The Epoch of the Axeman

 
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StokerDon
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Location: PA, Southern York County!
Stoker Coal Boiler: Gentleman Janitor GJ-5, Van Wert VA-600, Axeman Anderson130 X3.
Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Harman SF3500 reduced down to 3 grates connected to its own plenum
Coal Size/Type: Rice, Chestnut and whatever will fit through the door on the Harman
Other Heating: Noth'in but COAL! Well, Maybe a little tiny bit of wood

Post by StokerDon » Wed. Dec. 29, 2021 8:30 am

When I first used an SSR to run the fan motor I almost immediately burn my finger on it. At that time I didn't realize it needed the heat sink. I put the heat sink on and there was no problem after that. This made me realize right away that it is not a good idea to put an SSR in a closed project box. My cheap, Chinese controllers and hour meters are not exactly "MIL Spec" and won't last long in a high heat environment.

SSR's have their place, they are far better than electro-mechanical relays for fast switching operations. You will never need to switch anything fast on a coal boiler so electro-mechanical relays will work just fine and will operate much cooler. 8-)
SSR = Good for fast ON/OFF switching of loads. Makes a lot of heat when you run the fan motor.
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Electro-mechanical relay = Not good for fast ON/OFF switching of loads but stays nice and cool running the fan motor.
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-Don


 
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Lightning
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Stoker Coal Boiler: Modified AA 130
Coal Size/Type: Pea Size - Anthracite

Post by Lightning » Wed. Dec. 29, 2021 11:01 am

StokerDon wrote:
Wed. Dec. 29, 2021 8:30 am
Electro-mechanical relay = Not good for fast ON/OFF switching of loads but stays nice and cool running the fan motor.
This relay can be here fast. Is this one suitable to run the fan motor and controlled by the Inkbird?

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StokerDon
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Posts: 7486
Joined: Mon. Nov. 11, 2013 11:17 am
Location: PA, Southern York County!
Stoker Coal Boiler: Gentleman Janitor GJ-5, Van Wert VA-600, Axeman Anderson130 X3.
Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Harman SF3500 reduced down to 3 grates connected to its own plenum
Coal Size/Type: Rice, Chestnut and whatever will fit through the door on the Harman
Other Heating: Noth'in but COAL! Well, Maybe a little tiny bit of wood

Post by StokerDon » Wed. Dec. 29, 2021 11:12 am

Lightning wrote:
Wed. Dec. 29, 2021 11:01 am
This relay can be here fast. Is this one suitable to run the fan motor and controlled by the Inkbird?
It looks like it will work. The critical specs you are looking for are;
Coil voltage = 12 volts DC (Not AC)
Switching Contact Rating = More than 120 volts AC (Not DC) and at least 1.5 times the motor current.
Non latching and Normally Open (NO) contacts.

-Don

 
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Lightning
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Stoker Coal Boiler: Modified AA 130
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Post by Lightning » Wed. Dec. 29, 2021 11:20 am

StokerDon wrote:
Wed. Dec. 29, 2021 11:12 am
It looks like it will work.
Awesome thank you!

 
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McGiever
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Stoker Coal Boiler: AXEMAN-ANDERSON 130 "1959"
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Hand Fed Coal Stove: Warm Morning 414A
Coal Size/Type: PEA,NUT,STOVE /ANTHRACITE
Other Heating: Ground Source Heat Pump and some Solar

Post by McGiever » Wed. Dec. 29, 2021 5:39 pm

Like *hotblast1357* my SSR is on my ashing motor with using a PID controller used as the Anthrastat. Fan is another story.

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Thu. Dec. 30, 2021 5:02 pm

Some cool mods planned for the Axe in January :)

In the meantime, I thought this was pretty radical. I found a tachometer app for my smart phone. Its strobe based meaning it uses the light on your phone and pulses it at the frequency you set. Then, on the rotating part that you want to measure you place a tiny piece of foil tape. As you hold the light in front of a rotating pulley, the piece of foil tape will stop rotating and become a motionless streak on the pulley when you find the right strobe frequency. I thought it was pretty neato. Seems accurate too.

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StokerDon
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Posts: 7486
Joined: Mon. Nov. 11, 2013 11:17 am
Location: PA, Southern York County!
Stoker Coal Boiler: Gentleman Janitor GJ-5, Van Wert VA-600, Axeman Anderson130 X3.
Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Harman SF3500 reduced down to 3 grates connected to its own plenum
Coal Size/Type: Rice, Chestnut and whatever will fit through the door on the Harman
Other Heating: Noth'in but COAL! Well, Maybe a little tiny bit of wood

Post by StokerDon » Thu. Dec. 30, 2021 6:07 pm

Wow, that is Neat!

I was actually looking for a way to directly measure the pulley RPMs on my Axeman. I was thinking of using an automotive timing light but this sounds easier!

-Don


 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Thu. Dec. 30, 2021 6:11 pm

StokerDon wrote:
Thu. Dec. 30, 2021 6:07 pm
Wow, that is Neat!
Yeah man, I kinda thought you would like :)

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Thu. Dec. 30, 2021 6:14 pm

You gotta hold the phone pretty close to the rotating pulley so watch yer fingers!

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Thu. Dec. 30, 2021 8:43 pm

Here's what I specked the fan pulley at.. 1420 RPM with stock pulleys (as far as I know)

Maybe thats wrong.. shouldn't the smaller pulley spin faster? Maybe I was seeing a harmonic. I'll try it again.

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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Thu. Dec. 30, 2021 10:22 pm

Wow... just as suspected I was seeing the half harmonic. The pulley was making 2 rotations per strobe flash. Here is the real RPM of the fan pulley. ~2840

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hotblast1357
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Post by hotblast1357 » Fri. Dec. 31, 2021 8:18 am

Lee where do you have the k type probes for your supply and return readings.

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Fri. Dec. 31, 2021 10:49 am

hotblast1357 wrote:
Fri. Dec. 31, 2021 8:18 am
Lee where do you have the k type probes for your supply and return readings.
The thermometers I use for supply and return don't use the K type. I'm actually not sure what type they are. They are the type that are in the pic below. I think they are usable up to 250 degrees.

I have the probes tucked under the pipe insulators as depicted in the pictures.

I hope this helps with your question :)

Happy New Year!

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Post by Rob R. » Fri. Dec. 31, 2021 10:51 am

Lee, are those controls DC or AC?

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Fri. Dec. 31, 2021 11:09 am

I power them with this adapter here.. I assume its 12volts DC

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