Temp controller

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just ordered one for my ferm chamber... will report back in 6 months when it arrives.
 
Two units left in the auction out of 24. I think the seller should give a cut to the OP for the props.
 
Hey guys, I got a PM asking how I wired it so I figured I'd share with everyone.

I ran power to a 5-15R2 receptacle, breaking off the tab between the two hot terminals so the two receptacles can be individually controlled. One is always hot.

I then ran a hot to the controller (pins 1 & 7) and a neutral to pin 2. I ran a switched hot from the controller (pin 8) back to the receptacle and plugged the mini-fridge into that. This way I have an "always on" receptacle, and a "switched" receptacle controlling the mini-fridge. The fridges internal t-stat is let at coldest setting and is not doing any controlling.


Note: you can select the hot or neutral to do the switching on, but it's safer (for various reasons) to switch the hot. I didn't put a fuse on the controller, but you probably should...I think I will add one acutally...just a 1/4A inline. I don't totally trust anything made in China that's not UL listed....or anything made in china that is UL listed for that matter.

Hope this helps. :mug:
 
bjorn, you could also replace the existing thermostat in the fridge with the controller relay, right? for those of us with bigger fridges it means that the defrost would still work even when the fridge wasn't cooling.
 
bjorn, you could also replace the existing thermostat in the fridge with the controller relay, right? for those of us with bigger fridges it means that the defrost would still work even when the fridge wasn't cooling.

this is what i'm planning to do with mine... my mini fridge has a separate freezer compartment, so i'd like for it to still defrost if need be... i reckon i'm gonna need a bit of help from the forum on this one though! :)
 
First, I'm sold on this controller. FWIW, I jury-rigged a johnson controller to sorta manually do a two-state. Sort of. Here. For $30, I might scrap what I have already done. Still, anyone with a single stage controller (i.e., ranco or johnson) might consider this, especially if they already have the parts sitting around, as I did. It's ghetto compared to the object of this thread, so no flames please.
 
Defrost isn't necessary when you're keeping the fridge temp above freezing. For bigger fridges you should still be able to connect it without replacing the t-stat.

But, yes replacing the t-stat is possible. The schematic is on the back of the fridge so just follow that. Seems like a lot of extra work for nothing though. ;)

Oh, I took the door of the freezer compartment and I'm adding a fan to help keep everything at one temp (optional).

sorry if my posts don't make sense....I'm really enjoying my blonde ale. :drunk:
 
well its good to see that i found a good temp controller cheap. now i just need to order it.... waiting till i get paid again. the seller does have multiple different auctions for the same controllers.
 
I'm not the OP, but this is how I did it...from page 5.

Hey guys, I got a PM asking how I wired it so I figured I'd share with everyone.

I ran power to a 5-15R2 receptacle, breaking off the tab between the two hot terminals so the two receptacles can be individually controlled. One is always hot.

I then ran a hot to the controller (pins 1 & 7) and a neutral to pin 2. I ran a switched hot from the controller (pin 8) back to the receptacle and plugged the mini-fridge into that. This way I have an "always on" receptacle, and a "switched" receptacle controlling the mini-fridge. The fridges internal t-stat is let at coldest setting and is not doing any controlling.


Note: you can select the hot or neutral to do the switching on, but it's safer (for various reasons) to switch the hot. I didn't put a fuse on the controller, but you probably should...I think I will add one acutally...just a 1/4A inline. I don't totally trust anything made in China that's not UL listed....or anything made in china that is UL listed for that matter.

Hope this helps. :mug:
 
Okay, electrical newbie here. I've done some car stuff, and replaced a couple wall outlets, wired a dishwasher.. That's about the extent of my expertise. Please bear with my sad little questions - I have no desire to drop $100 on something I can get for $20. :)

Hey guys, I got a PM asking how I wired it so I figured I'd share with everyone.

I ran power to a 5-15R2 receptacle, breaking off the tab between the two hot terminals so the two receptacles can be individually controlled. One is always hot.

Is this a standard wall outlet? Mounted in a new work box?

I then ran a hot to the controller (pins 1 & 7) and a neutral to pin 2. I ran a switched hot from the controller (pin 8) back to the receptacle and plugged the mini-fridge into that. This way I have an "always on" receptacle, and a "switched" receptacle controlling the mini-fridge. The fridges internal t-stat is let at coldest setting and is not doing any controlling.

Are you using pieces of Romex for this? Scrap from the butchering of an extension cord? (probably 14ga for this sort of application?)

Note: you can select the hot or neutral to do the switching on, but it's safer (for various reasons) to switch the hot. I didn't put a fuse on the controller, but you probably should...I think I will add one acutally...just a 1/4A inline. I don't totally trust anything made in China that's not UL listed....or anything made in china that is UL listed for that matter.

Hope this helps. :mug:

Thank you for the very helpful post - I'm trying to visualize the setup in my unedumacated mind here so that I can tackle this safely and save a pile of money. ;)
 
Is this a standard wall outlet? Mounted in a new work box?
yes

Are you using pieces of Romex for this? Scrap from the butchering of an extension cord? (probably 14ga for this sort of application?)
I used 14ga stranded wire for this. Romex would be difficult to wire to the controller being that it's solid wire. A pilaged extension cord is a great idea!

Thank you for the very helpful post - I'm trying to visualize the setup in my unedumacated mind here so that I can tackle this safely and save a pile of money. ;)

You're welcome! most important is not killing yourself wiring it, but an added bonus is saving money. I'll try to get a wiring diagram up tomorrow so it's a little more clear. I'm actually going to be adding some fusing to the circuit too.
 
If I understand the dimensions correctly the face is just a tad bigger than a decorative light switch and should fit inside a single gang, deep outlet box. So I'm looking at cutting out a decorative light switch cover and using that to mount it into an electrical box.

It's going to replace a t-stat on a chest freezer so the wiring is pretty straight forward. The power cord will go to the pilot light, than to the controller and then to the compressor. Sounds like a plan at least.
 
You have a pilot light on your freezer? Usually pilot lights are only on furnaces, correct?!
 
You have a pilot light on your freezer? Usually pilot lights are only on furnaces, correct?!

Too funny! Pilot light as it relates to electronics. "An indicator consisting of a light to indicate whether power is on".
 
sorry for the chicken scratch writing. You get what you pay for. :p

This is how I wired my temp controller. Since the temp contorller will be in the vicinity of liquid (most likely) it's wise to put the whole thing on a GFCI. Mine is right next to a sink all in a wet bar, so it's requried. I added the fuses because it's a 15A circuit but the contacts are only rated for 10A. I used a fast acting fuse (ABC-1/4) for the controller and a slow blow (MDA-10) for the contact.

don't kill yourself wiring it, and if you do, it's not my problem. :mug:

temp_controller.JPG


https://cdn.homebrewtalk.com/gallery/data/1/medium/temp_controller.JPG
 
Excellent! Chicken scratch and all - that's very helpful. Thank you very much. Looking forward to getting this thing in the mail and letting 'er rip. :ban:

sorry for the chicken scratch writing. You get what you pay for. :p

This is how I wired my temp controller. Since the temp contorller will be in the vicinity of liquid (most likely) it's wise to put the whole thing on a GFCI. Mine is right next to a sink all in a wet bar, so it's requried. I added the fuses because it's a 15A circuit but the contacts are only rated for 10A. I used a fast acting fuse (ABC-1/4) for the controller and a slow blow (MDA-10) for the contact.

don't kill yourself wiring it, and if you do, it's not my problem. :mug:
 
I'm a bit late to the party, but if it handles 10A at 240V, doesn't that mean 20A at 120V???

People keep saying amps go DOWN as volts goes down...but that makes no sense? That means amps go up as volts goes up. So if I go by the 5A/120V=10A/240V, doesn't that mean this thing can handle 100A at 2400V? Or 1000 amps at 24,000 volts? seems the power company should invest here...also, it means the same SSR could only handle 1 amp at 24 volts, or 0.1 amps at 2.4 volts...

If it's 240V/10A, isn't it 20A at 120 V???
 
Shorty,

10A 250V is not a power rating. The contacts can handle a 10A max current and can work with a 250V max voltage. If you use them on a 110V circuit, the max current is still 10A.

Paul
 
Shorty,

10A 250V is not a power rating. The contacts can handle a 10A max current and can work with a 250V max voltage. If you use them on a 110V circuit, the max current is still 10A.

Paul

OK, that I can accept. It was the 5A that was driving me nuts. 10A is 10 coulombs of electrons per second, no matter what the voltage, so contacts can handle "x" electrons per second.

Thanks!
 
10(6.2415 × 10^18) Just an (un)educated guess from the guy that didn't know about NG/LP Freezers. ;0)
 
10A 250V is not a power rating. The contacts can handle a 10A max current and can work with a 250V max voltage. If you use them on a 110V circuit, the max current is still 10A.

Paul

Why is the current rating fixed? The contacts have two ratings, one being insulative properties to keep from arcing (Volts) and power dissipation which is max amps at max voltage. Since power is Watts and the formula is Watts = Volts * Amps you should get Amps = Watts/Volts. This means that the rating for power would be 2500W = 10A * 250V if you solve for Amps at 110V it should be 22.7A = 2500W/110V. I'm sure I'm missing something here from my electronics 101 class, but what is it? At less than max voltage, you should be able to increase current and still be safe.
 
looking for some feedback on my proposed wiring diagram... it ain't perfect, but hopefully you'll get the idea. i'm wanting to make one outlet switched for heat and one for cooling. where the line gets white, it is supposed to simulate no connection (a jump). blue is for netural as white wouldn't have shown up well and i'll break the jumper tab only on the hot side but maintain the neutral. let me know if i should make any changes:

possibleschematic.jpg
 
Ricand,

10 A is not a power rating. Strictly a current rating. Typically contacts are rated for the max current load they can open and close under. In some sense it is related to power since the contacts have a resistance. Smaller contacts have higher resistance. The power in the contacts is I^2 x R (of the contact). They are designed to survive (i.e. not melt) under a max current. The R of the contacts is in no way related to the voltage in the circuit.

Paul

10A 250V is not a power rating. The contacts can handle a 10A max current and can work with a 250V max voltage. If you use them on a 110V circuit, the max current is still 10A.

Paul

Why is the current rating fixed? The contacts have two ratings, one being insulative properties to keep from arcing (Volts) and power dissipation which is max amps at max voltage. Since power is Watts and the formula is Watts = Volts * Amps you should get Amps = Watts/Volts. This means that the rating for power would be 2500W = 10A * 250V if you solve for Amps at 110V it should be 22.7A = 2500W/110V. I'm sure I'm missing something here from my electronics 101 class, but what is it? At less than max voltage, you should be able to increase current and still be safe.
 
laymeister, i don't remember asking anything about 10A as a power rating?? either way, the schematic i posted worked great for me. i started a new thread detailing the build.
 
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