L-Flame Pump Station

The L-Flame Pump Station is the heart of the new L-Flame system, which consists of up to three heads, the Pump Station and optionally the Filling Station. The Pump Station itself is equipped with numerous features and can be used in a variety of ways for indoor, outdoor, stage, tours and special effects.

A generously dimensioned accumulator ensures a long, mains-independent operating time of up to 90 hours and provides large power reserves for reliable supply of the high-voltage ignition, the pumps and the magnetic valves. Continuous charging enables permanent standby operation. Deep discharge detection is also provided.

Numerous control variants are available and in addition to wired DMX, wireless DMX receivers can also be powered via the XLR connector. Therefore no power supplies, batteries or rechargeable batteries are required for the DMX receivers.

The DMX signal is fed in at the Pump Station, looped through from there to each individual Flame Head and back, and is available at an output for forwarding it to
the next device.

All components are housed in a very sturdy, powdercoated aluminum casing, which protects the unit from light rain. In case of heavy rain and wind from the side, we recommend additional protection of the front of the unit.

The Galaxis L-Flame system can be operated with the three common fuels: Isopar L, IPA or Ethanol. On stages of any kind, whether indoor or outdoor, we recommend the use of Isopar L, because this fuel does not burn in case of fallout on surfaces and objects under normal conditions, and it does not form easily ignitable mixtures in case of leakage. This is a great safety benefit. The regulations for storage and transport are also less strict than those for fuels classified as more flammable.

For the internal fuel piping, no plastic hoses were used at all, but instead, attention was paid to durable components. The internal hydraulic pressure pipes are all made of high-quality stainless steel.

The large, integrated tank is made of welded aluminum and is therefore permanently corrosion-resistant.

The tank level is measured electronically without mechanical components and the result can be displayed, e.g. during filling, with an LED bar or as a percentage value in the LCD or can be called up via remote data request.

The device has a dirt filter on the tank nozzle, filters in the intake and a fine filter in each of the six pumps. This prevents dust, sand or other foreign objects from reaching the pumps and the magnetic valves. This prevents leaking magnetic valves and defective pumps.

There are two magnetic valves in series in each of the Flame Heads and an additional supply valve in the Pump Station before each head connector. This is only opened if there is a fuel request from the respective Flame Head.

The pump station is equipped with a bubble level, which shows the user exactly whether the unit is in a horizontal position.

Only hydraulic flat-face couplers were used, which are extremely resistant to dirt. The waterproof, electrical push-pull connectors also meet the highest standards.

The data exchange between the Pump Station and the Flame Heads enables the best possible system monitoring, performance and lowest pressure drops by immediate re-pumping when flames are generated. An integrated pressure accumulator also buffers the system pressure.

As a special highlight we would like to point out the autarkic operation with the powerful, integrated pumps and the accumulator. Autarkic means that no additional cables for control or power supply, no additional control units connected by cables, no gas hoses and gas cylinders for CO2 or nitrogen etc. are required. This means that the device can be set up extremely fast and can also be used on moving objects.

The lower part of the housing is designed as a tray and would collect the escaping fuel in case of a leakage in the unit. A liquid sensor monitors this tray and if the
sensor responds, a safety shut-down would be initiated.

In addition, the unit has numerous other automatic monitoring functions such as the detection of pressure drops without consumption and two tank overfill sensors. Once the pressure has stabilized after putting the unit into operation, it is continuously measured and evaluated. If there is a pressure drop without a fuel request, this is interpreted as a leakage and a safe condition is established (fail safe). Many systems from other manufacturers often simply provide pressurized liquid fuels and do not detect when a leakage occurs.

The operation of the device is very convenient thanks to the easily readable, illuminated LCD with plain text display and the magnetic pen sensors. A menu guides the user through all settings and the pressure control set point can be entered in bar and psi. Various LEDs provide information about important operating states.

Two persons can lift the device with the carrying handles on the sides, which are retractable. Four devices fit the basic dimensions of a Euro pallet. The device can also be easily integrated into flight cases.

The user can start a pump self-test function to determine whether all pumps are working correctly. There is also a function for venting the system and back-flushing the suction filter. If a hose is connected, the tank contents can be pumped into a canister. A drain plug allows the tank to be emptied completely.

The pumps are switched off before any damage is caused by dry running. In addition, the supply to the Flame Heads is stopped just before air is suctioned in. This prevents undesired fallout.

The internal tank can be automatically kept at a medium level with the Galaxis Refuel Station (in preparation).