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Post by mike75 on Feb 25, 2022 22:42:31 GMT
I'm putting together the switch box. How do you have your kill-a-watt set up on your box? When reviewing your video of the "General Electric Monitor Top CA Refrigerator- Stuck Compressor Re-activate..." I see the 20 amp plug on the left, then the kill-a-watt, then the switch. Don't you need something plugged into the kill-a-watt to get a reading?
Per your instructions I was going to get a dryer plug wired into a 1-gang box with a 20 amp outlet. I'll run an extension cord to a second 2-gang box with a 15 amp outlet (for the refrigerator) and the 30 amp 2 pole switch (and a plug pigtail to plug into the extension cord.) I just was curious how you incorporated the kill-a-watt into your box.
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Post by turbokinetic on Feb 26, 2022 6:09:18 GMT
I'm putting together the switch box. How do you have your kill-a-watt set up on your box? When reviewing your video of the "General Electric Monitor Top CA Refrigerator- Stuck Compressor Re-activate..." I see the 20 amp plug on the left, then the kill-a-watt, then the switch. Don't you need something plugged into the kill-a-watt to get a reading? Per your instructions I was going to get a dryer plug wired into a 1-gang box with a 20 amp outlet. I'll run an extension cord to a second 2-gang box with a 15 amp outlet (for the refrigerator) and the 30 amp 2 pole switch (and a plug pigtail to plug into the extension cord.) I just was curious how you incorporated the kill-a-watt into your box. Hi Mike. I have been meaning to do a write-up on the Kill-A-Watt but haven't as of yet. The Kill-A-Watt measures voltage and current simultaneously; so that it can calculate kW, kVAr and power factor. For that reason, in series with the device under test, it has a current sensor. The current for the device must pass through the current sensor. Normally that means that the device has to be plugged into the outlet on the front of the Kill-A-Watt. To make my switch box work more safely, I needed a double-pole switch to control the outlet. The problem is, when power is turned off and back on, the Kill-A-Watt will reset and go back to default settings. It also takes a long time for it to start displaying again once power is restored. To prevent this, I wanted the meter to stay powered on, but the outlet to be switched off and on by the switch. In order to facilitate this, there is one additional wire added to the Kill-A-Watt. This wire is internally connected to the output of the Kill-A-Watt and come out the back of the meter, beside the power input pins. It is used to provide the current sense capability for the Kill-A-Watt. The incoming power goes directly to the input of the Kill-A-Watt, via the normal power input pins. The output circuit Live comes from a parallel connection to the Kill-A-Watt live input. That then goes to one side of the double-pole switch. The Neutral of the output comes from the additional, internal wire added to the Kill-A-Watt; to the double-pole switch. The outputs from the double-pole switch go to the test outlet on the switch box. EDIT: Here is the wiring diagram for the switchbox. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KM9Lmda5eKYwkQq1k1RVxaOy-nUt2Bnp/view?usp=sharing
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Post by mike75 on Mar 2, 2022 22:15:04 GMT
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Post by redtangox on Mar 28, 2022 22:12:15 GMT
I'm putting together the switch box. How do you have your kill-a-watt set up on your box? When reviewing your video of the "General Electric Monitor Top CA Refrigerator- Stuck Compressor Re-activate..." I see the 20 amp plug on the left, then the kill-a-watt, then the switch. Don't you need something plugged into the kill-a-watt to get a reading? Per your instructions I was going to get a dryer plug wired into a 1-gang box with a 20 amp outlet. I'll run an extension cord to a second 2-gang box with a 15 amp outlet (for the refrigerator) and the 30 amp 2 pole switch (and a plug pigtail to plug into the extension cord.) I just was curious how you incorporated the kill-a-watt into your box. Hi Mike. I have been meaning to do a write-up on the Kill-A-Watt but haven't as of yet. The Kill-A-Watt measures voltage and current simultaneously; so that it can calculate kW, kVAr and power factor. For that reason, in series with the device under test, it has a current sensor. The current for the device must pass through the current sensor. Normally that means that the device has to be plugged into the outlet on the front of the Kill-A-Watt. To make my switch box work more safely, I needed a double-pole switch to control the outlet. The problem is, when power is turned off and back on, the Kill-A-Watt will reset and go back to default settings. It also takes a long time for it to start displaying again once power is restored. To prevent this, I wanted the meter to stay powered on, but the outlet to be switched off and on by the switch. In order to facilitate this, there is one additional wire added to the Kill-A-Watt. This wire is internally connected to the output of the Kill-A-Watt and come out the back of the meter, beside the power input pins. It is used to provide the current sense capability for the Kill-A-Watt. The incoming power goes directly to the input of the Kill-A-Watt, via the normal power input pins. The output circuit Live comes from a parallel connection to the Kill-A-Watt live input. That then goes to one side of the double-pole switch. The Neutral of the output comes from the additional, internal wire added to the Kill-A-Watt; to the double-pole switch. The outputs from the double-pole switch go to the test outlet on the switch box. EDIT: Here is the wiring diagram for the switchbox. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KM9Lmda5eKYwkQq1k1RVxaOy-nUt2Bnp/view?usp=sharing So happy I stumbled on this. I also meant to ask about the switch box. I found my next mini-project.
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Post by elec573 on Apr 1, 2022 0:55:36 GMT
Haven’t been on the forum much lately.Was wondering any new information on this ca ?
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Post by mike75 on Apr 12, 2022 5:25:52 GMT
I'm not sure what to do next with the CA. I've followed David's instructions with the 240v attempts and haven't tried to push it any harder. I wasn't sure if a heater greater than 12 watts would make any difference. If I did purchase another heater what size would I get? Any thoughts on next steps?
Thanks ... Mike
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Post by turbokinetic on Apr 12, 2022 12:56:50 GMT
I'm not sure what to do next with the CA. I've followed David's instructions with the 240v attempts and haven't tried to push it any harder. I wasn't sure if a heater greater than 12 watts would make any difference. If I did purchase another heater what size would I get? Any thoughts on next steps? Thanks ... Mike Good morning Mike. Sometimes these get so stuck that it takes more extreme measures to get them going. I have had some which defied my every attempt, including application of phase-shifted two-phase 240V. They eventually came back to life after I insulated around the top, and put a very high powered, temporary heater in place. Once the compressor was "steaming hot" I hit it with the "Whirlie-Ma-Tron" two phase converter 4 or 5 times in quick succession. That did the trick, and it came to life. But I had tried everything beforehand and couldn't get it to budge before the heat. The new heaters from Phoenix Thermal Systems can tolerate a very high range of power above the 115V rating. A 20W 115V heater will be about 87 watts at 240V due to how Ohm's law works. Giving it 87 watts overnight with the compressor wrapped in blankets will eventually get it hot enough. I use a Variac and step-up transformer to dial in whatever heat I think is necessary. I haven't re-read all the messages in this thread, but have you done a static NCG overpressure bleed on it? This is where you bleed off pressure, without it running but with the entire machine cool below 80°F.
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Post by mike75 on Apr 22, 2022 21:06:24 GMT
Yes I did the NCG overpressure bleed test after the 12 watt heater had run for a few days. There were no bubbles. Should I remove the unit from power for a few days and try the bleed test with it at room temperature? Should I try the 12 watt heater at 240v which would be 52 watts?
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Post by turbokinetic on Apr 23, 2022 14:11:06 GMT
Yes I did the NCG overpressure bleed test after the 12 watt heater had run for a few days. There were no bubbles. Should I remove the unit from power for a few days and try the bleed test with it at room temperature? Should I try the 12 watt heater at 240v which would be 52 watts? If there were no bubbles, then it isn't overpressured. I would try to get it going and running before attempting another bleed. The 52W heater idea would help to free up the mechanism, but that will be lower than what I have used. You'll need to blanket the entire unit to ensure the heat cant escape and let the heater go for probably 24 hours or more. The ones I have had success getting going after they were extremely stuck, had to be "piping hot" where I could not hold my hand on it more than 20 or 30 seconds.
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