Thursday, 23 April 2015

Dodgy Isolator Switch

A word of caution about switches- Just because it says 100 amps on the box doesn't mean it can switch 100 amps.

I bought this isolator switch from an auto spares shop, and it seemed to work well until one day when I was removing the fuse it gave an almighty spark!

On closer inspection it turned out that the isolator had failed in the on position.

I drilled out the rivets holding it together and it together and found that the copper switch bar had welded itself closed. There is only a spring to return the bar and no way to tell (mechanically at least) that the switch had failed.



I replaced the switch with one of the same type because I couldn't find anything else locally, and I still have the fuse as a safety cutoff. It might arc while switching and damage the fuse holder but its a surefire way to disconnect the battery in an emergency.



No comments:

Post a Comment