Spin Dryer

[Dutch]

Hi can anyone tell me where to buy a small low wattage spin dryer.12volt would be ideal but 240 is ok but must be small for storage reasons

Mike

[NB Alnwick]

Hi can anyone tell me where to buy a small low wattage spin dryer.12volt would be ideal but 240 is ok but must be small for storage reasons

Mike

 

Ask around, family and friends - someone will have one, tucked away somewhere, that they no longer use. That's what we did and we - ours is 240v but takes up very little space and does a great job.

 

The on-line auction site, eBay, is another good source - click here to see.

[moggyjo]

Hi, I have a Frigadaire runs only on 240 and uses 350watts and spins at 2800rpm if that is any use to you, I think it cost around £60.

Wendy

[alan_fincher]

There's one available here.....

 

http://www.thecanalshopwhilton.co.uk/html/...g_machines.html

 

Seems quite small, but it is 240v not 12v, so you would need to "invert".

 

Also listed are those small twin tubs (240v again).

 

I've often wondered if they are any good.....

 

Alan

[moggyjo]

WHATS HAPPENING for the second time now my spin dryer has blown all 4 fuses in my 600watt inverter. the spinner is only 350w, engine running at the same time and the only other thing I have on at the same time is a dab radio.

Took the spinner apart the last time it happened and everything looked fine, ie nice clean connections etc.

 

Anybody got any ideas, its not been used that much but out of guarantee now.

 

Wendy

[Mukiwa]

WHATS HAPPENING for the second time now my spin dryer has blown all 4 fuses in my 600watt inverter. the spinner is only 350w, engine running at the same time and the only other thing I have on at the same time is a dab radio.

Took the spinner apart the last time it happened and everything looked fine, ie nice clean connections etc.

 

Anybody got any ideas, its not been used that much but out of guarantee now.

 

Wendy

We had the same problem with the same values you give. It appears that although 350 is the rated capacity it needs at least twice that on start up. We never really got to the bottom of the problem as sometimes it would work but mostly not. We ended up buying one of those twin tubs from Whilton and are delighted with the performance. We were sceptical about the spinner but in practice it is just fine.

[moggyjo]

We had the same problem with the same values you give. It appears that although 350 is the rated capacity it needs at least twice that on start up. We never really got to the bottom of the problem as sometimes it would work but mostly not. We ended up buying one of those twin tubs from Whilton and are delighted with the performance. We were sceptical about the spinner but in practice it is just fine.

Trouble is I have one of the camping washing machines that you can get a double quilt cover in and don't think that the one that you are on about is big enough? Could you say what sort of amount of washing it can cope with please.

 

Wendy

[smileypete]

WHATS HAPPENING for the second time now my spin dryer has blown all 4 fuses in my 600watt inverter. the spinner is only 350w, engine running at the same time and the only other thing I have on at the same time is a dab radio.

Took the spinner apart the last time it happened and everything looked fine, ie nice clean connections etc.

 

Anybody got any ideas, its not been used that much but out of guarantee now.

 

The spinner probably draws a lot more than 350W at start up.

 

Try using the spinner when the battery is near 12v instead of near 14V when the engine is running, might help a little.

 

BTW did you get to the bottom of your alternator problem in the end, is it charging the batteries OK?

 

cheers,

Pete.

Edited May 15, 2008 by smileypete

[moggyjo]

The spinner probably draws a lot more than 350W at start up.

 

BTW did you get to the bottom of your alternator problem in the end, is it charging the batteries OK?

 

cheers,

Pete.

No its still a problem, every time I start the engine I have to take the board off and touch 2 parts of alternator with wire, to get the light to go out, bit of a pain but have got used to it now!

Chris was great though, coming all this was to have a look for me.

The last week or so, with all this nice weather the solar panels have been doing great. My greed TV does not help!

Thanks for asking,

 

Wendy

[smileypete]

No its still a problem, every time I start the engine I have to take the board off and touch 2 parts of alternator with wire, to get the light to go out, bit of a pain but have got used to it now!

Chris was great though, coming all this was to have a look for me.

The last week or so, with all this nice weather the solar panels have been doing great. My greed TV does not help!

Thanks for asking,

 

Something that might help with the spinner is to put less stuff in. The more stuff in it, the longer it will draw high power when starting up.

 

Also I edited my first post to say try spinning when the battery voltage is near 12V instead of nearer 14V when the engine is running.

 

Basically the higher the battery voltage and the more stuff in the spinner, the higher the initial startup power draw and the longer it will last, overworking the poor inverter.

 

 

With the alternator problem the following might help:

 

o Wait till you come across an alternator guru on the canals (obvious but cheapest too)

o Take the alternator to an alternator place for testing, then....

o Find a good local auto electrician can look at it. (find out their callout charge/rates and ask them to spend no more than 30mins or an hour on it!)

 

cheers,

Pete.

Edited May 15, 2008 by smileypete

[Peter R]

WHATS HAPPENING for the second time now my spin dryer has blown all 4 fuses in my 600watt inverter. the spinner is only 350w, engine running at the same time and the only other thing I have on at the same time is a dab radio.

Took the spinner apart the last time it happened and everything looked fine, ie nice clean connections etc.

 

Anybody got any ideas, its not been used that much but out of guarantee now.

 

Wendy

 

I assume the fuses are in the 12V supply line to the inverter, in which case why are there FOUR fuses (unless you have four separate 12V cables to share the load)?

 

What size are the fuses?

 

If the ratied running load of the spin dryer is 350W, I would suspect that it will be pulling 2-3 times that at start-up. Assuming that the fuses are sized for the continuous (600W) rating of the inverter, I would suspect that what is happening is that the start-up surge is putting a short-term overload on the inverter (which most are happy with) abut this is pulling a high current through the fuses albeit not for long enough for the fuses to blow. However, if this is the case, each surge will weaken the fuse slightly so after a certain number it will blow.

 

If this is the situation you have, the only solution would probably be to fit bigger fuses. However if doing this you need to be sure that the cables are OK for the maximum load that the inverter will take without shutting itself down, as the fuse rating could then be higher than that of the cables.

 

Peter

[moggyjo]

I assume the fuses are in the 12V supply line to the inverter, in which case why are there FOUR fuses (unless you have four separate 12V cables to share the load)?

 

What size are the fuses?

 

If the ratied running load of the spin dryer is 350W, I would suspect that it will be pulling 2-3 times that at start-up. Assuming that the fuses are sized for the continuous (600W) rating of the inverter, I would suspect that what is happening is that the start-up surge is putting a short-term overload on the inverter (which most are happy with) abut this is pulling a high current through the fuses albeit not for long enough for the fuses to blow. However, if this is the case, each surge will weaken the fuse slightly so after a certain number it will blow.

 

If this is the situation you have, the only solution would probably be to fit bigger fuses. However if doing this you need to be sure that the cables are OK for the maximum load that the inverter will take without shutting itself down, as the fuse rating could then be higher than that of the cables.

 

Peter

 

It has 2x 15 amp and 2x 20amp fuses in it, the blade ones they had started to melt

[smileypete]

It has 2x 15 amp and 2x 20amp fuses in it, the blade ones they had started to melt

 

Just a thought, can you double check with the user manual that they're the right size fuses?

 

If there's no manual available, can you post the make and model in case someone else has the same inverter?

 

cheers,

Pete.

Edited May 16, 2008 by smileypete

[Gibbo]

Just a thought, can you double check with the user manual that they're the right size fuses?

 

If there's no manual available, can you post the make and model in case someone else has the same inverter?

 

cheers,

Pete.

 

I wondered about that too. 600 watt inverters *usualy* have 4 X up converters with a 20 Amp fuse for each one. If it's a single up converter it should have ONE 80 Amp fuse OR 4 X 20 amp fuses OR (rarely) 6 X 15 Amp fuses.

 

I've never seen one with (and can't think of a reason for) 2 different value fuses.

 

And of course the other thing to check is that the spades are a tight fit for the fuses. If they aren't they get hot where the fuse plugs in, the heat travels up into the fuse itself and melts the fuse element even though it isn't passing excess current.

 

Gibbo

[smileypete]

I wondered about that too. 600 watt inverters *usualy* have 4 X up converters with a 20 Amp fuse for each one. If it's a single up converter it should have ONE 80 Amp fuse OR 4 X 20 amp fuses OR (rarely) 6 X 15 Amp fuses.

 

I've never seen one with (and can't think of a reason for) 2 different value fuses.

 

And of course the other thing to check is that the spades are a tight fit for the fuses. If they aren't they get hot where the fuse plugs in, the heat travels up into the fuse itself and melts the fuse element even though it isn't passing excess current.

 

I was thinking along the lines of a 4 transistor bridge with each transistor protected by a fuse.

 

If a 600W MSW inverter with 50% duty cycle, each fuse could be (600/12) * 0.5 = 25A

 

I reckon people often buy a set, when out of the correct ones, the too-big and too-small fuses then get used

 

cheers,

Pete.

[Gibbo]

I was thinking along the lines of a 4 transistor bridge with each transistor protected by a fuse.

 

If a 600W MSW inverter with 50% duty cycle, each fuse could be (600/12) * 0.5 = 25A

 

I reckon people often buy a set, when out of the correct ones, the too-big and too-small fuses then get used

 

cheers,

Pete.

 

If the fuses were in series (which they would be in that configuration - think about it) they'd have to be 50A each.

 

They tend not to use bridges anymore. They're more trouble than they're worth.

 

So I reckon they should be 4 X 20 Amp, or perhaps perhaps 4 X 15 Amp but then there's no margin. I don't get the 2 different sizes. Makes no sense. Like you say, I think someone put in "Oh I have some of these, they're close enough"

 

Gibbo

[smileypete]

If the fuses were in series (which they would be in that configuration - think about it) they'd have to be 50A each.

 

True, double the current means quadruple power dissipation, so double the current for half the time is still twice power dissipation.

 

cheers,

Pete.

[Peter R]

Does the inverted have a stated overload rating? for example my mastervolt unit is rated for 400W continuous, but is happy to at least 800W for a short time.

 

If your 600W has a similar overload rating, then you may need to fuse to the overload rating. Best bet would probably be to get in touch with the manufacturer or supplier and confirm what fuse rating should be used. It sounds like it should probably be 4 x 20A, but it is possible that the motor start current surges may still 'weaken' the fuse over time and they may still blow occaisionally.

 

Some fuse types are available in 'surge-proof' or 'slow-blow' designs, which are useful for this problem, but I don't think this is an option for blade types.

 

Peter

[Mukiwa]

Trouble is I have one of the camping washing machines that you can get a double quilt cover in and don't think that the one that you are on about is big enough? Could you say what sort of amount of washing it can cope with please.

 

Wendy

It will just about take a double quilt cover, but no moor.