Connecting 2.2kw vfd to Mains supply

[the great waldo]

Hello All

I have just got a hitachi wj200-022sf vfd 2.2kw and was wondering how it should be wired to the mains supply. I assume that it has to be wired direct to the mains supply panel and not to a 13 amp plug. What guage wire would be required. I think i'm going to need an electrician to install it. Any information will be gratefully accepted. The vfd is a single phase model and the wiring here is 220 volts (Austria)

Cheers

Andrew

[Noplace]

First try to obtain the manual of your VFD and read it thoroughly , it should show you which pins/connectors are the Live, Neutral and Ground. then you can connect them to your power cable with the 13amp plug socket. I use 1.5mm^2 wires for it but you might be able to get away with smaller size.

if not sure about electric work definitely get an electrician to do it and teach you

[komatias]

Find the max rating of your VFD, my teco was quoting 21amp peak current draw. I would recommend you use a 16amp or 32amp socket if you are are going to run all the electrics off one plug. A 32Amp circuit breaker and an industrial RCD will be a good idea too.

[Clive S]

Andrew First welcome to the forum.

Re your VFD 2.2Kw at 220V is about 10A at full load which you will hardly ever use the majority of people on here I suggest will be using a standard 13A plug and if it is a short run from the vfd to the socket then 1.5mm cable will be fine.

[the great waldo]

Hi Clive

Thanks for the note. In the instruction manual the recommended wire gauge is 5.3mm² with 30 amp fuses, seems a bit heavy if you ask me. If anyone has any ideas i'm all ears.
Cheers

Andrew

Andrew First welcome to the forum.

Re your VFD 2.2Kw at 220V is about 10A at full load which you will hardly ever use the majority of people on here I suggest will be using a standard 13A plug and if it is a short run from the vfd to the socket then 1.5mm cable will be fine.

[Doddy]

Of course, for Austria you're talking the 16A Schuko plug and, I think, the circuit is protected at the distribution unit rather than at the plug. But, to the OP, you should be able to plug into a 16A circuit without worry. 1.5mm2 is a little close to the maximum supply current - you'd be better to use 2.5mm.

[the great waldo]

Hi Doddy

I checked the amp rating on the side of the VFD and it's rated at 200-240volts 1Ph 24.0/22/.0 Amps So i've a feeling i'm going to have to have it wired into the distribution box directly. Looks like Hitachi build their VFD's with plenty of power. On the output side it's 0.1-580Hz 200-240 volts 3Ph 12.0/11.0 amps so the whole thing seems to be conservatively rated rated. I'll be using it with a 2.2kw chinese spindle which I got from ebay and pleased to say it has no runout on the spindle, not sure about the chuck though.

Cheers

Andrew

Of course, for Austria you're talking the 16A Schuko plug and, I think, the circuit is protected at the distribution unit rather than at the plug. But, to the OP, you should be able to plug into a 16A circuit without worry. 1.5mm2 is a little close to the maximum supply current - you'd be better to use 2.5mm.

[JAZZCNC]

Andrew it will be fine on standard plug. This is done all the time without problems.

Clive is also correct that 1.5mm2 is fine for the connection between VFD and Spindle. 2.5mm2 should be used from mains to VFD but to the spindle you are better with 1.5mm2 because it's easier to fit into the spindle connection socket and because the spindle is only rated 8A then 1.5mm2 is more than enough.
In use while cutting you'll rarely if ever pull the full 8A.
I don't set my VFD to Display RPM just Amps so I can monitor for cutter wear so I'm very aware of the current they pull. For instance milling aluminium 4mm DOC full slot engagement with 8mm 3 flute cutter running 1000mm/min I only pull around 3A when cutter is new. Max is 5A when cutter is so worn it's crying stop.!!
Only when you jam up or Bog down will you get close or exceed 8A in which case the VFD should be set to Fault if above set amount for any period of time.

[the great waldo]

Hi Jazz
Thanks for the reassurance. I'll give it a crack with a normal plug and some heavy wire. I'm a bit nervous about the 22 amp rating on the inverter case. I'd be grateful if any forumites that have used this vfd Hitachi wj200-022sf with a normal plug on it can chirp in with their opinions. I'm going to be using the spindle for wood routing and I know from experience that sharp cutters and and a powerful motor and not to deep cuts leads to a good finish and less stress on the machine and my nerves. I'd like to thank everyone here for their help as this is my first interaction with this forum, and look forward to further posts and replies.
Thank you all.

Cheers

Andrew

[Doddy]

Andrew,

As an electrical/electronic engineer, provided the Austrian/European electrical system is protected at the distribution board at 16A then the protective device will protect the circuit from over current.

My guess, and it is a guess, is the 20+ amps is based on startup draw from the spindle motor, and will be short lived; if sustained then the breaker will trip

[the great waldo]

Hi Doddy
I'll check the distribution board to see what circuit breakers are on the line. Thanks for your input.

Cheers

Andrew

[Boyan Silyavski]

I don't set my VFD to Display RPM just Amps so I can monitor for cutter wear so I'm very aware of the current they pull. For instance milling aluminium 4mm DOC full slot engagement with 8mm 3 flute cutter running 1000mm/min I only pull around 3A when cutter is new. Max is 5A when cutter is so worn it's crying stop.!!
Only when you jam up or Bog down will you get close or exceed 8A in which case the VFD should be set to Fault if above set amount for any period of time.

Thats interesting. Thanks for sharing. Great info. Does it work with 6mm 2 flute cutter also? Or its to small to see well difference?

[JAZZCNC]

Thats interesting. Thanks for sharing. Great info. Does it work with 6mm 2 flute cutter also? Or its to small to see well difference?

Yes works just same with 6mm.
Edit: The Chinese VFD's can be a little slow to re-act but do show difference. Better drives like my ABB monitor it so precise I can tell when it hits hard or soft spots pretty much instantly. It's saved my skin a few times being able to compensate for any changes.

Andrew I haven't personally used the Hitachi but I built a machine for some one who uses the same VFD with same spindle and it's perfectly fine. Infact the whole machine including VFD runs from 13A socket run down to shed via electrical extension cord. This was 5yrs ago and still hasn't burnt the shed down so can safely say it's ok.!!

Also My ABB 2.2Kw VFD is rated 25A and still it's fine run from 13A. I fit lots of these 2.2Kw Spindle VFD setups and I haven't had one that taxs 13A so sleep safe.!

[the great waldo]

Hi Jazzcnc

Thanks very much for the heads up. I've got some O'Reillymen in at the the moment doing some work and they said they could wire in a stronger breaker if need be. The mounting point would be right next to the distribution board so the cable would'nt be more than half a metre. I was just surprised that in the mounting instructions Hitachi recommend 5.3mm² which seems mega thick even for 20 amps here's a link to the manual. http://www.hitachiacdrive.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/NT3251X.pdf

(my one is the wj200-022sf) thanks for your help again.

Cheers

Andrew

[the great waldo]

Hi
Me again, I hope this isn't a stupid question. Is it necessary to have the input phase correct on the ac mains side of a vfd. The reason I asked is the mains plugs over here in Austria are not orientated, unlike the British mains plugs. Using the European plug if correct orientation is required i'm going to have to use some kind of marking. I don't want to blow up the hitachi vfd as it wasn't cheap.

Cheers

Andrew

[Doddy]

My view, and nothing that I've seen in the Hitachi manual tells me otherwise, is that the VFD would work with the phases reversed.

Clearly, the recommendation must be to wire the phases correctly to avoid confusion and hazards later on. But, it'd work regardless.

[Clive S]

Hi
Me again, I hope this isn't a stupid question. Is it necessary to have the input phase correct on the ac mains side of a vfd. The reason I asked is the mains plugs over here in Austria are not orientated, unlike the British mains plugs. Using the European plug if correct orientation is required i'm going to have to use some kind of marking. I don't want to blow up the hitachi vfd as it wasn't cheap.

Cheers

AndrewIn the UK the neutral is bonding to the Earth at the consumer unit generally with the phase being fused.

But in some countries the mains is supplied by a split system ie 220V would be 110 - 0 - 110 with the earth being the 0 that is why the plugs are not polarised they also use two pole mcb's one in each leg.

I think you will be fine which ever way round you connect it. Do you know what system you have re earthing and breakers ie two pole or singe?

[the great waldo]

Hi Clive

The breakers are 2 pole according to the switch diagram on the breakers. I don't think the mains here is a split system. 3phase here is at 380v: all my larger tools that I dragged over from England years ago work fine here. From what i've seen on the internet vfd's have basic rectification at the front end so i'd imagine it should work ok. I just wasn't sure if hitachi put some kind of fancy electronics in the vfd that is polarity sensitive. I just had a look in the distribution box without the cover and the breakers are double pole but phase and neutral each use one side of the breaker.

Cheers

Andrew

In the UK the neutral is bonding to the Earth at the consumer unit generally with the phase being fused.

But in some countries the mains is supplied by a split system ie 220V would be 110 - 0 - 110 with the earth being the 0 that is why the plugs are not polarised they also use two pole mcb's one in each leg.

I think you will be fine which ever way round you connect it. Do you know what system you have re earthing and breakers ie two pole or singe?

[A_Camera]

Hi
Me again, I hope this isn't a stupid question. Is it necessary to have the input phase correct on the ac mains side of a vfd. The reason I asked is the mains plugs over here in Austria are not orientated, unlike the British mains plugs. Using the European plug if correct orientation is required i'm going to have to use some kind of marking. I don't want to blow up the hitachi vfd as it wasn't cheap.

Cheers

Andrew
I guess you have already connected the VFD and found out that it does not matter which way you plug it in, but just to make it clear for everyone else as well...

If you use a one phase VFD it does not matter which way you connect it, as long as you connect one wire to phase and the other to neutral and the third (yellow/green) to PE (protective earth). The main thing is not to confuse earth and neutral, those two are TOTALLY different in the European net. Inside the VFD it makes no difference if neutral and phase connections are switched, so you can safely plug in the VFD in any plug orientation, it really doesn't matter, just like the vacuum cleaner you use, you never know which is phase and which is neutral, it still spins the same way and works just as well.

[the great waldo]

Hi A_Camera

I wired the motor up and as usual nothing worked, but after adjusting some settings on the vfd I got it to rotate the motor. Now the fun starts with getting the speed settings and all the other settings adjusted to get the motor running properly. Luckily no sparks or smoke so far, just not much time at the moment to do the adjustments and mount the 80mm motor bracket instead of the 43 mm one. I would like to thank everyone here for their input and help. I must say that the Hitachi manual is not very inspiring for a beginner like me.

Cheers

Andrew

[A_Camera]

Hi A_Camera

I wired the motor up and as usual nothing worked, but after adjusting some settings on the vfd I got it to rotate the motor. Now the fun starts with getting the speed settings and all the other settings adjusted to get the motor running properly. Luckily no sparks or smoke so far, just not much time at the moment to do the adjustments and mount the 80mm motor bracket instead of the 43 mm one. I would like to thank everyone here for their input and help. I must say that the Hitachi manual is not very inspiring for a beginner like me.

Cheers

Andrew


Hi,

That's one reason why I chose the Bosch Rexroth EFC 5610... excellent documentation, easy to start up just by changing a few parameters. So far, of all the over 400 pages I found only one error in it, which isn't exactly an error in the documentation, more like they forgot to describe a function which they make reference to. Anyway, I am very happy with it. OK, "inspiring" is the wrong word, but I am very much used to reading manuals, so I am happier with 500 readable pages than 16 difficult to understand ones. Being an engineer with 40 years of experience helps of course... :tennis: