I got great answers to my question of the SSR's yesterday, so here is another one...
Trying to finish my all electric herms control box and got to the point of connecting it to my 50 Amp 240 outlet recently installed. After it is plugged in, the breakers return to off immediately. Obviously I have a problem. I have checked the internal wiring of the control box by giving it power separate from my breakers, and it worked fine. I have checked voltage and it appears to be where it should be and not where it shouldn't.
The outlet is fed by 6/4 cable back to my main panel with a 50 Amp breaker. (non GFI). I then plug in a 4 prong 50 Amp plug with 6/4 SO cord which goes to my Spa panel. The spa panel has a 50 Amp GFI 2 pole breaker to feed the 240 V elements and SSR's and a 15 Amp GFI single pole breaker to power the pump, the PID's and the 12 and 24 volt transformers.
The hot legs are kept separate (i.e. the red and black from the 50 Amp GFI breaker are separate from the black hot from the 15 A GFI breaker. All of the neutrals (including the neutral coming from the GFI's) are combined and the grounds are combined.
I feel like my problem is in the Spa panel and the use of the GFI breakers. I wired it this way so that I could both my 120 and 240 V power GFI protected. I read that a single GFI breaker in the main panel will trip if you try to separate it into 120 V and 240 V in the control box due to unequal voltage coming back to the breaker. Anyway, I am wondering if I have inadvertantly created a similar problem.
All help is greatly appreciated as I am itching to brew (especially with the 2 feet of snow on the ground and growing)
Thanks
Bill
Trying to finish my all electric herms control box and got to the point of connecting it to my 50 Amp 240 outlet recently installed. After it is plugged in, the breakers return to off immediately. Obviously I have a problem. I have checked the internal wiring of the control box by giving it power separate from my breakers, and it worked fine. I have checked voltage and it appears to be where it should be and not where it shouldn't.
The outlet is fed by 6/4 cable back to my main panel with a 50 Amp breaker. (non GFI). I then plug in a 4 prong 50 Amp plug with 6/4 SO cord which goes to my Spa panel. The spa panel has a 50 Amp GFI 2 pole breaker to feed the 240 V elements and SSR's and a 15 Amp GFI single pole breaker to power the pump, the PID's and the 12 and 24 volt transformers.
The hot legs are kept separate (i.e. the red and black from the 50 Amp GFI breaker are separate from the black hot from the 15 A GFI breaker. All of the neutrals (including the neutral coming from the GFI's) are combined and the grounds are combined.
I feel like my problem is in the Spa panel and the use of the GFI breakers. I wired it this way so that I could both my 120 and 240 V power GFI protected. I read that a single GFI breaker in the main panel will trip if you try to separate it into 120 V and 240 V in the control box due to unequal voltage coming back to the breaker. Anyway, I am wondering if I have inadvertantly created a similar problem.
All help is greatly appreciated as I am itching to brew (especially with the 2 feet of snow on the ground and growing)
Thanks
Bill