Hello. I am an artist making a sculpture. I am incorporating 9 solenoids with leaf switches into it, as well as activating it all with a motion sensor. All are 115 VAC.

My question is this.

I am trying to figure out how I want to wire all these together. I am wiring a wall plug directly to the motion sensor, and from there wanted to use a sort of distribution strip to send power to the switches/solenoids. I was thinking of using a couple ground bars like you would see in a distribution box for a house. One for hot, one for neutral.

What are the thoughts on this? should it be ok? or should i just wire them in series?


THanks in advance for any help you all can provide.

 

AC solenoids might audibly hum. Running them on filtered DC would be noiseless.

 

the solenoids will only be switched on for a split second, sort of like the solenoid that pops the golf ball back in an automatic putt return. so hum is negligible to the project.

 

You should not put them in series unles you have 220V then you can put 2 (115v)solenoids in series

switchem all in parralel and as you sugested you can use strips/bars to make the conection word of advidce is that put the strip/bar in a box isolated from curious children fingers and or animals and a small mcb of 6 amp wouldn't hurt either Also not your wallet but see it as an optional, not an essential

Robert-Jan

 

that's kinda what i thought. thanks for the help. I think I'll bypass the mcb for now, as even though it's not too expensive, I have already put a little more money into this project than I originally intended to.

 

Derek - you might consult an electrician directly for help on this especially if your work will be in a public place. My knowledge is very limited but at first glance I'd say you need three conductors - hot, neutral and ground. Type of wire, wire size, overcurrent protection, enclosures, etc and much more are covered by codes (laws). Your project sounds simple enough that a qualified electrician could manage nicely. As simple as it is there are also plenty of ways to do harm.

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stevez

 

Using mains powered solenoids is not a good idea. Pinball solenoids would be ideal and they operate on a much safer 48V. Find a local pinball spares supplier and go see what they have. The solenoids used for the flippers are particularly good as they have a power coil and a hold coil so they can move a reasonable weight and then hold it at a reduced current. I see you are in Chicago, home to some of the most famous pinball companies in the world.

Mike.
P.S. not local but a good supplier Clicky.