TECO AC drive questions or comments needed

Does anybody have any experience with Teco/Westinghouse AC drive on there small shop equipment.I am looking at the EV and or the FM50 models.This will be for a 1/2 hp motor on 115v.I was looking at these models because I want the remote panel option.Other factor is cost for the remote panel option.Also the same exact model inverter will be purchased for another project down the road.Is there any benifit of choosign a larger model over a smaller.ie selecting a 1hp when only needing a 1/2 hp model at this time.Also would the 1hp model work on a 15 amp circuit?I know my 1 hp single phase motor sometime trips the breaker.I Am in a rental condo with a detached garage.Running a higher amperage circuit to the garage would not be aloud and therfore is out of the question.Would the 1hp model work with only 15 amps?

Exact models I am looking at are.

FM50-1P5-C(1/2hp)
FM50-101-C(1hp)
JNEV-1P5-H1(1/2hp)

The one motor I have is a brand new Baldor CWDM3538,FWIW this motor has has the Inverter Spike Resistant magnet wire.

Thanks
Don

I know my 1 hp single phase motor sometime trips the breaker

Click to expand...

It's no surprise that the breaker trips, using across the line starting with a high inrush surge. The VFD allows control of the inrush surge by selecting an acceleration time that keeps the inrush below the trip level of the breaker. A 1 hp motor should be able to run at full load on a 120v, 15A breaker (once it is up to full speed), as long as there's nothing else connected to that circuit.

Be aware that the Teco FM-50 is designed for pumps & fans, where torque control is not needed ... as speed of a pump or fan decreases, needed torque decreases.

Teco EV drives are a better choice for machine tool control, as they are a vector drive. They allow the motor to produce 100% torque at very slow speeds.

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Barry Milton

The FM50 is a constant-torque rated VFD...not just for pumps and fans. True it is not a vector drive, but you may not need a vector drive depending on the application. "Torque control" and "constant-torque" are 2 different things, as I explained in a previous post.

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/showthread.php?t=175936

John

"Does anybody have any experience with Teco/Westinghouse AC drive on there small shop equipment. I am looking at the EV and or the FM50 models."

For quite a number of years, the TECO/Westinghouse FM100 and FM50 drives have been the "go to" drive for small shops. Some large shops, too.

Some time ago, I planned for a multi-machine shop within an home-away-from-home in another state.

For this purpose, I planned on a number of FM50 drives, each to be housed within a metal pull-box (Hoffman or equal), with the complete assemblies being made in my at-home shop, and with the only remaining work being mounting to the as-found studs and then knocking-out the feeder and load conduits using a punch (Greenlee or equal, but HF has a usable and affordable alternative).

FM50s are very cost effective, and the 3HP and under versions are inexpensive.

Mount in a steel pull-box of at least four times the volume of the drive itself for the equivalent of NEMA 4.

I have two FM100s in more or less constant use, and I would recommend FM50s for cost-sensitive applications.

So...Is the Vector drive better?
Also it looks like the FM50 model in 1hp draws 17 amps on 110 volt.

Don

I'm not sure, but I don't think the FM50s are set up for remote operation.

Jim W.