Power supply question

CNC Machines
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I’m working on setting up the table for my Pro XXL which should arrive in a couple days. I’m wondering if the 15amp fuse/breaker built into the power strip I plan to use will handle the power needs of both the Shapeoko and the router? Just don’t want it tripping on me partway into a cut.

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Joshua:

I suggest two separate 15 amp circuits. One for the electronics (computer & controller) and one for the router and dust collection. This keeps the electrically noisy components isolated. This can help ward off EMI issues.

Bill

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3

I wouldn’t set up a machine (or computer system) without putting an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) in the line.

Here’s a thread that I started (there are others) about that subject and worth your consideration.

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4

A 15 amp circuit can handle about 1500 watts continous draw with no problem. The router is about 780 watts, add in the power supply (sorry don;t know that off the top of my head), and see if it’s less than 1500 (it should be).

I’m running the router, the Shaepoko, a laptop and lighting from one circuit no problems. If you want to use a UPS, add up all your watts and add a GENEROUS margin, then buy a UPS that can output that much. Myself, I don’t use a UPS since the power doesn’t go out enough to be worthwhile.

Note that a UPS is NOT a power conditioner - until the power goes out, or it gets really bad, everything is running DIRECTLY from the mains power with no filtering other than surge protection.

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That depends on the UPS.

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Further considerations here:

  • it’s best to have separate circuits for computer/machine, and router/dust collection
  • while the machine and the router and the computer don’t exceed 15 amps, a spindle and/or dust collection can easily exceed this
  • for a UPS, there’s a consideration of the type of power it outputs (whether or no it’s shaped like a sine wave?) and not using one suited for the draw of AC motors (from the trim router/dust collection) can be problematic
  • an EMI filtering power strip can help, best to have two, one for each circuit.
  • one advantage of a BitRunner is that it allows for a single switch turning off the machine to also turn off the router/dust collection if on a separate circuit

I put in a dedicated 20 amp circuit to run my spindle and dust collection, but I have a weird setup.

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Michael, I made some reference to hardware in the post linked in my message.

What kind of “power conditioner” would you be thinking about? I’m thinking that “mains power with no filtering” is the norm, so that baffles me a bit.

I’m of the opinion that “surge protection” is a label that is highly touted and hardly explained. Nothing will save your electronics from lightning strikes nearby. If you’re in a lightning prone area, you probably already have (or should have) a whole house lightning arrester or such, because you got tired of buying new “surge protector” gadgets. :smiley:

I’m sure that most power problems will be solved with a good, high capacity UPS; has worked for me for many decades. :smirk:

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While not a lightning strike, I did have a surge protector save my computer setup when a car hit the pole w/ a transformer on it which fed power into our home — we were the last house to get power back (resulted in pretty much the entire town being out) — still regret not replacing that exact unit (it was an under-TV entertainment oriented unit which was black w/ soft-touch buttons and quite nice to use).

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I should probably wait until my caffeine hits but a little note about using separate circuits, and I am speaking about the US only here. US houses have split phase power, so in your breaker panel every other breaker is on the other phase.
So if you have 2 circuits in your CNC setup and the breakers are next to each other then they will be on separate phases. If they are split apart then verify if they are on the same phase or not.

Long story short, if they are on the same phase then they are still very much connected, just further away from your CNC and you really haven’t changed much. The circuit breaker itself will do nothing in terms of static discharge.

2 Likes
10

Thanks for all the good info.

Would I be ok running my machine and router on one circuit, and the dust collection and any other accessories on another? The main reason I’d prefer to do it this way is that it makes adding an E-stop that controls both the machine and router a lot easier to figure out for my basic wiring skills.

@CrookedWoodTex, I wasn’t even aware of a UPC, so thanks for the tip. :grinning: I’ll have to do more research.

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It’s better to have the machine and router on separate circuits.

Best way to have a single e-stop for that is to have a BitRunner controlling the unit. Alternately, get one of the paddle-style stop switches which controls two plugs.

Note that when I say “spindle” I am not referring to a trim router such as our Carbide Compact Router, but rather a unit such as the Mafell Quick Change Spindle which I’ve been using — though I’m unsure if the problem was the 220V–110V step-down transformer it needs, or that I was running it, and the vacuum, and a dehumidifier all at once.

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