Need some help... Auber panel just fried

[TheMadKing]

I would ask them to extend the warranty by a year.

They've agreed to do just that,so now if anything breaks they'll replace it for an additional year.

 

[TheMadKing]

No that's not the point of a breaker. The purpose of a breaker is to protect wiring from being destroyed by interrupting a fault current.

There are 3 different types of fault currents a typical breaker is designed to handle
1. Simple over currents that are 1-5x rated. Think of this as you plugged in 2 toasters to the same circuit. So this is a low over current and often times it'll take a breaker up to an hour to trip depending upon the overload.

2. Instantanous over currents due to inductive (motor) loads. These are usually 5-20x rated current but last for a very short duration of time (typically under 500ms). The goal here is to pick a breaker with the appropriate trip curve so you don't get nuisance trips, but still maintain proper protection.

3. Short circuits. This is a complex scenario and the damage that can occur is often dependent upon what the upstream supply can deliver. It's not unreasonable to see 10-500kA of instantaneous current. You can vaporize wires when this happens. Google arc flash videos and you what can happen when improper over current protective devices are used. Basically a bomb.

#1 and #2 are no big deal for a breaker and it'll allow many, many trips and resets over its lifetime.

#3 is a different scenario and is often destructive to the breaker itself. In commercial/industrial settings its SOP to replace breakers after a dead short because they are only rated to interrupt 1 high current short.

So i'd be asking Auber to replace your main breaker too. I would seriously question whether it would be able to interrupt another short circuit again in the future.

Do you think that's still an issue even if the short went through 22awg wire that acted like a fuse?

Also witha gfci breaker can't I just rely on the test button to ensure that it's still functioning?

 

[processhead]

Do you think that's still an issue even if the short went through 22awg wire that acted like a fuse?

Also witha gfci breaker can't I just rely on the test button to ensure that it's still functioning?

I think the fact that it was 22 AWG that smoked due to the short is a significant factor when contemplating replacement of the breaker.

22 gauge wire with as little as 10 amps would smoke the insulation and possible burn through the conductor if nothing else cleared the short. (Not sure if yours burned though, or not?) In any case, the current that burned your small gauge control neutral may have been well below the trip rating of your panel breaker. If it were mine, I would not replace the breaker, but that is your decision.

Regarding the GFCI breaker test button, the button only simulates the current imbalance of a ground fault. It does not test the over current trip functionality of the breaker.

 

[TheMadKing]

So I'm working on rebuilding this thing and Auber has struck again (I'm ready to ask for a full refund and wash my hands of their mess)

They sent me new drawings but there is a major difference in how the power L1 is wired in the new drawing vs the old drawing.

The new drawing shows three black power lines coming from the power input and connecting to a single terminal on the power switch. (photo 1)

The old drawing showed no power lines coming directly from the hot leg, and only a single black wire connecting from the power meter to a different terminal on the switch. (Photo 2)

I suspect that the new drawing is correct if I'm reading the circuit correctly, but I'd like to get a second opinion rather than trusting that I'm right.

 

[daveerickson]

So I'm working on rebuilding this thing and Auber has struck again (I'm ready to ask for a full refund and wash my hands of their mess)

They sent me new drawings but there is a major difference in how the power L1 is wired in the new drawing vs the old drawing.

The new drawing shows three black power lines coming from the power input and connecting to a single terminal on the power switch. (photo 1)

The old drawing showed no power lines coming directly from the hot leg, and only a single black wire connecting from the power meter to a different terminal on the switch. (Photo 2)

I suspect that the new drawing is correct if I'm reading the circuit correctly, but I'd like to get a second opinion rather than trusting that I'm right.

So sorry to hear about you controller issues. I've followed your build progress as I've been building my controller at the same time. I will hopefully be firing mine up this or next weekend, but reading about your issue has really made me nervous. I've been reviewing all the work I've done several times now...

I looked at the auber controller, but ended up with an Electric Brewing Supply kit. Ryan has been exceptional to work with. If you end up returning your kit I would suggest checking them out. I ended up adding on volt and amp meters, and a 3rd pump to a 50a panel. They have kit pricing for those add-ons and include laser cutting extra holes in the stainless enclosure.

 

[TheMadKing]

So sorry to hear about you controller issues. I've followed your build progress as I've been building my controller at the same time. I will hopefully be firing mine up this or next weekend, but reading about your issue has really made me nervous. I've been reviewing all the work I've done several times now...

I looked at the auber controller, but ended up with an Electric Brewing Supply kit. Ryan has been exceptional to work with. If you end up returning your kit I would suggest checking them out. I ended up adding on volt and amp meters, and a 3rd pump to a 50a panel. They have kit pricing for those add-ons and include laser cutting extra holes in the stainless enclosure.

I wouldn't be concerned with the quality you'll get from ebrewsupply

I would never recommend Auber to anyone after this experience though. I wish I had just coughed up the cash for one of Kal's pre-wired panels.

I finally heard back from the owner and she confirmed that the new drawing is correct, which means that there was yet another mistake on their first drawing that just never manifested itself.

I finished wiring it up and it seems to be working. I seem to have an issue where both pump switches need to be on in order to fire the wort pump contactor which is really odd, but I can probably puzzle that one out if I stare at it long enough.

 

[TheMadKing]

 

[daveerickson]

View attachment 627154

Nice.

 

[JayDog]

Sorry to bring up an old thread but I am having some issues with a similar panel. Have you had any other issues come up? Are you still using this panel?
I built a 50 amp herms panel and I’m getting frustrated, haven’t been able to keep it on for more than a few minutes. The first time I powered it up I had one of the pumps outputs connected to a lamp to verify it was working. While the lamp was on I was going through settings on the PID and suddenly I heard a thump (sound of the contactor turning off) and the lamp shut off. I killed power at the breaker, opened up the panel and was greeted by a puff of smoke.
Replaced the main power contactor which was fried, and the contactor for the pump. I tried starting the panel again, after a few minutes of running the pump the same thing happened.