So I finally got my thermocoupler to complete my RIMS system and was testing it's capabilities. I was amazed at how hot the SSR heat sink was getting, running constantly. I don't know the life span of these things, but thought THAT can't help it. So I remembered the salvage computer I had that I got the power supply fan and neodemyte magnets for my stir plate. I also saved the CPU heat sink/fan. So I grabbed it, hooked it up to a phone charger, attached to SSR heat sink and plugged it in. Man did it make a difference. The SSR heat sink went from hot to touch to cool in a few minutes. Might not be necessary but thought I would share. Cheers!

Nice re-use/re-purposing! BTW, based on what I've read they're definitely necessary and as you mentioned, going without a heatsink can significantly reduce an SSR's lifespan.

Just a tip if you ever plan on more SSR's, I use three SSR's on my HERMS system and had a hard time finding a heatsink that was the right size and didn't cost an arm and a leg. I went with one from Extruded Aluminum Heatsinks from HeatSinkUSA Their prices seem very reasonable and they have quite a few length/width options (that's what she said). The only con I could find was they aren't anodized but so far that hasn't been a problem.

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Duh, I just noticed you said you were already using a heatsink and that you added another heatsink and fan to supplement the cooling. I was thinking you originally went without a heatsink, sorry for the confusion. Again, nice idea going with the fan and additional heatsink. Looks like the combo really helped dissipate the heat!

I can't really tell anything by your pictures. Maybe it's because I'm not a premium member and can't click on them or something? Too small.

What heatsink were you using before?

Sorry crappy phone pics. The pyramid heat sink is the 25A one from Auber. The heat sink/fan attached to the bottom is from the CPU out of a salvage computer. I'll try to take some better pics.

Yeah if I ever add some I'll keep that in mind. Thanks.