Okay...a transformer is 'in the mail'...it's a 'table top' model...300watts. a bit more than your standard tourist transformer..
now that this problem is solved, i'm asking for your recommendations for a good LIGHT WEIGHT soldering iron from the US...i've checked the Delphi site and all it does is confuse me... you guys work with this stuff...make a suggestion for me please. i don't think i ever owned an Inland. but Delphi has one on their site that looks good but requires a temp. regulator...no problem...i'm willing to go for that too...but do you think that the 300watt transformer is enough for this equipment?
if you're going to recommend a new iron to me, please also tell me where i can find it online to place an order...
thanks ...
arlene my email address is: snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com
Inland has an iron that has a temp control built in to it. It has a small dial on the handle that does regulate the heat. I usually only turn the temp down when I am working with old, thin, delicate lead that would vaporize at high temps. I use this iron every day for my on-site repairs. I think this one is going on 10 years old, and still going strong.
I have the Weller 100P on my workbench. Both of those irons feel about the same in weight and balance, and you would be happy with either one, I'm sure.
I have no experience with the ceramic irons. I think JavaHut has mentioned them, maybe he'll comment.
A soldering iron isn't too fussy about AC cycles, that is 50Hz or 60Hz wouldn't make any difference as the heat is generated just from resistance. AC cycles are important in motors and the like, as the timing and rotation of the motor is determined by the frequency of the AC cycles.
Voltage "spikes" or "lows" would be a different story. All voltage varies throughout the day, but mostly in such a small range as to be unnoticed. I don't think a temperature controller would solve your problem of voltage fluctuations in the boonies.
Given what you have said, I think I'd be looking for an iron with an internal temperature controller (Weller 100P), because a higher or lower voltage won't radically affect how the iron heats. Ohms law says that if the resistance (the heating element) is constant, the amount of current (wattage) is dependent on the voltage applied to the resistance. So, if your voltage goes up and down through the day, the iron will compensate by heating longer at low voltages and shutting off the electrical flow sooner at higher voltages. As long as your electrical supply is within a 10-15% range, I'm thinking the iron will compensate and you'll never know. It has a "thermostat" in the tip, so when the tip is below 700F, it pulls current. At 700F, the sensor opens up and shuts off the current. Wild voltage fluctuations may make it heat/recover faster or slower, but still within a usable range.
is a transformer that will take your 220v and convert it to 110v andvice-versa. It also has a voltage regulator to "clip" the voltage spikes.They are available in many different power ratings, a 1000 watt one wouldrun an iron and a grinder with no problems. Not a kiln!!!
i swear by the inland studio pro iron. They take a licking..... i keep two hot for faster soldering and at 18$ or so each they are definitely not costly. If you are not currently doing wholesale purchasing, try Glasscrafters.com. They may be willing to set you up at lower than retail prices even tho you are just getting started. m
I think i was talking about an Analog soldering iron... obviously, i'm confused here...
your answer seems to be about a transformer...yes?
and i still need to know if i've purchased the RIGHT transformer.. it's 300watts...but you're talking about 1000 watts...
i know, it's me...i just don't understand things electrical!
have i made a mistake with the 300 watt transformer (it's produced in Turkey...converts 110 to 220...so would we call it a 'step up' converter?)
and what DOES the analog mean? if you want to see info about the analog work station, etc. that i want to purchase but think the price is very high...(over $300) it's by a company named Ersa...in Germany.
i'll see if i can find the website...please tell me if this is a good idea or not? what are the benefits of an analog?
Ok...let's start over. Fuggedaboudit on whatever you've been told.
This is a long, complicated explanation. Hopefully I can give you some understanding.
Turkey's standard power is 230 v, 50cy. There is a "standard" plug on appliances/tools that goes into the wall socket. That plug is apparently different from the UK plug. (The US and Canada use 120v, 60cy as a standard.) This is what you have to work with. The voltage in your area may fluctuate up and down as a function of the power transmission infrastructure, poor generating equipment, etc.
You may see appliances/tools with ratings that say 215/220/230/240volts. (Or in the US/Can. they may be marked 110/115/120.) A soldering iron that is designed to operate on 230 volts (nominal) will work just as well on 215 volts or 240 volts. Basically all the voltage labeling is telling you is that the device is designed for and the electrical insulation will work for voltages up to the labeling. For all practical purposes, the first digit in the voltage label is the only one that is important to you. ( a "2" or a "1")
The 50 cy/60 cy difference is generally only important in some electronic circuitry and in motor revolution speeds. A motor designed for 60 cy will spin slower if powered with a 50cy current. This is not important in picking out a soldering iron. But keep it in mind for your grinder/Dremel tool/sander, etc. Think of the cycle as a sine wave with "0" as the x-axis. The voltage is going from a "positive" 230 volts to a "negative" 230 volts at a speed of 50 times per second. That's where the term "alternating current" comes from. (AC)
A soldering iron is heated by electrical resistance. The flow of electricity is impeded by the heater (a coil of wire or a ceramic device) and heat is generated. That electrical energy has to go "somewhere", so it is converted into heat. The cycle (50 vs 60) is unimportant in a heating element. The amount of resistance is measured in "Ohms". But most mfgs. rate their devices in either "Watts" or "Amps" or, even "Horsepower". All of these are inter-related and if you know any two figures, the 3rd can be calculated.
For your purposes, you may want to know the current pulled by an iron. The mfg. has rated it as a 100 watt iron, and you have 230 volts applied to it. You would be pulling 2.3 amps. Wattage is calculated by multiplying the current draw (quantity of electricity) times the voltage. It's a simple algebraic equation, where W= AxV .
Some of the devices you will want to work with in your studio are likely US made, so they will be 120v,60cy. You will need to convert the voltage (not the cycles) from your 230v supply. You do that by using a transformer which steps down the voltage (basically in half). The capacity of the transformer to handle the devices attached to it (1000 watts, etc.) has to do with the size of the wire/insulation/ etc. used in it. You mentioned a 300 w transformer. It will basically only handle one soldering iron at a time. I wouldn't run an iron and a grinder and a Dremel tool on that transformer all at the same time unless I wanted to smell burning insulation. That transformer only has about 2.5 amps of capacity. Not enough, IMO.
Not knowing what else you may have in your studio that is US/Can. made and rated for 120 v, I was erring on the side of over-capacity in a previous post where I posted you a link for a 1000 watt one, and even that may not be big enough.
I went to the Ersa site, and frankly, I have no idea what they are talking about with "analog". I guess as opposed to "digital"? They may be talking about a manually operated rheostat to vary the voltage (analog) and thus the tip temp., vs a circuit designed to allow the user to enter a desired tip temp and the iron calculates the voltage required (digital)?
As I perceive your situation, you have 2 choices in selecting an iron. One is to find an iron rated for 230 volts. If the cord plug on that iron is not compatible with your household sockets, then you will just have to change the plug. Fairly simple process. Your local Home Depot or Lowes can help. ;
Wow, Moonraker!! That is the BEST explanation of electricity I have ever read! And, unlike texts and classes that I had to take while getting my A+ certificate in computers...I didn't fall asleep once! If you don't teach, you have missed your calling.
Really, Arlene, if you are still confused after that incredibly well constructed explanation, you might want to get a local electrician's help over there to set up your studio and do what Moonraker suggests...buy American!
Also, I think Michele's suggestion that you "stock up" is really solid. I never lived in Turkey (although with Moonraker's instruction, I think I could deal with the difference in the delivery of electricity now!), but when I lived in the wilds of Maine where we were "snowed in" for months at a time, I learned the value of having multiples of everything that would be difficult to live without until we could get dug out, plowed out, and take the trip to Bangor (nearest big city) to re-stock. Can't imagine not having back-up soldering irons!
Sounds like this is quite the adventure you have taken on there, Arlene! Wish you the absolute best in resolving the challenges!
Not that it actually matters, but your formula above (which is correct) implies that A=W/V, not V/W, so your hypothetical soldering iron is actually drawing a little under half an amp rather than 2.3 amps. That's at 230 volts, obviously. A 100W soldering iron running on standard American voltage draws closer to an amp.
thanks lori.. yes, adventure it is. my whole life has been an adventure!! thank goodness!
and multiples...you bet...three winters ago, we had a snow storm...and for 11 days we were snowed in without electricity!!! that was very hard to deal with! but since then, i've been a bit manic about multiples!! the nearest supermarket is 35 miles away, over hill, over dale, winding mountain roads...so when i do go, i stock up.
and moonraker is definitely a great teacher..with tons of patience and tolerance for my dumb questions...
i am looking around for a good ceramic core iron now from the US (my transformer is here and i believe it will work fine)...i also will eventually invest in a Weller 100P...
I may try to offer a 'residential' short course for visitors..(tourists from abroad) and let them stay in my guesthouse while providing 25 hours of instruction and studio time...it's a really neat idea whose time has come...having multiples of everything...(including soldering irons) makes a lot of good sense in this case as well. thanks you all for your encouragement...i feel as if i've got a new lease on life...
I grew up around the electrical utility business. My dad was chief engineer for a major utility company in the midwest, and that was usually the topic of discussion around the dinner table.
Interesting idea the "residential" course. I work with warm glass and never tried my hands on stained glass. Could be a good excuse for a holiday in Turkey
not only that...it won't be all that expensive. turkey is still a relatively inexpensive country. and lovely, kind, tolerant, hospitable people (just stay away from the city!!)
i'm putting together a website...just got my new digital camera so i can update what i had before my old one died!!
here's my ad from Craigslist before i thought about offering a residential glass course.
Off the beaten path
I have a small fully furnished two-storey guesthouse attached to my main house in a very small untouristy Turkish village. It is available on a reservation-basis for long-weekends or longer stays. It has a private entrance, small bathroom with shower, kitchen and dining area, a bright sunny sitting room with a fireplace, attic bedroom with twin beds and a terrace with a lovely view all the way to the Greek island of Mytilini although the coast is 10KM away. It's very simple, quaint and very cosy.
I'm looking to let this guesthouse to someone who wants/needs to get away from the hectic pace of the city, perhaps an artist, writer or professional who craves nature, peace and quiet (albeit with the sound of sheep bells and the occasional donkey). It would be a good idea if you were an animal lover since my cat is fond of visiting that part of the property and my dogs (2 boxers and a boxer-mix) although not free to roam, are segregated from the guest house, but do inhabit the back garden and will be 'curious' to see a new face on the terrace.
I have an ADSL connection for your laptop, 24/7 hot water and all the good clean oxygen you can breathe!
Meals can be provided at a nominal cost so you get all the benefits of a holiday OR, you can fix meals for yourself. It's your choice. Please, this is a conservative area and heavy drinking is frowned on...although we do occasionally have some wine with a meal.
If I'm not bogged down with work, I can even show you some local places of > snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com wrote:
I might see them rated at 208v as well... but that's a whole different can of worms. ;-)
So, if I have 199 volts at the socket, I can run stuff designed for 115? ;-)
It will also generally run hotter, so is often discouraged.
I'd say if you know any two of amps, volts, or ohms, the third can be calculated. For instance, if you know only amps and ohms, you can't figure out watts. For that, you need to know volts.
As was pointed out already, you were daydreaming when you typed that. ;-)
Yes.
It would handle 3 x 100 Watt non-temperature controlled irons. The rating of a transformer is given at 100% duty cycle. Almost all transformers can be run over rated capacity for short or intermittent periods... especially in cool ambient temps.
Say you have 4 Weller 100's. Sitting on the bench, they are constantly kicking in and out. Given their intermittent nature, it would be well within the realm of expectation to be able to have all 4 of them plugged into a 300 Watt transformer all day long given an aggregate duty cycle of 75% or less. It's common practice to use variacs (variable transformers) WAY over their rated capacity with popcorn poppers for roasting coffee. The fact that the heating element kicks in and out is what allows them to get away with it... also the fact that the whole roast from start to finish isn't any more than about 10 minutes. (We're talking about using variacs that originally shipped with 5 amp fuses - call it a
600 watt rating - for 1400 watt heating elements)
IOW, MOST 300 watt transformers don't really care much if you run them at 400 watts for 10 seconds or
15 seconds, as long as there's ample time to cool off at lower loading.
These sorts of consumer transformers all have either a fuse or circuit breaker built in. Worst case, you get to change a fuse.
Most likely the primary and secondary windings are of different size wire. Transformers are rated in watts (or volt-amps) instead of amps for that very reason. The primary side and secondary side have different amperage ratings. Either way though,
300 watts out requires something on the order of 330 watts in. 330w/230v = 1.43 amps IN and 300w/115v =
2.6 amps OUT.
A 300W transformer really should be plenty to run both the soldering iron and grinder at the same time. Most grinders draw a variable amount of current depending on whether they're at idle or at load, but generally speaking, you're looking at the 100w to 200w range.
So a 100W temp controlled Weller plus even a 200w grinder still fall well below 300 watts continuous. Yeah, adding a dremel at the same time would be iffy... but then, just how many hands do you have? ;-)
When we lived in Germany, we took a bunch of stuff over. I don't recall how many of what rating transformers we ended up with, (that was 28 years and then 21 years ago) but say about 5 transformers ranging from 150 watt for say, a 19" solid state b&w tv, to a
1500 watt transformer for electric frying pan, coffee pot, and the like.
We had friends with a 2000 watt, but never could figure out what we'd use so many lbs of iron and copper for that our smaller ones couldn't handle.
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