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Cap Value in MF???

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kimbear

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Ok , I have a Tesla Coil that REALLY likes a 0.018 mf 2kv Polypropalyne capacitor...but space is REALLY at a premium, and alas...its too big.

As well, high voltage caps of this value and rating SEEM to be a bit difficult to find around here.

..what is the next closest COMMON value to the 0.018 mf ?


MF/UF/PF always confuses me...yah yah...Im not very bright
 
Okay, first of all, it's not "MF", "UF", or "PF". It's "μF", "nF" and "pF". They stand for microfarad, nanofarad, and picofarad, respectively. "microfarad" used to be labeled as "MF", which was absolutely wrong. That means "megafarad", in our prefixes today, which means a million farads. To my knowledge, there has never been a capacitor with a capacitance that high. "micro" means 10^-6, so one microfarad is actually 0.000001 farads. Nano is 10^-9, so 0.000000001 farads, or .001 microfarads. Pico is 10^-12, and I'm not even going to write that out :p:D You get the picture though. 0.018μF is the same as 18nF, or 1800pF.

If you're working on a Tesla coil, I feel obliged to warn you of the dangers. Even if the output isn't deadly, the tank circuit is, and the streamers could create a low-resistance path for deadly current to enter your body. You must be EXTREMELY cautious with these things, and I recommend you have a buddy whenever you're working on or near one. I can't stress enough how many dangers there are, and I hope you take every necessary precaution to protect yourself, others, and property.

Regards,
Der Strom
 
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Thanks so much DER

Thank you very much....and I do appreciate the warnings very much. I have made tesla coils as well as marx generators...although I usually build from kits, or from established plans...so I have never needed to calculate.
Capacitance has always been a mystery to me.
I have been following all of the traditional safety measures...and more, but I do appreciate the additional warnings.

Your help is greatly appreciated
 
additional

I do have to say tho I do have a Zenith capacitor whos poly-bag is CLEARLY labelled at 0.018mf 5% 2kv..and says the same on the cap
 
I do have to say tho I do have a Zenith capacitor whos poly-bag is CLEARLY labelled at 0.018mf 5% 2kv..and says the same on the cap

Yes, that is an older notation (mF or MF), or at least what people who don't have the slightest clue what they're talking about would write. MF means Megafarad (on million farads), and mF means millifarad (1000 microfarads, or .001 Farads). However, it is never said as "millifarads"--always "1000 microfarads". Something to remember in the future. Now, whenever you see "MF" or "mF", you can chuckle to yourself about what idiots the people who wrote that were :p:D Hahaha!

P.S. I'm glad you're being careful. If there's anyone else around you when you're working on it, make sure they know the dangers as well. You can never be TOO careful ;)
 
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ohhhh...now Im really confused...

so back to my original question.....any POPULAR value fairly close to this available in a high kv rationg:p
 
NO!
You are one of these people who don't know what they are talking about. Hee, hee.:D
0.018μF and 18nF are not 1800pF, they are 18,000pF.

My mistake. Just typed one too few zeroes. I knew it was 18000. Ever hear of a typo? :p

kimbear, 0.018μF is the same as 18nF or 18000pF.
 
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Different manufactures will produce different "Preferred Values (PV)" for their various product ranges.
As a general rule, close "PV" values would be 0.015 or 0.02 however there's no guarantee that you'd get one at the voltages you're after.
 
0.018uF, 18nF or 18000pF is a common capacitor value.
Maybe you can find 0.022uF, 22nF or 22000pF instead.
 
when i built a tesla coil for my high school science project, i used glass panes with metal foil epoxied to them for my primary caps. not sure of the actual value, but i trimmed the primary winding to get maximum energy transfer.

mf is an archaic (well maybe not that archaic, since it was still occasionally used when i was young) form of microfarad (or uf ). mmf was used for uuf (or picofarads).


note... what happened? no symbol table visible when writing replies?
 
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