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Question about “torque” and stirring power of mixers
Perhaps a brainless question, but . . .
Is it fair to say that less expensive, lower-torque stirring devices will stir more slowly (reduced RPMs) once the viscosity exceeds a certain threshold?
I ask because I have an OCIS homogenizer (rotor stator on Dremel) device, and it seems like, with thicker creams, the device really struggles to mix. In other words — and this could be just a perceptual thing — when I watch the preparation through the sides of the beaker, I really don’t see as much movement as I would with less-viscous materials. The same thing seems to happen with this inexpensive overhead mixer I have — I have not tested it with a tachometer, but I feel the machine slows down once I start working with any emulsions that, say, are too viscous to be used with a pump dispense. Assuming my assumption here is correct….is this just a facet of less-expensive devices, or would this hold true for IKA and the like?
Thank you.
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1 Reply
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@suswang8 what you are experiencing is the age-old dilemma of gear-drive versus direct-drive mixer utility. The direct drive units do not have the pumping capacity that the gear-drive ones do, but they can spin at much faster speeds. When flowing - good, when viscous - not so good. It is best to employ both, like a high-speed Lightnin’ direct drive and a gear drive unit like a Glas-Col.
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