PDA

View Full Version : lasers main breaker



James Rambo
10-13-2007, 10:20 PM
Has anyone else had the lasers Main A/C Breaker trip when they were cutting? TonightI am starting to cut a smaller version of the Eiffel tower, that someone posted here, to take to a show in november (I hope to be able to cut many more items before next mouths show)and the machine just stopped in mid-cut about an hour into the sheet of ply. It took me just a few seconds to find the breaker was tripped, but it would not reset right away. I was getting worried that it would not. I gave it about 4 minutes to cool down and it is cutting again. Is this something that I can expect to happen continuously now that it happened? Can I replace it? Or is it just because it was such a long cutting sequence?

Robert Murray
10-13-2007, 10:36 PM
What else do you have on the same breaker would be my first question.

I have my laser on its own 20amp breaker and have not had a problem.
Sounds like your breaker tripped do to over heating. That is what happens when you pull heavy loads close to the trip point of the of a breaker over time.

You should try and remove all other loads from the breaker but the engraver. If you can not that I would run a new circuit just for your
engraver.

Joe Pelonio
10-13-2007, 10:42 PM
I think he means the breaker on the laser's power supply.

Never had that happen on mine. I've run jobs that took over two hours on 1/4" acrylic. Is your fan cooling it well, maybe it's time to clean out the ductwork?

Robert Murray
10-13-2007, 11:09 PM
That is the way it reads guess I should have read it twice. Still
sounds like breaker triped out on overheating. Could be poor airflow
or a breaker that is senstive to heat. Might be worth a call to Epilog
to get the duty cycle vs temp chart if they have one.

If you happen to have your heat on might want to be sure you dont have
a regester blowing on the laser. I would look for ways to keep the area cooler and make sure all vents on the laser are clean and clear of dirt.

Bill Cunningham
10-13-2007, 11:09 PM
My first guess would be the same as Joe's.. If the airflow is restricted, the lasers going to overheat and trip a breaker, or the tube will shut down (hopefully), to protect itself..

Frank Corker
10-14-2007, 4:54 AM
I'd agree on the overheating but it may also have been caused by a power surge. If you don't have a power surge protector I'd urge you to get one, they are cheap enough when compared to replacement costs on lasers.

I'd also like to say James that you should be glad that it tripped and not have to go through the powerpack replacement that I had to when mine never tripped! At least it's protecting your machine.

James Rambo
10-14-2007, 8:24 AM
Yah, I am talking about the breaker in the laser. I don't have the heat because I live in Florida it's about 85 degrees out so the a/c is on. I have a whole house surge protector and a surge protector at the outlet the laser is plugged into. In this area of Florida we get lightning strikes and power blinks almost everyday wheither there is a storm in the area or not. My exhaust is doing a good job of pulling air thru the machine and the cooling fans seem to be running. I have to go in to work a full day todayat my job the really pays the bills. So, I will try and find anything else that could have been the cause later today. THANKS everyone for the ideas.

Mike Hood
10-14-2007, 11:32 AM
Circuit breakers get weaker every time they trip as well. I have a device called a Kill-A-Watt on the outlet that powers my laser. You can watch the power requirements change as the laser cuts, but it's a very small amount.

You might wanna invest in one to watch the power consumption. Something is drawing more amps than recommended and should be seen as a warning.

Jim Watkins
10-14-2007, 6:45 PM
Not to hijack the post, but what smaller version of the eifel tower? I have a version which I have not cut, but it will be 3 to 4 feet tall. Is this the one your referring to or do you have one which will be smaller?

Thanks

Tom Cullen
10-14-2007, 8:02 PM
You might also want to consider a line conditioner, it helps keep a steady power flow with surges and also drops in power.

James Rambo
10-15-2007, 12:16 PM
Jim
I was using the original file downloaded from this forum, but I resized it for 3mm Birch ply.