benko
Well-Known Member
I'm thinking about constructing an electric dedicated heat exchanger for a HERMS system, similar to the one that The Pol was going to make for his. I'm looking at a 1500W, 120V heating element in a small (1-2 gallon) container. I'm incredibly paranoid about burning the house down (And I have this picture in my head of SWMBO standing over me with a baseball bat ready to hit me out of the way every time I plug this thing in).
Here are my questions for the electricians out there:
1. Will a Johnson A419 temperature controller be able to handle a 1500W, 120V heating element safely? It would be plugged directly into the controller, which would plug directly into a 20 Amp socket in my garage.
2. Is it even safe to use the temperature controller as my on/off switch for the heating element?
3. What type of insulation/waterproofing are you using near the bottom of the heating element to keep water from entering the wiring?
4. Does it need to be grounded, or can it simply be the heating element attached directly to a heavy-duty cord (with the connection being waterproofed) and then that plugged right into the Johnson controller?
Thanks. I know that similar topics have been covered, but I'm so paranoid about this that I was looking for answers specific to what I had in mind.
Here are my questions for the electricians out there:
1. Will a Johnson A419 temperature controller be able to handle a 1500W, 120V heating element safely? It would be plugged directly into the controller, which would plug directly into a 20 Amp socket in my garage.
2. Is it even safe to use the temperature controller as my on/off switch for the heating element?
3. What type of insulation/waterproofing are you using near the bottom of the heating element to keep water from entering the wiring?
4. Does it need to be grounded, or can it simply be the heating element attached directly to a heavy-duty cord (with the connection being waterproofed) and then that plugged right into the Johnson controller?
Thanks. I know that similar topics have been covered, but I'm so paranoid about this that I was looking for answers specific to what I had in mind.