Join channels for more amps

[Michael]

I was wondering if it would work to parallel several channels for those cases where you need more than one triac can supply? I know that it would need to be all on the same side of the board that has the power in common. I am thinking about this for the REN16. Will this work, or will I see lots of that magic smoke?

- Michael

[Macrosill]

why not just separate the load across the individual channels? Or if you are talking about a single large load then get yourself a couple of 20 amp hockey puck style ssrs off ebay. A couple bucks and you can do up to 20 amps per channel.

[Michael]

I have a few places where I have about 5 amps of light strings that all turn on at once. The specs for the REN 16 board say that is a little too much for one triac. I can run 3-5 channels & power cords and break up the group, or I can run just one power cord and tie it to 3-5 channels at the controller. This can save a lot of cords and use the existing system I have without modifications of adding bigger triacs.

But I do also like the idea of being able to add a larger relay I can control from a REN16. Do you have any details of how to do that, or where to get the parts?

- Michael

[Matt]

As Brian said, you can get the relays off ebay. You would need to attach it to the output of one of the renard chips. For the renard16, you would have to tack a wire on somewhere. If you have several places with these loads I would recommend getting a Renard8 to control the relays.

-Matt

[xmus]

I have a few places where I have about 5 amps of light strings that all turn on at once. The specs for the REN 16 board say that is a little too much for one triac. I can run 3-5 channels & power cords and break up the group, or I can run just one power cord and tie it to 3-5 channels at the controller. This can save a lot of cords and use the existing system I have without modifications of adding bigger triacs.

But I do also like the idea of being able to add a larger relay I can control from a REN16. Do you have any details of how to do that, or where to get the parts?

- Michael

1Amp per channel is the "guesswork" limit for one SSR without a heat sink.... you could probably get up to higher than that with heat sinks.... I'm just waiting for someone to have the courage to try to run a full (5amps * 8 channels) = 40Amps per side of a XMUS board :) Could you be the guinea pig? Do it do it :) Over time, people will naturally push the limits, with and without heat sinks, and we will know more..... happy exploding :)