Inrush and usage current limitation

[KeithT]

I am trying to get a very old professional level rotisserie working again with a residential the single phase 240v 50hz 62A power supply.

It has 6 very large 1.5m long electrodes and x2 240v 50hz 28W motors. There are no electronics, fuses in it, it just has heavy duty switches which pass power direct to the electrodes. Live one end and neutral the other. The wiring was trashed but I think it was designed to have 2 single phase circuits with 3 electrodes on one circuit and 3 on another.

As soon as even one of the electrodes are turned on (clunk from the switch) it pops the main power 62A 30mA GFCI.

I would like to add some inrush and ongoing current control to it.

Many thanks in advance for any suggestions re how to do this or what to buy?

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

If a GFCI is tripping, then you have a leak to ground - find it, and repair it.

I presume you mean 'elements' rather than 'electrodes'?, it could be one of the elements leaking to chassis/ground.

 

[KeithT]

If a GFCI is tripping, then you have a leak to ground - find it, and repair it.

I presume you mean 'elements' rather than 'electrodes'?, it could be one of the elements leaking to chassis/ground.

Thanks this was very useful. It turned out that the 'elements' were shorting out after about 60 secs once they had heated up.

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

Thanks this was very useful. It turned out that the 'elements' were shorting out after about 60 secs once they had heated up.

I had a 3Kw immersion heater that leaked to ground, I got a new element, and a big spanner - but it was too tight, and I was worried about buckling the water tank.

But as at the time we were waiting for new heating to be installed, which would involve the removal of the hot water tank, I took a temporary measure

A friend used to work for Rail Track (the people who maintain the train infrastructure in the UK), and they were continually throwing good stuff away - like they'd buy outdoor lighting on big masts, then smash them in skips at the end of the job. Anyway, my friend had happened to give me (at work) three 1Kw mains isolation transformers - so I borrowed those, paralleled them, and ran the immersion heater through those.

As it removed the mains neutral/earth connection it cured the problem - then when they came to do the new heating, I disconnected them, and returned them to work