DIY Power Controller

Lloyd

@Moonshine said: Lloyd, very nice, will this be the new DIY Controller Kit?

I hadn't planned on it. The fan could be recycled from an old computer power supply, the ammeter is readily available at lots of places, the medium plastic boxes are already part of the SD USA inventory... the toggle switch is only rated for 20 amps which is OK for my needs since 2kW per element on a single 240v leg is all I can get.
By USA standards my power cables are small but I cannot power a 5500 watt element.

@olddog, thanks, it means a lot coming from someone that does such beautiful work. Didn't have a big holesaw for the fan so had to freehand it and it shows. A series of smaller drilled holes would have been so much prettier.

@captainshooch, agreed, it's nice to know the power input but for me it's only to relate that information to others. When you find the sweet spot its normal to want to repeat the setting next time and finally having dial marks makes that so much easier.

**Again, anyone wanting a free SD dial sticker just send a stamped, self addressed envelope to your distributor or ask for one or two on your next order. **

olddog

Only one thing that concerns me, is the metal toggle on the switch, it's a personal thing but I don't like metal toggles when switching mains power voltages.

OD

Lloyd

I'm sure you're right, @olddog. Grabbed what could be found locally just to see if I could wire it correctly. Now that I know what to look for it's time to upgrade to add a little protection from the snake bite to the finger tips.

Hollis

Ok guys. I got the diy kit all wired up and everything is working beautifully. I got a 30 gal boiler and 2 elements. One full power and one adjustable. 240v elements. Im running a simple pot still. I only use the full power for heat up and is up and going in an hour. Love the electric conversion. The only problem im having is that I am only getting half the product that I was getting with propane. Can anyone help? Has anyone had this problem?

punkin

How long did heat up take before. The only way you can get less product is if you have a leak, you're blowing steam through the condensor, less power or more reflux. You are running a pot still so we can assume the reflux hasn't chaged.

Law_Of_Ohms

What are the wattage of the elements? For me, propane can give me up to ~26L per hour output. 3600W element is about ~4L per hr

Hollis

I got 2 5500 wat elements. I use 1 full power for heat up and run the other at about 9 amps while running. With propane I was averaging 6 gal per run. Ive made 2 runs with electric and got 3 gal each time. I dont understand

Myles

Or was your propane burner rated at the equivalent of 22 kW and you are just putting in less heat?

Hollis

I dont know ehat the rating is but it is a bayou classic burner. The electric definarely heats up quicker and alot cleaner. I may just have to mess with it a few more times to figure it out. I been running on propane for about 5 year andwhen I did the electric and got half of my normal output Iit threw me for a loop

Smaug

Same ABV?

Hollis

It could have been in the ferment. I guess. So none ofyou guys have ever had this problem? Ill have to play with it some more

Wizzzzard

I finally finished putting my DIY kit together yesterday after my Electrician mate said he was dropping over.

I'm certainly no brainiac and could be wrong but I appear to have found two errors in the econobox .pdf instructions.

The instructions say when connecting the potentiometer to connect the left pin to # 4 and the center pin to # 3 but the image shows the wires connected in reverse to the instructions.

When I went to attach the plugs on each end I noticed that it was instructing me to connect the male end to the left "SSR # 2" and the female end to the right "SSR # 1", I said to my mate that I would have assumed the male input connected to # 1 and the female output to # 2 and he agreed and said that the picture on the SSR shows that the input is # 1 and the output is # 2, the diagram on page 1 of this post shows that the input does connect to # 1.

I read every page of this thread to check if this has been mentioned but found nothing.

Have I missed something or are there errors in the .pdf instructions?

Smaug

Not sure how you interpreted the instructions but the incoming Line connects to # 1 and the out going Line connects on # 2.

Wizzzzard

@Smaug said: Not sure how you interpreted the instructions but the incoming Line connects to # 1 and the out going Line connects on # 2.

The instructions don't tell you that, it tells you to do the following.

1) Screw the black wire on the right side to terminal # 1 on the SSR.

2) install the female end on the right as shown.

It clearly says to install the female "output" to SSR # 1!

Law_Of_Ohms

do not try this at home kids...

http://youtu.be/P9UjxG8sN1c

Hollis

Lol. I didnt hsve any problems with the pdf.

Myles

LOO you are BAD. :)) :)) Did you see that big gap where you could dip your fingers into the electrolyte [-X

Hollis

It was the ferment. Must be a bad batch of turbo yeast or the cold weather. Thanks again guys for the feedback

Lloyd

@Wizzzzard said: The instructions don't tell you that, it tells you to do the following.
1) Screw the black wire on the right side to terminal # 1 on the SSR.
2) install the female end on the right as shown.
It clearly says to install the female "output" to SSR # 1!

It may be time to update the DIY Controller manual, anyone want to do this?

Hollis

Not that hard to figure out with the forum and a little knowhow

punkin

@Lloyd said: It may be time to update the DIY Controller manual, anyone want to do this?

I do believe we have an electrical engineer on the team. B-)

Moonshine

New discussion started by @mittos merged as it better fits here.

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@mittos wrote:

Ok, first off, I'll be using this controller to brew beer. I've been brewing for over 2 years now and I'm tired of propane. That being said I'd like to know if anyone can steer me in the right direction to getting this wired up correctly. I've done some minor wiring for my current brew rig, I managed to wire up a pump to a switch without electrocuting myself or burning the house down.

The image I've attached shows everything I have or will have on hand within the next few days.

EdInNH

@Lloyd said:

Put this together using the medium size box. With fan, ammeter and selector toggle switch.
Switch to left for full on, bypasses the SSR. Switch right and current runs through SSR controller.
Toggle in center position and no current flows to the element but the fan and ammeter stay on.

As LoO pointed out, there would be no heat buildup from the SSR in bypass mode but it was easier for me to wire it so the fan is always on.

A 3 pole Double Throw with a center off position would allow the switch to also turn the element off.

Does one of your suppliers offer a low cost True RMS Panel meter for Voltage, and Current ( or better Voltage, Current and Power)? True RMS is necessary to measure the output from the Phase Controller. If so it would be a good addition to the StillDragon product line. My current plan is to use a loop of insulated wire outside my case and a clamp-on meter.

Ed

EdInNH

@mittos said:

Ok, first off, I'll be using this controller to brew beer. I've been brewing for over 2 years now and I'm tired of propane. That being said I'd like to know if anyone can steer me in the right direction to getting this wired up correctly. I've done some minor wiring for my current brew rig, I managed to wire up a pump to a switch without electrocuting myself or burning the house down.

The image I've attached shows everything I have or will have on hand within the next few days.

To power the 120 V outlets from the 240 V dryer outlet you will need a 4 wire 240 V circuit. The 3-wire 240V circuits have two hot wires and a ground. The 4-wire circuits add a Neutral. The voltage between the two hot wires is 240V and the voltage between the neutral and either hot is 120 V.

Years (decades) ago it was considered acceptable to use the ground as a neutral and draw 120 volts between a hot and ground. This is no longer considered acceptable. The ground wire should carry no current in normal operation and be reserved for safety. (The neutral is electrically connected to ground at the service entry.)

mittos

My other idea was to run another power cord from across the garage and have a separate Control box for the Pumps. That would be the easy fix I suppose. I don't want to rewire the dryer outlet and the dryer for this project.

mittos

@EdInNH said: Years (decades) ago it was considered acceptable to use the ground as a neutral and draw 120 volts between a hot and ground. This is no longer considered acceptable. The ground wire should carry no current in normal operation and be reserved for safety. (The neutral is electrically connected to ground at the service entry.)

Sooooo, the dryer cord I ordered doesn't have any color coded wires. How do I know which wire is which?

Lloyd

@mittos, this is a problem we all have worried about.
I also am not good at electricity/electronics but know my way around a multimeter to address this.
The biggest problem with DIY is KIY (kill yourself with a DIY kit). Many here that know the guts of electricity fear that some greenhorn will hurt themselves. I also fear this.

With that blurb out of the way, lets begin.
Know the hot legs in your brain without any uncertainty and find the ground (some call it earth).
You will need a DMM, digital multi meter, and even a cheap one will do. Mine cost, I think, about $5. Its been a while so thinking I may have paid less.

Test the wall socket. With the DMM locate the 2 hots and the ground, this applies to USA whereas other countries usually have one hot leg of 240v and the other 2 are neutral and ground.
If you cannot perform this task please do not proceed further as you will put yourself and others in danger.

Once you have identified the hot legs on the wall socket its easy to figure out the prongs on the power cord that match up.
Use the continuity setting on the DMM to verify the prong and the cable end (live wire end opposite the plug on the cord) are exactly as you understand them to be.

Almost without exception, the center prong and center wire is the ground on that USA 240v range or clothes dryer cord and the slanted prongs are hot.
One hot will be controlled by the SSR and the other hot will be connected straight through to the element. The ground will be connected to the shell of the boiler.

Hope this helps but please be safe and ask an electrician to look over your work before plugging it into the mains.

olddog

Be very carefull with multimeters, they are not all mains rated.

OD

Myles

Bloody hell Lloyd I nearly drowned on my drink. KIY as opposed to KISS.

It does work though. I used to work with a very experienced aircraft electrician that had 3 holes burned into is hand.

Purely as a temporary measure he wired up an extension lead with a plug on both ends. He plugged one end into his house and was going to plug the other end into a socket (in a new circuit) in his garage. Unfortunately his wife switched the circuit on before he could plug it in.

She came outside to find him "dancing" in pain with his hand clenched in spasm around the plug. The burns were surprisingly deep.

beaberskinner

I just received my DIY but there was no schematic with it. I would like one for a 5500 watt 220 unit. Is this available?