SSR wierdness

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terodox

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Hello All,

First I wanted to say thank you to everyone who responded to my earlier posts with wiring diagrams for my rims in a box build.

Now I have an interesting problem that I can't seem to figure out.

I've wired everything following the attached diagram. The area in red is my concern. If I have this light wired as shown then the SSR allows approx. 87v through all the time. When it goes active it allows the full 120v.

If I then disconnect the neutral side of this light, the voltage drops to 0 when the SSR isn't active.

I have no idea what is going on here.

The video shows first with light connected, then with neutral side of light disconnected.



Wiring Diagram.png
 
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Assuming your element is in series with your active light.
The SSR is not a physical switch as your symbol might indicate and even in an off state it has a small leakage current that will give a readable voltage on your meter. Some indicator lights may even light up from this leakage current.
 
The element hasn't been wired in yet. I wanted to prove that the system is working using a light first before I have my element dry heating by accident.

Eventually it will be wired in parallel to the heating element so it doesn't have to deal with the amperage draw the element is going to cause.
 
Protto, based on what you're saying the voltage being provided is at a low current? If the indicator light is on (which it is all the time right now, just gets brighter when the ssr is active) doesn't that imply that the element would also be active?

I'm confused on the function of the ssr if it is allowing anything to flow through when it is not active.
 
My incandescent indicator is ALWAYS on when my element is unplugged, even when the SSR is off, as long as my main contactor is on. This is NORMAL behavior for SSRs. They are not mechanical switches. They are not like the little flippy switch symbols you see on diagrams. They are solid state, high-currrent switching devices and leak current through small loads. Can we please get a sticky about this already?
 
I apologize for my total lack of knowledge on this. If I want to wire an indicator light that is only on when the heating element is on, what is the best way to do this?

Thanks, and I apologize again for my lack of understanding on the SSR.
 
Protto, based on what you're saying the voltage being provided is at a low current? If the indicator light is on (which it is all the time right now, just gets brighter when the ssr is active) doesn't that imply that the element would also be active?

I'm confused on the function of the ssr if it is allowing anything to flow through when it is not active.

Yes very low current. The only way is to use a lamp that has a high enough wattage to not light up when the SSR is on. -Or use a indicator lamp/LED on the low volt side of the SSR.

The heatingelement will only give milliWatts when SSR is off as it will pull down the open cirquit voltage you measured.
 
ok cool, so wire the light in series and it should perform as I expect it to.

Thanks for all the quick feedback!
 
Just to clarify, the light and element needs to be in paralel not in series, if that was your inension. One end to SSR and the other end to your neutral leg. For both the lamp and element.
 
Putting the lamp in series would be great in theory and do exactly what the OP wants. In reality, I really doubt you are going find a 30A indicator lamp.

Putting the lamp in parallel with the element means the lamp is going to come on when you unplug the element. It's that way for everyone, unless you put a power resistor in parallel with both, which is a waste of power to fix a cosmetic problem.

I wired my indicator lamp in parallel with my element, and also wired an LED to the low-voltage side of the SSR. In normal operation, both of them blink exactly the same. When I unplug my element, the 240V indicator comes on but the LED stays off.
 
Putting the lamp in series would be great in theory and do exactly what the OP wants. In reality, I really doubt you are going find a 30A indicator lamp.

Putting the lamp in parallel with the element means the lamp is going to come on when you unplug the element. It's that way for everyone, unless you put a power resistor in parallel with both, which is a waste of power to fix a cosmetic problem.

I wired my indicator lamp in parallel with my element, and also wired an LED to the low-voltage side of the SSR. In normal operation, both of them blink exactly the same. When I unplug my element, the 240V indicator comes on but the LED stays off.

You could wire a 1/2 Ohm 10 Watt resistor in series with your element then wire a 12 Volt indicator lamp across the resistor. The light will come on any time the element is on and you won't even notice the 6 Watts of power lost to the resistor.
 
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