Issue with Johnson Temperature Controller hooked up to an Electric HLT

[Normans54]

Hey everybody,

I have an interesting problem. I am building an electric HLT and am using a 2000w heating element. However, the tutorial I am using (http://goo.gl/GS0MPM) says that I should use a power cord rated at 16 amps or higher. The only power cords that I have found that meet this requirement are NEMA 5-20p cords, which means that they have a "T" blade. However, I currently use a Johnson A419 temperature controller and the plugs that allow a device to be connected to the controller are NEMA 5-15p, which have standard plug blades. I would imagine that I could use an adapter to plug it directly into the controller (e.g.: http://goo.gl/acZc59) but then I am concerned about the cord wired to the controller not being the right gauge to handle it, as I am pretty sure that the cords hooked up to the temperature controller are 16 gauge and rated at 13 amps while the power cord I am using to power my kettle's heating element is 12 gauge and rated at 20 amps. Is this a concern and if so, what should I do? Thanks!

 

[iijakii]

You'll need to rewire your controller to use properly rated power cords if you want to do it right.

Also, I'm showing the Johnson A419 is rated for 16A, 2000w element (on 120V I assume) draws 16.67A. Might want to drop your HLT element to 1500w and just use a standard 5-15p.

 

[Normans54]

You'll need to rewire your controller to use properly rated power cords if you want to do it right.

Also, I'm showing the Johnson A419 is rated for 16A, 2000w element (on 120V I assume) draws 16.67A. Might want to drop your HLT element to 1500w and just use a standard 5-15p.

Thanks for the response. I have already bought the element, and I would prefer a more powerful heating element if possible. That said, I would imagine that if the Johnson temperature controller can be wired to control either a 120v or a 240v device, then it could be wired to control a 30A (or even a 50A) device, right? If that is the case, how would I go about rewiring the Johnson A419 to work with the 20A cord?

 

[iijakii]

That said, I would imagine that if the Johnson temperature controller can be wired to control either a 120v or a 240v device, then it could be wired to control a 30A (or even a 50A) device, right?

That is not correct. There's going to be a contactor mechanism and other innards that are only rated to a certain amperage - not just the wires.

 

[Normans54]

That is not correct. There's going to be a contactor mechanism and other innards that are only rated to a certain amperage - not just the wires.

I see. Thanks for your help. This brings up two questions. Firstly, what would happen if I rewired the A419 to use 12 gauge wire and keep the 2000w element? Secondly, if I were absolutely gung ho on using a 2000w element, would I need to get a new temperature controller? If so, which one would I need to get?