Best PDU to break out a 30Amp 220V USA home circuit

[navigator]

If I want to convert to 220v for all my corsair psu's, do I have to buy a special outlet and iec power cables? Or can I wire a regular 110v outlet for 220v and use the standard cables they come with?

[shaxs]

I could use some feedback here. I decided to forgo my spa power to instead work for powering Ants. It is 220v 60a running 8 guage copper wiring. Should I:

- Leave it at 220v and get a PDU instead?

Converting down to a bunch of 120v doesn't make much sense. Keep it at 220v, and just about any PSU now-a-days will run perfect on 220, if not more efficient.

Is it 60a single or three phase? If it's single, just add two 30A breakers and you're set. If it's three-phase, you can add 3x 30A breakers.

Either way, for however number of 30A breakers you have, put a PDU on each one. Each breaker is rated for 30A, but you only want to run it @80% for a continuous load, which is 24A, which is why those PDUs are rated for 24A (continuous).

When you're powering Ants off 220v, assume each Ant will pull 2A, so you can power 12 Ants off each breaker/PDU.

Woah now you are talking. 12 Ants on one breaker sounds great. I dont understand electrical all that well (I will be paying a professional to do all this, but I like to have any idea of what to tell them). What does single phase vs three phase mean?

Here is my main box. the "hot tub" labeled breaker is the circuit I will be using:



Here is the conduit coming out of the main heading to the backyard:



Here is the Spa breaker box:



So the PDU will have a 220v plug and the PDU will have connections for standard 120v looking plugs?

Can you recommend a solid, affordable PDU?

EDIT: These are the PSUs I am going to use: http://www.ebay.com/itm/321306693173. Should be fine right? IBM x3650 835W Hot-Swap Power Supply 24R2730

EDIT 2: Okay re-reading this it looks like there are different types of 220v plugs... like 6-20r or L6-30R. Is one better than the other?

[CoinShovel]

Three phase power is used for heavy loads and is usually not pulled to residential areas. It's essentially 3 feeds, but it uses less conductor material overall, so it's more efficient in the transfer of power.

Single phase is almost always what you'll be dealing with at your house.

Any metered PDU generally does the job, there are a few with network jacks that make things even more configurable remotely (you can turn banks on/off, reset power remotely, etc.). The cheapest brands are generally APC/TrippLite, but they work okay for most people.

[shaxs]

Three phase power is used for heavy loads and is usually not pulled to residential areas. It's essentially 3 feeds, but it uses less conductor material overall, so it's more efficient in the transfer of power.

Single phase is almost always what you'll be dealing with at your house.

Any metered PDU generally does the job, there are a few with network jacks that make things even more configurable remotely (you can turn banks on/off, reset power remotely, etc.). The cheapest brands are generally APC/TrippLite, but they work okay for most people.

Great thank you! And the plug/receptacle doesnt make a difference?

[CoinShovel]

Three phase power is used for heavy loads and is usually not pulled to residential areas. It's essentially 3 feeds, but it uses less conductor material overall, so it's more efficient in the transfer of power.

Single phase is almost always what you'll be dealing with at your house.

Any metered PDU generally does the job, there are a few with network jacks that make things even more configurable remotely (you can turn banks on/off, reset power remotely, etc.). The cheapest brands are generally APC/TrippLite, but they work okay for most people.

Great thank you! And the plug/receptacle doesnt make a difference?

It does, you will either need C19 to C20 cables or C13 to C14 depending on what PSUs you are using. Some PDUs come with a power cord attached, but most come with a C20 socket that you can choose whatever your wall outlet plug style is and then get a C19 on the end of it to hook to the PDU's C20 input.

[shaxs]

Three phase power is used for heavy loads and is usually not pulled to residential areas. It's essentially 3 feeds, but it uses less conductor material overall, so it's more efficient in the transfer of power.

Single phase is almost always what you'll be dealing with at your house.

Any metered PDU generally does the job, there are a few with network jacks that make things even more configurable remotely (you can turn banks on/off, reset power remotely, etc.). The cheapest brands are generally APC/TrippLite, but they work okay for most people.

Great thank you! And the plug/receptacle doesnt make a difference?

It does, you will either need C19 to C20 cables or C13 to C14 depending on what PSUs you are using. Some PDUs come with a power cord attached, but most come with a C20 socket that you can choose whatever your wall outlet plug style is and then get a C19 on the end of it to hook to the PDU's C20 input.

Sounds like the ap7911 will do the job. It uses a L6-30p plug. Guess I will plan on that.

Any other affordable used (sub $200) metered/switched PDUs I should look at?

[fractalbc]

Generally you should match the plug to the wire to the breaker to the device.

A 20 amp breaker protecting 12 AWG wire should mate with a 20 amp plug and feed a 20 amp PDU.  Pretty straight forward.

A 30 amp breaker protecting 10 AWG wire with a 30 amp plug feeding a 20 amp PDU is asking for trouble.

Locking vs non locking is a matter of preference.  Residential applications typically use non locking.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NEMA_connector does a pretty good job at summarizing the advantages and disadvantages.

[shaxs]

Generally you should match the plug to the wire to the breaker to the device.

A 20 amp breaker protecting 12 AWG wire should mate with a 20 amp plug and feed a 20 amp PDU.  Pretty straight forward.

A 30 amp breaker protecting 10 AWG wire with a 30 amp plug feeding a 20 amp PDU is asking for trouble.

Locking vs non locking is a matter of preference.  Residential applications typically use non locking.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NEMA_connector does a pretty good job at summarizing the advantages and disadvantages.

I See so I need to find a 30a PDU then...Will look round. Any suggestions?

[shaxs]

So this should work right APC AP7841 ? http://www.ebay.com/itm/APC-AP7841-Rack-PDU-Metered-Zero-U-30A-200-208V-20-C13-4-C19-/301063548435

[DeathAndTaxes]

Sure but there are cheaper PDU if you don't need fancy metering capabilities.  Lots of 30A 208V/240V PDU on ebay for $30 to $40 ea.

[shaxs]

Sure but there are cheaper PDU if you don't need fancy metering capabilities.  Lots of 30A 208V/240V PDU on ebay for $30 to $40 ea.

I kind of like the metering capabilities. Especially since I am splitting this "mining center" with a friend and he has to pay for electricity he uses.

[nexus99]

Sure but there are cheaper PDU if you don't need fancy metering capabilities.  Lots of 30A 208V/240V PDU on ebay for $30 to $40 ea.

I kind of like the metering capabilities. Especially since I am splitting this "mining center" with a friend and he has to pay for electricity he uses.

AP7811 for metering without switching.

[shaxs]

Sure but there are cheaper PDU if you don't need fancy metering capabilities.  Lots of 30A 208V/240V PDU on ebay for $30 to $40 ea.

I kind of like the metering capabilities. Especially since I am splitting this "mining center" with a friend and he has to pay for electricity he uses.

AP7811 for metering without switching.

AP7811 is 24a at 208v. I thought I needed to find a 30a PDU?

[CoinShovel]

Sure but there are cheaper PDU if you don't need fancy metering capabilities.  Lots of 30A 208V/240V PDU on ebay for $30 to $40 ea.

I kind of like the metering capabilities. Especially since I am splitting this "mining center" with a friend and he has to pay for electricity he uses.

AP7811 for metering without switching.

AP7811 is 24a at 208v. I thought I needed to find a 30a PDU?

24 amps is the continuous load you'll want to put on a 30amp PDU. You want 80% -- 20 amps really shouldn't have more than 16 amp loads on them, and so forth.