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Thread: Table Saw Breaker keeps tripping.. Cold weather?

  1. #1
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    Table Saw Breaker keeps tripping.. Cold weather?

    I've had my table saw for about 6 months now. it's a grizzly 1023, 3hp, 14 amp. I ran a 10 gauge dedicated circuit with a 20 amp receptacle and breaker. I have had a few instances where the breaker would trip on startup, but they would only occur once out of every 10-15 startups. I know this is due to the motor pulling more amps on startup.
    today, however, I can't get the thing to startup at all without tripping the breaker. I checked the lines and the plug and the receptacle, there is no issue there. The only difference i can think of is that it is significantly colder now than it was a couple weeks ago when i last used it. Does being colder cause the motor to pull even more amps than normal? If so, do i just need to stick a heater in the garage next to the table saw? or should i just switch out the receptacle and breaker for a 30 amp?

  2. #2
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    This may not apply, but do you have the blade in the up position when attempting to start it? I have a pulley driven TS and when the blade is cranked up it puts more tension on the pulley belt. This added tension could place added resistance when starting. Just a thought.
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  3. #3
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    Had a 3 hp on a 20 amp and never tripped. Had severl years in an unheated garage in Michigan... it may be a bad breaker...

  4. #4
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    Cold weather will make the belt stiff so likely that is pushing you off the cliff. You could do some things about that but your real problem may be inadequate power supply.

    You may have a voltage problem. Grab a volt meter and see what you have when off, when running and on startup.

    Also, does it ever trip when cutting?

  5. #5
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    Try taking the blade off and see if it will start, if so let it run for a few minutes to warm everything up then install the blade. Since cold weather (how cold was it?) is not the norm for your location this might resolve the issue.

  6. #6
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    Since you ran a dedicated ten gauge circuit to the saw, why not change the breaker to a 30 ampere breaker, which your circuit can safely handle?

    What I would do anyway. Just a thought...

    PS...You could be borderline on amps pulled during start with the 20 amp breaker, or you could have another issue (with the saw most likely). If you do increase the breaker size watch for smoke at the saw, just in case!
    Last edited by Bill Space; 11-28-2018 at 4:06 PM.
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  7. #7
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    Did a check on the 1023, 3 HP on the Griz site and per the specification sheet, 20 amp breaker is the minimum size. See: https://cdn0.grizzly.com/specsheets/g0690_ds.pdf

    As others posted, a 30 amp. breaker would be a better bet along with checking the voltage.

  8. #8
    It sounds like you have something going on more than just the change in temperature; that is likely coincidental. Woodworking machinery will have problems in cold weather, but my experience (and I'm from Minnesota) is that they happen at temperatures far colder than people are willing to work in. The recent 30s in Fort Worth should not have affected a 3hp saw in the least.

    The drivetrain on a Unisaw style table saw like the Grizzly is pretty straight forward; a pulley, a few belts, another pulley, an arbor, and a saw blade. Start up load is minimal, getting the motor armature itself in motion is probably the main amperage draw. If you can turn the saw blade by hand, then there isn't a problem with belt stiffness. On a 3 hp saw, the arbor would basically have to be seized to cause the breaker to trip.

    I have a 3hp Oneida cyclone, a 3hp Grizzly planer, and a 3 hp Unisaw, all are on dedicated 20A circuits, all have 12 ga wire from the 100A subpanel, and I have never once in my life tripped a breaker for any of them. The only one with any kind of start up load is the cyclone, and that is furthest from the subpanel at 40 feet. If you have already have had the breaker trip on start up, it is likely there was already a problem.

    There are three potential problems that come to mind. You could have a bad breaker, an issue with low voltage, or a bad motor or starter. Of the 3, the bad breaker is the easiest to test out, just swap in a new 20 breaker and see if the problem continues. If it does, then check the voltage prior to running, at start up and during running (if you don't feel comfortable doing this, you probably should get an electrician). If the voltage drops significantly during starting, say to 200V and is not close to full voltage during running, then you likely have a low voltage problem. Since the wattage demanded by the motor stays the same, if you drop the volts, the amps go up, and possibly high enough to trip the breaker. If the breaker and voltage check out, see what the amp draw on the motor is. It is possible that there is something wrong with it; if so then a call to Grizzly would be next.

  9. #9
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    Just an additional comment related to the size of the breaker in that circuit.

    A wise person on this forum said in a previous post, "Size the breaker for the size of the wire, not the size of the load."

    The tool should already has its own overload protection. Your choice of a 20A breaker for a 14A load is proving to be electrically problematic regardless of the temperature.

    Don't forget to use the proper outlet and plug for that increased 30A circuit.
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  10. #10
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    I think calling Grizzly would be my next step given that it's under warranty. It could be a motor problem. A 20 amp breaker should be adequate IMO, any properly functioning breaker should tolerate momentary startup load. I did have one new breaker that would sometimes do what yours does, trip on machine start. I replaced the breaker and no issues since. There are 'slow blow' fuses that are more tolerant of momentary overloads, I don't know if such a thing exists in breakers or not.

    What does the Grizzly manual call for as far as circuit goes? If the manual calls for a 30 amp circuit and you call Grizzly they may say to upsize the circuit. At one point they were calling for 40 amp circuits for 3 h.p. motors. Why I don't know.

  11. #11
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    central tx
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    I would replace the breaker, if it doesn't fix it you can return it.

  12. #12
    According to Grizzly the G1023RL has a full load current rating of 14A. Grizzly recommends a 15A breaker but I would have installed a 20A breaker. We load breakers to 80% of rating so once you get past 12A load, bump the breaker up to 20A.

    I agree with the breaker being the problem. They are not as reliable as fuses and once they start to trip, they only continue to break down. Replace the breaker before doing anything else.

    I would not recommend installing a 30A breaker just because you have #10 wire installed. Many manufacturers provide a maximum rating on panelboard breakers as a second means of protecting the equipment, and though I didn't see that on the Grizzly website, I'd err on the safe side and keep the breaker at 20A until you know more about what's going on.
    “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness..." - Mark Twain

  13. #13
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    Do as the poster above said. Circuit protection should not exceed the lowerest rated component to the outlet. That is why 15A outlets are rated at 20A. There are often reasons to use larger wire than the rated circuit protection such as compensating for long runs where voltage drop is a concern.

  14. #14
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    Spin the blade by hand a few times to loosen the grease in the bearings then turn it on. My lathe bearings howled but only below 5O F and just for a minute until they warmed up. They got replaced and the noise went away.
    Bill D

  15. #15
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    Jun 2017
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    Fort Worth, Texas
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    thanks for all your answers. I didn't put a 30 amp breaker and plug in when I ran the circuit because all my local HD had was 20 amp receptacles for the type of plug that came already on the saw.
    I've never had an issue with the saw blowing the breaker while cutting. I definitely think its an issue with the motor startup. Today it did the same thing. but, I then spun the blade by hand and then hit the start button, and it started right up. I ran it for about 30 seconds, shut it off, and started it back up 5 minutes later, and it started right up.
    I plan on getting a new breaker though, as this one has tripped at least 20 times now.

    I feel like someone should invent a little extra startup motor to assist the big motor when its cold

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