How much electricity will a shedio need??

Started by katie78, April 13, 2013, 09:38:09 AM

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katie78

Hi,

Sorry if these sound like daft questions but I am just trying to figure out some bits and bobs before I get my all my kit and actually be able to make beads instead of just looking at them  ;D

Eventually I will be getting a shedio to work in and it will just near the back door at the side of our garden.
How much electricity would it need???

I will be having an extension cable going out to the shedio to let me have a light in there and electric for eventually my kiln.
How long does the kiln need to be on for and erm I am stuck, I don't know what else to ask  :-\

Help, how does it all work xx

Kimster

Someone will soon be along with some more technical information, but bear in mind you will probably soon want an oxycon, an extraction system, & if you are anywhere in the UK, a heater of some sort! Good luck, you will love it!  :D

oliver90owner

A extension cable is not appropriate.  True, many use them, but you are warned....

There are limited lengths for extention leads dependent on power drawn.  You really need a 30 amp ring main to run any decent sized kiln.

I have seen instances where the lights dim every time the kiln cuts in.  That means the heating losses in the lead may be close to the limit, resulting on an excessive voltage loss.

My advice would be to ask an electrician.

Pauline

I agree properly wired would be safer.  my SC3 plugs in to a normal socket but the instructions say it shouln't share an extension lead.  It runs for around 7 hours when on. 

kerensky

I would recommend getting an electrician to give you a quote for a safe outside power source.


June

Quote from: Kimster on April 13, 2013, 09:50:20 AM
if you are anywhere in the UK, a heater of some sort!

;D ;D.

I think you've had some good advice here. I plug my kiln into an RCD, too.

Niki Gough

I run an extension to my shedio BUT it only powers a light, fan and heater at the moment. I have my shed door open and the fan for ventilation, I agree with what everyone else has said though about kilns and oxycon. I am planning on staying on a HH for some time due to funds and for me this is a rented house so don't want to go to the costs of running power outside as if we move the shed would be coming with us as is ours. As for kiln I will be having it somewhere in the house and batch annealing if I mange to get one before we can afford to move to somewhere I can have proper power outside. Definitely worth asking a electrician for a quote for a proper power supply x
Niki x
N Designs Crafts

Every oops is an aah waiting to happen.

Rascal

We had an electrician come out and he has put in a 32 amp armoured cable into the shed which goes into a RCD fuse box with separate circuits for the lights and sockets. Probably a bit much but price wise it didn't cost much more than doing the minimum he recommended. My kiln can be on for 16 hours if I do a full day including ramping down etc, I may have heater on, the OxyCon and ventilation is always on and music. I also thought I'd have extra 'amps' spare in case I do anything more in the future.

Blue Box Studio

I have armoured cable going to my big shedio and a fuse box with RCD built in and that has a seperate supply to my little glass shedio.  By the time you have an oxy runing, heating, lighting, ventilation, radio, kiln .... you'll be drawing a lot of power.
Sue
Website ~ Etsy ~ Blog ~ Flickr

oliver90owner

Sorry but I did not consider a 32A feed from your consumer box (I doubt the regs permit a 32A spur from a 30A ring main).

Once the supply is into your shedio, you will then need to decide whether the outlets from that incoming supply will be ringed or fitted as separate spur feeds.  Not a sparky, so not up on all the rules and regs.

Moira HFG

It's a very good idea to work this out in advance, rather than rushing into your purchases and working out the installation afterwards. Good thinking!

The best thing is to make a list of what you actually want, and add up the power requirements in watts. So - if you're planning to start on a hothead, that might be:

lighting: maybe 2 fluorescent tubes at 60 watts each? That would be 120 W
ventilation: I think mine's about 60W, they probably vary
kiln: happy with a Beadcube? They're just 900W.
heating: this is the big consumer of power, heaters run at 2000 to 3000 watts (that"s 2kW or 3kW). You might consider a gas workshop heater instead.

So adding this up, you need 1,080 watts of power, just over a kilowatt, without heating.
In round numbers, you need 4 amps of current to supply a kilowatt of power.

So a simple extension will be enough at this level - provided you take care to protect it from weather and damage. You can get outdoor extensions to take power to garden tools etc, this would be the thing to go for. Make sure the fuse in it is just a little higher than what you intend to use - if you expect to use 4 amps, fit a 5 amp fuse. I'd be inclined to run it out to the shed when you're in there, and roll it up and put it back in the house for storage.

When you scale up to a dual-fuel torch, you'll need to add in an oxycon (not sure of the power - 300W? 500W?) and a bigger kiln will need more, maybe 2000W. Then it will be time to consider the armoured cable and so on.

(32 amps will provide you with 8 kW of power. That's a 3-bar electric fire, a 2kW fusing kiln and a Bead cube run simultanously, with 2 kW left over.)

katie78

Thank you for all the fab advice  ;D

I think I would possibly have the when the time comes and I get one the kiln running in the house now I have thought about it a bit more  :D

So to start off with it will just be a light, a CD player a total must and a heater.
I will have the door open for ventilation I will install a system as soon as I earn enough after I have bought my kit.

I think an extention lead out the back door should be fine for now till I need more then I will look into talking to an electrician closer to the winter time when I will be out there and havig the back door open for a cable lol.

Wow you guys are fantastic thanks  ;D  ;D

Niki Gough

I pass mine out the kitchen window as we have a small window and then pull it tight to it to keep most of the cold out. Sounds like you have a good plan there and good luck x
Niki x
N Designs Crafts

Every oops is an aah waiting to happen.

Moira HFG

Don't pull the door or window too tightly shut! If crush the cable, you'll have a short circuit on your hands.  ;)

Niki Gough

Niki x
N Designs Crafts

Every oops is an aah waiting to happen.