RCD in pretty all installations ?

author: Marco
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 05:51:50 pm
content: Why did they connect the neutral to the case in the first place?

author: Andy Watson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 05:54:25 pm
content: Quote from: Zero999 on October 06, 2025, 05:39:16 pmI assume the pump has its own connector, a bit like an IEC-"kettle lead", but in this case, not polarised. Or not adequately polarised.https://www.ccpc.ie/consumers/2025/10/06/serious-risk-of-electrocution-from-114000-circulating-pumps-in-homes-in-ireland/

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 05:57:25 pm
content: Quote from: paul cotter on October 06, 2025, 05:25:18 pmThis seems to be a pump used in hydronic and underfloor heating systems. The problem seems to be that the connector on the pump can be forced in the wrong way around. Ham fisted plumbers would be able to do that for sure.In reasonably modern buildings, a lot of the pipe work is made from plastic nowadays. There is nothing to connect earth to. For example: my home is about 30 years old and all the radiators are connected by plastic tubes and the radiators aren't connected to earth. Still, an RCD / GFI should trip if the pump is connected wrong.

author: temperance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 06:12:06 pm
content: 1. Aren't you supposed to switch off power to the water pump before disassembling such an installation?2. When re-applying power and the connector is fitted the wrong way around, the RCD should trip. So how can this be a problem with the pump if only qualified personnel is allowed to service those?

author: jpanhalt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 06:18:29 pm
content: Is this the link:https://tucsonpumps.com/serial-number-checking-tool/

author: themadhippy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 06:42:21 pm
content: Quoteif theres no earth path hows that gonna work then?

author: 5U4GB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 06:55:39 pm
content: Quote from: paul cotter on October 06, 2025, 05:25:18 pmShould be fine as long as they've read this:"AC Power Tech for Dummies", a.k.a. books that should never have been written.

author: Analog Kid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 07:41:26 pm
content: Heh; I used to live in Tucson (AZ, USA), so at first I thought you were writing about a swamp-cooler(*) pump in some property you had down there.*Evaporative coolers: very effective in that climate except during monsoon season

author: TimFox
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 07:42:42 pm
content: Quote from: themadhippy on October 06, 2025, 06:42:21 pmThere could be an earth path through water.

author: ksjh
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 08:06:26 pm
content: Quote from: 5U4GB on October 06, 2025, 06:55:39 pmOh, a bookthat should never have been written, interesting. I could not resist and took a look at the publisher's page about this book. I did not find any indication that the content is inappropriate. Here is the URL with a table of contents and a sample chapter:https://www.wiley-vch.de/en/areas-interest/engineering/electrical-electronics-engineering-10ee/electrical-engineering-special-topics-10eez/wechselstromtechnik-fuer-dummies-978-3-527-71674-6I have never seen the complete book, so judge for yourself. But I must admit that I also do not like the "für Dummies" title.

author: 5U4GB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 08:14:28 pm
content: Quote from: ksjh on October 06, 2025, 08:06:26 pmI just saw the title on a shelf and thought it was worth a photo, didn't look inside. From what the Internet tells me it's a teaching text on AC theory, which is fine, but not as a "for dummies" title.And I agree about the "für Dummies" bit, it should be "für Dümmies" with Lemmy on vöcals.

author: paul cotter
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 08:24:03 pm
content: The problem is that the three pin plug has no tab to prevent incorrect orientation and one's chances of fitting it correctly is 50%. Maybe I have lived a very sheltered existence- I have never seen a central heating setup without earth(ground) bonding. On the subject of RCDs, these are generally only used on sockets(I am not an electrician and I would not be up to speed on electrical regs).

author: ejeffrey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 08:31:49 pm
content: Quote from: paul cotter on October 06, 2025, 05:25:18 pmIf it's a device that can connect live to chassis, ground, or the working fluid through normal operation or through foreseeable accidental misuse (i.e., a connector that can be forcibly mated in the wrong orientation) then I would say it's not possible to overstate how shoddy and bad that is. There are a lot of other safety features that work together that will often prevent injury, but ramming someone's car because you know they have airbags is still illegal. The device is unsafe, and the dire warnings in the safety bulletin linked above is totally reasonable.Since you didn't link to any actual information, new story, or analysis, and didn't provide any useful information, there isn't much more to say. If you really believe this is a "tempest in a teacup" you need to provide more information. Otherwise you just sound uninformed and reckless.

author: langwadt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 08:50:23 pm
content: Quote from: paul cotter on October 06, 2025, 08:24:03 pmI don't know if Denmark took an extra strict interpretation of the regulations, but here everything has to be protected with an RCD, usually a single one for the whole houseif an appliance can be inserted either way, I would expect it to be double insulated so doesn't need earth and orientation not to matter

author: TimFox
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 09:11:27 pm
content: Quote from: 5U4GB on October 06, 2025, 08:14:28 pm"Dumb", whence "dummy", has two meanings in English: stupid (as inDumb and Dumberer) , or incapable of speech (as in ventriloquism or "dumbwaiter").My German is bad: in German does "dümm" mean only "stupid", as in "Dümmkopf"?

author: temperance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 10:01:48 pm
content: QuoteIf the installation is not properly earthed, it shouldn't be switched on at all. Here in Belgium, all conductive parts of the installation which can be disconnected must be earthed. In my case: the copper gas tube, the copper inlets at one point, the copper outlets at one point and the unit itself. As such, there are four earth connections going to a bus bar underneath the installation.When you sell or buy a house here in Belgium, you must obtain a certificate of compliance for the electricity installation. Among other things, proper earthing of the heating installation is mandatory.Also, every two years the gas installation must be checked for compliance. That person has a long list of things to check. I don't know if earthing is part of that. I will ask next time. (that's next year around this time.)The question is, what are the requirements for the connections behind a cover for which a tool is required to gain access. One of them is avoiding accidental touch during normal maintenance.

author: ksjh
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 10:30:43 pm
content: Quote from: TimFox on October 06, 2025, 09:11:27 pmToday, "dumm" is only used for "stupid" in German. Etymologically, the word ("tump") used to mean something like "inexperienced" in medieval times, later sometimes also "deaf" (now: "taub") and also unable to speak (now: "stumm"), butstupid(or sometimes more likedullorfoolish) is the only remaining meaning of "dumm" nowadays. ("foolish error" = "dummer Fehler")

author: Analog Kid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 10:47:32 pm
content: Quote from: temperance on October 06, 2025, 10:01:48 pmMy question to you, as I live in a relatively unregulated country compared to yours, is whether these stringent regulations result in more safety overall, fewer house fires and electrical faults, etc?If they do then that's a good thing.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 11:09:16 pm
content: Quote from: Analog Kid on October 06, 2025, 10:47:32 pmI can't speak for Belgium, but I can the UK:Fires are hard to quantify as the true origin of a fire domestically is often undetermined. However, the UK sees around 34k house fires a year - 49 per 100k population. The US sees upwards of 330k a year, or basically 100 per 100k. If anyone would care to find the approximate number of buildings to compare the rate per structure, that would be interesting.Shock fatalities are a little easier: ICD10 codes W85, W86, and W87 cover death due to exposure to transmission lines, other specified electric current, and unspecified electric current, respectively. To sample a couple of years, that totals 19 deaths in 2017 and 14 in 2020. Let's call a high number on that 20, and say 0.029 shock fatalities per 100k. I'm sure there's a few more which don't get the appropriate code applied, but that's going to be the case with every statistic.In the US, amongworkers, so excluding domestic contact entirely, there are around 150 every year, or 0.044 per 100k population - but to put that in perspective, that rate is closer to 0.1 per 100k workers. Apparently the total number is closer to 1000 every year, with up to 400 involving lightning, so 600? That's 0.18 per 100k.We must be doing some things right.Also, I'd like to point out the regulations, if actually followed, can be quite strict in the US. For example, you have entire states where exposed cables are essentially illegal - it's either concealed in a wall or it has to go in steel conduit. To my knowledge, there's no approved method of splicing a wire without leaving access to the splice. The question there, of course, is whether such strict regulations improve safety or encourage people to just do whatever crap job they want because they can't or won't pay the professionals to comply with regulation..The NEC is generally a good standard, with a few of its own oddities and some strange state-by-state rules. It's rather hampered, I suspect, by87 cent outlets with wires terminated by jamming them through a hole in a stamped brass plate. Eurgh.

author: Analog Kid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 12:05:07 am
content: Quote from: Monkeh on October 06, 2025, 11:09:16 pmYes, but more importantly, we in the US don't have those annual inspections that were described in Belgium. In fact, we have none after a building permit is approved and inspected (or a permit for repair or remodeling). Nothing.Once you build or remodel, after a final inspection you're on your own, baby.I think people here would be up in arms if a regular inspection regime were suggested.Does the UK have regular inspections?

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 12:25:56 am
content: Quote from: Analog Kid on October 07, 2025, 12:05:07 amNot for simple homes, no. For anything business related, generally yes - rental properties, for example, require an electrical inspection every five years, and gas annually. When selling, any purchaser would be mad not to demand such inspections unless they intend to tear it all out, but it's not legally required.This is not a government comes and knocks on your door thing. You must arrange someone to do it.I can't say I have a problem with enforced gas inspections:E: In the interests of clarity, that was not a gas installation explosion, but the results are the same. This one was, though:

author: themadhippy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 12:28:27 am
content: Quoteyep,but not mandatory for privately owned domestic property's. The recommendation is a maximum of 10 years between eicr's (electrical installation condition reports), for rental property's they are mandatory.The maximum period between tests is 5 years or when theres a change of tenancy.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 12:31:58 am
content: Quote from: themadhippy on October 07, 2025, 12:28:27 amActually no, there's no legal requirement for a new inspection on change of tenancy, only that the existing, valid report be supplied to the new tenant.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 12:41:50 am
content: Quote from: Siwastaja on October 06, 2025, 05:43:31 pmIt seems there is connector on a pump than can be inserted in reverse. These usually have a pluggable terminal block to which you attach the wire, then insert into the pump.

author: themadhippy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 12:42:21 am
content: QuoteI should know better than trust what the cartels "recommend"

author: Analog Kid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 12:44:17 am
content: The US does have regular commercial and industrial inspections. I was referring to domestic inspections.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 12:51:26 am
content: Quote from: themadhippy on October 07, 2025, 12:42:21 amI see where the confusion arises:QuoteI'm not entirely certain on the interpretation of that myself. Seems potentially extreme if someone only stays a couple of months. But, I think that does indeed not require one at a change of tenancy.Quote from: Analog Kid on October 07, 2025, 12:44:17 amA rental property is domestic.

author: temperance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 01:28:36 am
content: QuoteI have no idea. But those rules exists because some people repaired the installation with whatever they had in the shed or installed, preferably using some flimsy loudspeaker cable, lights and wall sockets throughout the house with cables running loose behind walls and ceilings or just "naked" on the wall and kept in place with some nails and ten layers of paint.The best one I've ever seen is a cable with two plugs connecting two wall sockets because after drilling a hole in a wall they noticed the electricity was gone in the other room. The man of the house was even proud that he repaired it all by himself.Imagine that same person working on the gas installation. Such things happen. Almost every year during summer holiday, you'll hear about some gas explosions on some camping. (Come on, a rubber hose is just a rubber hose, right?)

author: themadhippy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 02:32:56 am
content: QuoteAKA The widow maker.

author: Siwastaja
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 05:30:43 am
content: Quote from: langwadt on October 06, 2025, 05:50:00 pmNo. Nuisance tripping can be disastrous e.g. with freezers - or HVAC systems, like circulation pumps. Not only RCD is not required, it is definitely not recommended.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 05:47:45 am
content: Quote from: Siwastaja on October 07, 2025, 05:30:43 amTrying to remember the last time I had an RCD trip I didn't directly cause. Trying.. I guess that faulty kettle 15 years ago? Or I suppose you could argue the last time I needed a 110V transformer (sodding things..).

author: paul cotter
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 07:07:13 am
content: In my experience any water heating device, eg kettle, immersion heater, is the main cause of RCD tripping.

author: Jeroen3
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 07:09:23 am
content: Quote from: Siwastaja on October 07, 2025, 05:30:43 amNuisance tripping is bad because uneducated, or dangerously-educated people, start creating workarounds.Quote from: paul cotter on October 06, 2025, 05:25:18 pmCan you explore and list all the options where this single failure can cause danger to people?I'll start:- underfloor heating manifold with only poly-ethylene piping. (last time I checked, they don't have an earth screw)

author: langwadt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 10:04:21 am
content: Quote from: Siwastaja on October 07, 2025, 05:30:43 amhere it has been a requirement in new builds for +20 years, and I think for atleast 15 years it has been a general requirement even in old installations

author: paul cotter
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 10:14:43 am
content: Agreed. In my LIMITED experience of heating systems everything at source is bonded. With a proliferation of plastic pipes I would still expect comprehensive bonding of all energised components. Even under the worst possible conditions an electrically hot radiator probably would not represent a serious shock hazard without a return path- while standing on a wooden pallet I once accidently got my hand too close to the top cap of an 813 valve(tube) operating at ~2KV and a small arc jumped across giving me a tickling sensation in my hand but no hint of a shock. Holding an earthed metal object in one hand and then holding the radiator would obviously not be a good idea. Even with a lot of plastic pipes I'm sure there would be lots of other paths to earth (ground).

author: Siwastaja
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 11:49:34 am
content: Quote from: langwadt on October 07, 2025, 10:04:21 amInteresting if true. Opposite here. Here RCD is required for laymen-accessible power outlets, and has never been required for permanently installed equipment like HVAC (heaters, pumps etc.). Also outlets dedicated for a specific use either by positioning or explicit signage are exempt from the requirement: fridge/freezer outlets being the most typical example. (SFS 6000-4-41)The claim was though that EU requires RCD in "pretty  all installations" which is clearly incorrect. Some specific countries might have stricter requirements, I don't know.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 12:12:56 pm
content: Quote from: langwadt on October 07, 2025, 10:04:21 amSame in the Netherlands. Only nuisance tripping I had in the past decades was pressing the test button on the RCD feeding most of the home while doing working the utility closet.If an RCD trips it is either due to poor quality or a problem in the installation which needs to be corrected. I did some upgrades / extensions in my distribution panel over the years and opted buy A-brand gear. I'm planning to replace the rest as well to have an RCD/breaker combo for each circuit instead of one RCD + separate breakers feeding 3 circuits (and have an RCD for the stove and dishwasher).

author: paul cotter
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 12:20:34 pm
content: Is that a standard 30ma RCD on the whole supply? I have seen some industrial RCDs rated at 300ma, I would not like to experience a shock with one of these!!

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 01:09:56 pm
content: Quote from: paul cotter on October 07, 2025, 12:20:34 pmYes, that is 30mA on the whole supply. When my house was build, RCD wasn't mandatory for washing machines, stoves and so on but nowadays there is no exception.

author: pardo-bsso
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 01:31:55 pm
content: Meanwhile here...

author: Siwastaja
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 01:39:30 pm
content: Quote from: paul cotter on October 07, 2025, 10:14:43 amAnd that faulty connector (which can be inserted in reverse)ispart of this "comprehensive bonding".You see, protective earthing is all or nothing. When you earth every possible thing, you areincreasingthe risks when something is incorrectly "earthed" to live wire; a floating system would be safer. This is exactly why mixing up PE with live is such a big offense, taken so seriously - it simply cannot be allowed to happen at all.RCD mitigates the consequences when deadly mistakes are being made, but should not be used as a sole protective layer - i.e., we shouldstilltake deathtraps seriously, and not think they are OK because RCD takes care of it. Think about RCD as an airbag. Every car having an airbag is not an excuse to drive drunk or cut brake lines or whatever.

author: Marco
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 02:10:25 pm
content: Quote from: Siwastaja on October 07, 2025, 05:30:43 amThat's a good reason to give it it's own RCD, but why would a pump nuisance trip in normal operation? It's a pretty simple device with not a lot of room for leakage currents.

author: Siwastaja
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 03:45:25 pm
content: Quote from: Marco on October 07, 2025, 02:10:25 pmFaulty RCDs are a thing. Many if not most countries have decided professionally wired HVAC circuits to have low risk, not to mandate RCDs. There is this general concept that legislators should not impose requirements that areunnecessary. The burden of proof of needing an RCD is on those suggesting adding it; not the other way around. Then again, cases like this pump are a good demonstration that maybe RCD should be required also in HVAC pump circuits, like seems to be case in some countries (but not EU-wide in general).But probably 99.99% of deaths due to incorrect protective earthing, or misuse, are caused by end user pluggable appliances, especially in bathrooms. That's why most countries require RCDs to be installed to such outlets.

author: Electrodynamic
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 03:57:04 pm
content: So let me get this straight, there is "panic" in Ireland over an incorrectly wired circulation pump?.If this is all it takes to get people to panic I think you may be in big trouble. Have you read the news lately?.

author: ejeffrey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 04:54:17 pm
content: Quote from: Electrodynamic on October 07, 2025, 03:57:04 pmThe only evidence of a "panic" that has been presented in this thread is that a faulty and dangerous product has been recalled. The manufacturer has posted notices on how to identify the dangerous pumps and instructions on how contact them to have a professional fix the issue. That's not panic, that the system working.Maybe there is panic going on. But the only person so far appearing to "panic" is the OP who seems to be panicking about how much of an overreaction it is to try to not electrocute people.

author: Electrodynamic
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 04:57:54 pm
content: ejeffreyI was being sarcastic, sorry for the confusion.

author: Marco
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 05:11:11 pm
content: Quote from: Siwastaja on October 07, 2025, 03:45:25 pmAlso pumps and heatpumps. Especially for hydronic heatpumps, scenarios to electrify the hydronic loop without tripping a breaker don't seem much of a stretch.Ducted or air-air has much lower risk than hydronic.

author: floobydust
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 05:28:07 pm
content: Tucson look like pumps made in china, importedHow strange they are offering a free replacement pump when it's supposedly a wiring error, for 7 years now?"The core defect: the mains cable on these circulating pumps can be wired in reverse, so the live (hot) conductor connects to the earth pin — this could make metal parts of the pump live under certain conditions."CCPC RecallI don't expect a pump motor to run with Line and PE swapped. How do the electrons make it to the motor? Seems dodgy.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 05:46:07 pm
content: Quote from: floobydust on October 07, 2025, 05:28:07 pmIt doesn't. And then you get touchy-feely trying to figure out why it isn't, and you become regretful. You hope.

author: CatalinaWOW
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 06:05:18 pm
content: Random comments.1. Weird to see this company name in Ireland. Googling Tucson shows only three types of responses. First, those relating to a city in Arizona where I once lived. Second, an automobile brand from Hyundai, part of a series named for Southwestern United States cities. And finally this pump recall. I wonder how they got the name.2. When you access the company site the pictured pump appears to have an all plastic housing. While I agree that the bonding error is a bad thing, it is not clear to me how this is an extreme risk.3. At some point there has to be a limit to the expenditures on safety. Statistics earlier in the thread do appear to show that safety practices in Britain result in a significantly (in the statistical sense) lower electrocution rate than is seen in the US, though there are many reasons to question the comparability of the numbers. But even in the US such rates are quite low. Comparable to the rates of drownings in private swimming pools for example.There is no real answer to how safe is safe enough. Too much emotion involved. But we do make choices to accept danger far greater than this on a regular basis. For example traffic fatalities could be dramatically reduced worldwide by such simple measures as setting speed limits of 25 km/hr, or eliminating private ownership and operation of motor vehicles. No one seriously proposes such actions.

author: floobydust
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 06:09:29 pm
content: Then why all the hoopla? Tradies getting zapped, falling dead all over Ireland!It smells more like defective product causing a ground fault, as well as PE not connected to anything.If a hydronic pump body goes hazardous live, and there is plastic piping, you get electrolysis happening, high leakage currents. RCD should trip but I've never measured those currents.Not enough to boil water over the tubing length.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 07:47:50 pm
content: Quote from: CatalinaWOW on October 07, 2025, 06:05:18 pmThese are certainly not plastic bodied pumps. The connections to them, even on non-conductive pipework, will be made by large brass valves:This is not something you want an unkeyed connector which can reverse L and PE on. Dumb design - PE to centre pin and you can make it intentionally reversible..

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 07:51:07 pm
content: Quote from: CatalinaWOW on October 07, 2025, 06:05:18 pmNo, these pumps have a full metal housing. They need to work under a few bar of water pressure at high temperatures for many decades. A max pressure of 10 bar at 110 deg. C is a not an uncommon rating.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 09:08:09 pm
content: All of such circulation pumps for heating / hot water have cast iron housing. Even the cheapest shit sold for $25. Modern high efficiency circulation pumps like these also have BLDC motor with permanent magnet rotor submerged in water.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 09:20:07 pm
content: BTW I cannot say who makes the pump itself but controller is a bog-standard Chinese stuff. So the issue most likely exists on many other pumps from other brands. Brittherm and some noname on a blurry photo in particular look to use exactly the same housing as Tucson too.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 07, 2025, 09:46:59 pm
content: I bet these are Dambat/IBO (real pump manufacturer) panda with a bit more advanced controller fittedhttps://dambat.pl/en/collections/energy-saving-circulation-pumps/products/panda-25-60-180-circulation-pump-with-screwsEDIT: Found one that looks exactly the same and says it's made by Cacheng, which is Chinese company.