I'm wiring up my ceramic heaters and I want to make sure I understand
how to properly size the wires and fuses. Suppose we have a 144v pack
and I'm using two 1500 watt heating elements wired in series.
To calculate wire size I would divide 3000 watts by 144 volts, 20.8 amps.
Looking up wire sizes in an AWG chart (MIL-STD-975),
#12 is rated for 25 amps. I want the fuse to protect the wire and
components,
so I should stay below the rating of the wire. But this is getting close
to the normal draw for the heaters. So to add some margin I should go
for a #10 wire and a 25 amp fuse.
Is this the correct way to size things up? Since ceramic heaters
limit current as they get hotter, wouldn't my real world draw be less
than the 20.8 amps?
Thanks for the help,
Dave Cover
_______________________________________________
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http://lists.sjsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/ev
how to properly size the wires and fuses. Suppose we have a 144v pack
and I'm using two 1500 watt heating elements wired in series.
To calculate wire size I would divide 3000 watts by 144 volts, 20.8 amps.
Looking up wire sizes in an AWG chart (MIL-STD-975),
#12 is rated for 25 amps. I want the fuse to protect the wire and
components,
so I should stay below the rating of the wire. But this is getting close
to the normal draw for the heaters. So to add some margin I should go
for a #10 wire and a 25 amp fuse.
Is this the correct way to size things up? Since ceramic heaters
limit current as they get hotter, wouldn't my real world draw be less
than the 20.8 amps?
Thanks for the help,
Dave Cover
_______________________________________________
For subscription options, see
http://lists.sjsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/ev