extending rtd wires?

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wncbrewer

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I have the deluxe rtd probes from auber. The leads they provided coming from the xlr aren't long enough to reach my pids. What is the best way to go about extending them? Can I simply use butt crimp connectors with heat shrink tubing or does wire this small need to be soldered? I have soldered copper, but never anything electrical and would like to avoid it if at all possible. Thanks in advance...wnc
 
That's my one complaint about those probes and what's keeping me from ordering them right now. 12" from the connector to the spade connectors on the leads just doesn't seem long enough. Wish they had an option for a longer set of leads.

As for extending, you could butt splice them, but I'd probably run them to a terminal strip and then run another wire from there to your PID controller.

Use something like this:

13-1403B.jpg
 
I am contemplating emailing them and seeing if they would extend the 12" piece to 24". 12" seems too small to me too.
 
jfrizzell said:
That's my one complaint about those probes and what's keeping me from ordering them right now. 12" from the connector to the spade connectors on the leads just doesn't seem long enough. Wish they had an option for a longer set of leads.

As for extending, you could butt splice them, but I'd probably run them to a terminal strip and then run another wire from there to your PID controller.

Use something like this:

Gosh, don't know why I didn't think of that...I have tons of empty space left on the terminal strips I used to wire up power and pumps...thanks everyone

Ps-this is my only complaint with the probes. Other wise I think it was well worth the extra nine bucks for the deluxe upgrade
 
Call them. I'm sure that the owner would be more than willing to help you.

I emailed them with a question once and they responded in less than 2 hours. I have to assume they value customer service highly. I will report back when I get a reply.:mug:
 
Optional Deluxe Cable. The standard cable supplied with sensor is shown in the above picture. It is 6 ft (2 meters) long, color-coded three-conductor cable with two layers of TEFLON insulation that is very strong and weather resistant. Based on the customer's feedback and request, now we are also offering the deluxe cable for the probe: an 8 ft long TEFLON insulated cable with stainless steal braid for more protection. This cable also comes with a pair of panel mount connector on the other end. The mating connector of the panel mount connector has 1 ft of TEFLON cable installed. User can use this cable without any soldering work.
Liquid Tight RTD Sensor, 2” Probe, Weldless Fitting

Seems like the description of the product says a lot.
 
I have probes I already bought but they are not the deluxe cables and I wired them too far away from my pids where 12" won't reach. I can rewire them and drill new holes in my control box if I need to.
 
K type is a thermocouple and requires thermocouple wire to extend it due to the way that thermocouples work.
 
So if I had multiple k type thermocouples,I could use the surplus ones wires to extend?
You could do that or just order additional 'K' type wire from Auber Instruments.

Keep in mind that each of the 2 wires in this probe type is made from different metal and any connections made must be to the same wire type. If this is not done every connection becomes another temperature sensing junction.

You might want to read the writeup on this product:
Panel mount connector for K thermocouple

Hope this helps.
 
With the RTD, you also don't have to use the 24 gauge stranded wire. I just used some leftover 18 or 20 gauge wire I had sitting around from installing a new garage door opener.

From the Auber FAQ Section
1. What can I use to extend my RTD wire?

You should use regular copper wire for the RTD sensor connection. The only requirement is that the wire should not be thinner than 26 Ga.
 
I got this response:
We can make a special cable for you. Please let me know the exact length you want and how many of them. We will charge you $1.20 per ft for the extra cable added.
Thanks,
Suyi Liu
Auber Instruments
 
you may have to recalibrate the probe depending on the length of the wire. Shouldn't be by much, but it might be a degree or two
 
you may have to recalibrate the probe depending on the length of the wire. Shouldn't be by much, but it might be a degree or two

You'd have to add about 27ft. of 24AWG wire to change it by a full degree (F). I wouldn't worry about it at all.
 
You'd have to add about 27ft. of 24AWG wire to change it by a full degree (F). I wouldn't worry about it at all.

according to auberin's customer service adding 6ft will throw off accuracy by 1-2F.

I would recalibrate. YMMV
 
according to auberin's customer service adding 6ft will throw off accuracy by 1-2F.

I would recalibrate. YMMV

I guess I forgot you'd have two lengths of it because of the two wires, so 13.5ft of 24AWG would be 1°F. If you didn't make a high quality connection between your extension wire and the existing wire, you may get up to 1°F with 6 feet.

If you drop down to 28AWG, that puts you at about 5ft of extension to get 1° of error. So maybe that's where Auber is coming from.
 
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