Beeskneesbrew
Well-Known Member
Does anyone know if pj has made such a diagram? The time has come to start the control build
Thanks,
Matt
Thanks,
Matt
Yes... Most probably. You end up with 38A without the pumps.So if I drop them down to 4500's will it work correctly then?
The pumps (2 of them) should draw less than 2 amps. It's close but should work.So...does that mean I won't be able to dumb the pumps while the elements are on?
Current Ratings and Circuit Protection:
The electrons flowing through a wire or subject to the same laws of physics just like everything else. As the electrons move the encounter friction which creates heat. The amount of friction created is subject to the size wire you use. Imagine two pieces of pipe, one is 1 inch wide and another is 6 inches wide. It is easier to push 1000 gallons a minute out of the 6 inch pipe than the 1 inch pipe because there is less friction. A wires AWG or Gauge is the width of a wire and the smaller the number, the larger the wire.
The reason why this relationship is important is that if too many Amps travel through a wire it starts to build heat and could get hot enough to melt/burn the protective insulation off leaving a bare wire. Worse still, the wire could get hot enough to cause whatever it may be touching to catch fire. Here is a table showing the maximum current ratings for the most common sized wires.
AWG/Max Current
14 AWG/15 Amps
12 AWG/20 Amps
10 AWG /30 Amps
8 AWG / 40 Amps
6 AWG/55 Amps
To prevent a wire from getting too hot circuit breakers and fuses are used. These guys sense how much current is passing through a wire and if the current is greater than the fuse/breakers rating it will open up, essentially disconnecting the over drawn circuit from power. The size of the circuit breaker or fuse is determined by the size of wire attached to it. So if 14 AWG is used, nothing larger than a 15 Amps breaker/fuse can be used. If 10 AWG were used then anything up to and including a 30 Amp breaker/fuse may be used.
Breakers and fuses are meant to save property NOT LIFE! 1 Amp is more than enough to kill you.
Once the service wire makes it to the brew rig it can be redistributed using smaller wires. The important thing to remember is every time the wire size gets smaller, it needs a fuse or breaker rated no larger than the wires maximum rating.
For example, if a 30 amp services is brought to the brew rig and a circuit for the March pumps needs no more than 15 amps then 14 AWG wire may be used. To do this though, a 15 amp fuse/breaker must be installed between the two. So the 10 AWG wire providing power will go into the supply side of a 15 Amp breaker/fuse and the 14 AWG wire going to the march pumps goes into the load side of the breaker/fuse. The 14 AWG wire is now adequately protected.
Beeskneesbrew said:Looking at the diagram...what is between the ssr and female side of element plug?
I run things that I've read in this forum by him before anything is done.
I'm not sure how you learn, but asking questions is how I do. I'm not the only one building this control panel, a friend if mine who is an electrical contractor will be sitting in and helping me. While everyone has there opinion on which way is better, I run things that I've read in this forum by him before anything is done. Thanks for your concern!
Matt
What do contactors do, and where do I get them?
P-J said:How about this?
As usual - click on the image to see the full scale diagram that is printable on Tabloid paper (11" x 17")
http://www.pjmuth.org/beerstuff/images/BCS-460-wiring-2-4.jpg
The contactor allow the power to the elements to be shut off. The SSR does not do that as there will still be voltage present even when the SSR is not conducting..PJ,
Whats ur reasoning behind using a SSR and contactor in series? Is it incase the SSR fails closed?
The contactor allow the power to the elements to be shut off. The SSR does not do that as there will still be voltage present even when the SSR is not conducting..
Beeskneesbrew said:Do I need single pole contactors?
The switches are called out in the Legend at the bottom of the drawing page.This is a great diagram thanks for all your hard work. What kind of switches are used in this diagram as well as where are theses sourced? Also where can the contactors be sourced with DIN attachment?
Thanks Caleb
They provide a seperate path to interlock the system and prevent more than 2 elements from being powered at the same time. They also provide a path to select whether the elements are powered by the BCS system or with manual mode if the BCS system is not available or IF it has failed...What does the n/o contact do on switches 5-8?
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