Main > Everything Else
Does anyone know anything about solenoids?
rdagger:
I picked up a 3/8" 2-way solenoid valve on eBay. It appears to be 12-24V (250 PSI) so I am running it at 12V using an old computer power supply. It appears to work, but it is getting very hot. After about 5 minutes the solenoid's plastic casing heats up to around 210°F and the plastic starts to smell. It appears to be pulling about 5A at 12V and the computer power supply is pulling about 90 watts at 110V. Is this normal or am I doing something wrong?
ChadTower:
Hard to say if it's normal without knowing the exact specs. They vary so much. Doesn't sound good, though. That seems wrong to me, 5A at only 12V. Might just be consuming too much juice for that voltage. I'd try again with a 24V power source.
rdagger:
--- Quote from: ChadTower on November 13, 2006, 08:17:15 pm ---Hard to say if it's normal without knowing the exact specs. They vary so much. Doesn't sound good, though. That seems wrong to me, 5A at only 12V. Might just be consuming too much juice for that voltage. I'd try again with a 24V power source.
--- End quote ---
I tried a 24V p/s from a big old laser printer, but it instantly blew the 3.25A fuse. I dont' have any other 24V supplies. I thought about connecting the +12V & -12V on the computer p/s, but although the +12V is rated at 8A, the -12V is only rated at 1A. Is it possible that the solenoid is 24V AC?
ChadTower:
Well if it's drawing 5A of course it's going to blow a 3.25A fuse. You need a power supply that is rated properly.
A bare solenoid by itself wouldn't work very well on AC... the polarity of an electromagnet is determined by the current flow's direction... so, an AC magnet (i.e. the solenoid) would have its poles alternating sixy times per second. Not exactly all that useful for a solenoid.
rdagger:
I found 24/60 written on the bottom of the solenoid. Apparantly, there are AC solenoids. This leads me to believe that the solenoid might be 24V AC 60Hz. I just have to find a 24V AC p/s to confirm. Anyone know of any good sources for 24V supplies?