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sloopy
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December 19, 2015, 06:37:17 PM |
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I want to add just a couple of things here Phil. Not to step on your toes at all and I go way off topic regarding the OPs situation, but I thought it was a good place to add some things regarding safety.
I certainly do not want to be seen as yelling fire in a crowded theater, I simply want to remind people about a few safety points.
I do not have references or proof, but I haven't looked for such. I have been taught using a breaker to power cycle may have a negative impact on the longevity of the breaker.
That doesn't mean I haven't done it and will probably do so again in the future. I know in this context it may be the best way for the OP to address his situation. I simply wanted to throw it out there so others do not take this as something they should do all the time. The breaker is not a light switch.
With our miners we want to leave them on so there really shouldn't be a need to power cycle a breaker enough to cause any premature wear.
The way it was explained to me is cycling the breaker with a load on it may lead to a shorter life.
At the same time you don't want to "pull the cord" with a load on it but again, there is a huge difference between making a habit of something like this. When you pull a cord make sure you remove it carefully, do not get in a hurry, and especially if you are reconnecting something which is immediately pulling a load, it will pull even without actually touching, and an arc can jump to you if your finger is a path of least resistance.
Again, I mention these things in a longterm usage scenario, not for urgent troubleshooting needs as you are discussing right now. I only mention these things so people do not make a habit of doing this on a daily basis and do indeed setup a proper way to switch the miners on or off. I have not and do not intend to purchase a power supply which does not have a way to turn it on / off and I have no doubt there are breakers which this would not impact in any significant way.
As a side note for anyone who may not be aware:
As most people know you should not work on a live circuit. I've had many discussions with my Electrical Engineers just this week about this exact subject, and there are a couple of points to make. For example, you shouldn't work on a live circuit in your breaker panel because most people are not going to take the proper safety measures. Stand on a dry board, not a 2x4 but a large piece of plywood so you can move around comfortably, wear gloves which will not interfere with your actions but will help protect you from arcing. Never stand in water or work with wet tools, even your perspiration can be an issue, and many other safety measures people should always follow.
If you decide to work on a live circuit anyway, as I have done several times and do not recommend anyone doing at any time! I cannot stress this enough, do not do it. It isn't the right or best way, but I made a personal choice to do so. In that scenario, I made sure I had a 4'x4' piece of plywood on a dry floor. I wore safety glasses, and I had well-fitting yet thick gloves, but the most important thing I could ever say I learned was to make sure there is not a load. Electricity is looking for a ground. When there is a load applied and you disconnect something in the middle the chances for arcing increase. No one wants to harm themselves or their equipment, so make sure you remove the load if you ever make a personal choice to put yourself in that situation and always remember, if you are the path of least resistance, you can die! Again, I do not recommend anyone working on a live circuit.
In my situation there is not a disconnect for my main panel. It is a split bus panel so it does not have a main breaker. I made the choice because I did not want to wait on the power company to pull my meter. It was not the choice I should have made. I should have waited. I am installing a completely new panel tomorrow which will be inspected by a licensed electrician and he will pull the meter so there is zero power available where I may be the path of least resistance. This is the correct way as no power in means no power can harm you.
Again, this in no way means Phillip gave bad advice, or stated anything I think is incorrect. I simply wanted to take this scenario a bit further and use the moment to promote safety to my friends here in the mining community. I am in no way a hall monitor, but I have spent hours and hours discussing and researching the act of working on live power and there are many deaths in data centers every year where they have extreme safety measures in place, lock out tag out procedures, etc, so it is painfully obvious to me we can all slow down a bit a take a minute for safety.
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