Float switch with exposed magnet

[BrettDS]

I just picked up some cheap float switches from Amazon and I was a bit surprised to see that the magnet was exposed on the inside of the float. Do I need to worry about it leaching heavy metals or anything bad into the water or are magnets pretty inert?

 

[ryeguyy84]

I wouldn't use that, for one metal doesn't last long in saltwater tanks and magnets have been know to do bad things in tanks

 

[BrettDS]

That's what I was afraid of I was hoping to get the floats installed today. ::sigh::

 

[eddiereefs]

The mag mount? Why not silicon over it???

 

[CStrickland]

Silicon will interfere with the switch, magnet is how they work.
Amazon has a few float switches, when I was buying I think the $6 ones were ok, but not the $4 or something like that. It stinks to wait but you're better off not worrying.

 

[BrettDS]

Yeah, it's not the mount, but the magnet in the float. See the picture below. There's a bit of play and I might be able to cover it with something, but I don't want to affect the operation of the switch.

 

[BrettDS]

Well, after looking around for a while I couldn't find any other reasonably inexpensive right angle float switches at all. I wound up getting some epoxy and putting a layer of epoxy over the inside covering the magnet. There was enough play that the float still moves freely over the switch and the magnet should be protected from the corrosive water.

 

[tkeracer619]

The play is there to keep them from getting stuck. The tighter the tolerance the sooner it will get stuck.

 

[BrettDS]

There's still a decent amount of play, so hopefully they'll do ok. I got them to monitor the water levels in my tank and sump, so my apex can alert me is something is amiss. If one does stick then I'm in no worse shape than I was before I installed them. I'm not relying on them to maintain any water levels, so there is no danger of a pump continuing to run and flooding or draining anything.

 

[slief]

Yeah, it's not the mount, but the magnet in the float. See the picture below. There's a bit of play and I might be able to cover it with something, but I don't want to affect the operation of the switch.

So you saved $10 to $15?? This is why I avoid cheap float switches and don't condone the use of cheap ones either.. is it really worth cheaping out on something so cheap ($15-$20 for a really good switch) relative to the all the other costs in this hobby? Especially on a device that could fail and flood a system with fresh water or not advise you to a potential problem?

 

[BrettDS]

Float switch with exposed magnet

You make a good point... Another $10 or 15 wouldn't be much given what I've already spent, but honestly, I couldn't find any other right angle float switches... Expensive or not.

In any case, as I said above, I'm not using them to control any pumps... Just to monitor the tank water levels so I can be alerted if the water gets too high or too low. If there was a danger of a switch failing and causing flooding then I'd probably think twice about using these modified switches.