30A Switch?

[virgil1]

Newbie question: For a 240V 30A (max) receptacle, if I want to install a switch for simple on/off, does it have to handle 30A? I am going to be running a 5500 W Heating element. So my max is going to be 22A, right? When I look at theelectricbrewery.com, Kal uses 10A switches. It seems like those aren't enough, right?

 

[Rockn_M]

If you wire your panel up like Kal's those switches are enough. The 10A switches are not getting the full 30A.

I recently finished my Kal clone it and works like a champ. If you follow his design you can't go wrong.

 

[LandoLincoln]

Newbie question: For a 240V 30A (max) receptacle, if I want to install a switch for simple on/off, does it have to handle 30A? I am going to be running a 5500 W Heating element. So my max is going to be 22A, right? When I look at theelectricbrewery.com, Kal uses 10A switches. It seems like those aren't enough, right?

Kal uses 10a switches to control contactors, which control the flow of larger amperage circuits.

Contactors are useful for this very purpose. There's an electrical coil that uses a small amount of electricity to physically connect and disconnect one side of a larger electrical circuit to another side. They make a solid "clack" every time the circuit connects or disconnects.

This is the type of contactor you'd need.

Solid-state relays do the same thing, except that they do it without any moving parts. They're capable of connecting and disconnecting circuits multiple times a second if you need that kind of thing. Since they have no moving parts, they make no noise, but they do generate quite a bit of heat, so you need a heat sink for them to not burn out fast. Contactors typically do not need heat sinks.

 

[virgil1]

Thanks so much! As usual, this forum is great!

 

[passedpawn]

You can get a simple 240V 30A switch (DPST) at home depot. Mine carries it. I've used several of them (one of them is on the wall, with a wet-duty cover over it). Others are right on my panel. I've used these since 2009, so I know they work fine