On Thu, 09 Dec 2004 11:40:38 -0800, Brett A. Thomas wrote:
All,
Spent some time trolling the archives and Google, and couldn't really
find what I was looking for.
Just so you know, the word "trolling" in Usenet terms has a pretty
specific meaning, something along the lines of "posting controversial
messages to stir up people and prolong a useless discussion", which
I don't think is what you're really doing.
Without any thought whatsoever to the practicality or cost, the two big
things I want a
A lockout box. I want to be able to leave lights and battery chargers
on, but throw a switch, put a lock on it, and have no power tools operate.
The easiest way to do this would be to have the big power tools on a
sub-panel, and the outlets on the main panel. Master-switch the whole
sub-panel on and off.
Several Big Red Buttons. I want to be able to hit a quick disconnect
from one of several places in the shop, and have it kill the power to
all the power tools (but not the lights or the battery chargers).
Yup.
Part
of my problem is that I do not know what the industry Term of Art is for
these buttons.
"Emergency Stop" is what most/all of them seem to be marked with.
Of course, we don't live in a world where practicality and cost aren't
concerns, so if any requirement I list above is too much work or too
much expense, I'm willing to rethink. If it's gonna cost me $2000, I
can lose the emergency cutoffs and just put a lock on the subpanel I
have and be done with it.
I can't see the e-stop switches adding much cost, even if you run conduit
from them back to the contactor (we call 'em relays). It's easy but
time-consuming work, so it's worth considering doing yourself if you
can get an Electrician to do the design and advise you.
So, here are my questions, and thanks in advance for anyone with the
knowledge to answer, the inclination to help and the patience to read
through my long-winded explanation:
1) What are Big Red Buttons called?
See above.
2) How do they work? Can I wire three circuits through one without
needing a second subpanel?
Put 'em before the subpanel with all the switched stuff, and let them
control the relay for the whole subpanel.
5) If you held a gun to my head and said "Do it right now with what you
know," I'd drop the emergency cutoff switches for now, install a new
subpanel on a 30A breaker, and put a "safety switch" between the two of
them. Is this, in fact, the best plan, or am I artificially limiting
myself by my lack of knowledge?
No, you're doing it right, the big red buttons juust control that subpanel.
6) Stupid question - I have this kooky idea to hook up a 50 ampish
inline AC ammeter prior to the first subpanel. Is this stupid, or just
geeky? I think it'd be pretty cool to always know how much juice I'm
pulling.
It's geeky. I'd do it, and wish I had thought of it. Let us know how
that goes, I may just retrofit my shop.
Dave Hinz
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