Lee 220v Pot

[Prairie Traveler]

Haven't seen any activity on this page for some time, so I thought I would try to start some.
In an effort to conserve a few kilowatts of power, I may have made an error in my selection of smelting furnaces. I have opted to go with a Lee 220V version of their pot. {I tend to over-think all things electrical}:???: I put in a 30amp dedicated circuit, with appropriate cable, 220 plug & receptacle ect. I.ve read several comments here about the "accuracy" of Lee's heat control, or lack thereof. Unlike some others, my source of lead is slim, so I only have about half of the pot full, and it will take most of an hour to melt. I know I'm probably doing something wrong, but I can't think what it might be. Any suggestions out there???:confused:

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

First, a 220v Lee pot will use the same Watts (or kilowatts) as the same model of Lee pot with a 110v heating coil.
The 4-20 Lee pot with 110v heating coil draws about 6 amp.
The 4-20 Lee pot with 220v heating coil draws about 3 amp.
Ohms law formula
Watts = volts x amps
when you do the math, you'll see both have same Watts.

When I power up a 4-20 Lee Pot (I cast inside the house), my lead alloy melts in about 20 minutes...if your lead if pure, it may take longer (alloys with some Tin will melt at around 550º, while Pure lead melts at 621º). If you are casting outside and the ambient temperature is colder than room temperature of a house, it will take longer. If there is a breeze, even longer yet. So, in some circumstances, an hour isn't out of the question.

What was the question again?
Good Luck

[jsizemore]

My melting pots are all in the 800 - 1000 watt range. They take about 40 minutes to come to temp. An inch of melt from the previous casting session tends to speed up the melting process. Better heat transfer from the element to the lead inside since there is so much intimate contact. All those gaps lead to poor heat transfer when it's ingots or WW's.

If your element is rated at 800 watts and your line voltage is 120 volts your current draw is going to be 6.67 amps (120x6.67=800). Since yours is 240 volts, your current draw is 3.33 amps if it's an 800 watt element (240x3.33=800). Both circuits could have been run with 14 ga. Romex and been fine (rated for 15 amps). Bigger wire doesn't hurt anything. That 30 amp breaker doesn't afford you much protection BUT if you decide to plug in a 4500 watt heating element or multistage air compressor, your covered.

I turned my Lee 4-20 wide open and plugged it into a PID. That wild temp fluctuation went away. I think your biggest problem is the gaps in the lead while in the pot and the fluctuations in on/off cycle are causing your long melt times. I bet when you have it loaded you can see the pot sides glowing red inside.

Looks like JonB beat me to the enter button.

[Prairie Traveler]

JonB, & jsizemore; thank you both for your input. well noted. Obviously, I need to brush up on my electron verbiage.
My pot is in my unheated garage, I did install a ducted exhaust fan close by. I hope to acquire more lead this next week to fill the pot more.

[JimB..]

Consider putting a lid on your pot, I use an aluminum disc.

[gwpercle]

Something's wrong . I have been using three Lee pots over the years ...even the Lee Magnum Melter will melt 20 pounds in 20 - 30 minutes @ 110 volts .
If you have a 220 volt pot and it takes most of an hour to melt half a pot ....something's wrong .
It may be how you have it wired ... get an electrician to look at it .

I drew some plans for a commercial building , the owner said the heating unit was too small ... a check proved the electrician had only connected one leg ...5 kw was running when 15 kw was supposed to be hooked up ... 220 volt wiring and connections have to be done correctly to get all the heat .
Gary

[C.F.Plinker]

Is it possible that when you hooked things up only one side of the 220 volts got connected? If that happened you could be supplying only 110 volts to a 220 volt heater. It would only put out 1/4 of the heat that it was supposed to. Is there any way you could measure the voltage actually going to the plug when the pot is on?

[sharps4590]

Yeah, something is hunky somewhere, unless it's as simple as others have noted and there is not enough lead in the pot.

43 years as an electrician and I can't tell you the number of times past customers have told me the same thing. "Well, that's 220, it has to be cheaper to operate and put out more power" Ahhhh....no. At this level of electric appliance 240 volt isn't necessarily a benefit. One thing is certain, you won't be suffering from any voltage drop.

[Three44s]

I will say it better to feed a 220 heating element with 110 than the other way around!

Years before we met, my wife re-wired her bath room in her “then” house.

She fed 220 into her 110 receptacle.

Plugged a hair dryer into it for a test. Needless to say she called her dad to fix the mistake and bought a new hair dryer!

Three44s

[Prairie Traveler]

I can remember visiting a friend, one summer in Greece, and mistakenly plugging a 110v fan into an outlet, without using a voltage reducer..."where is all that smoke coming from?"

[Mal Paso]

I can remember visiting a friend, one summer in Greece, and mistakenly plugging a 110v fan into an outlet, without using a voltage reducer..."where is all that smoke coming from?"

Did you get the pot sorted out? The temperature control is not a real thermostat, just an on/off cycling switch that is on more of the time as you increase the setting and the settings vary from switch to switch. Sometimes you can hear the element when it is on. At the highest setting it should be on most of the time.

[HATCH]

Besides being overseas where they only have 220/240, there is no real reason in the states to get a 220 v Lee pot.
The current draw as mentioned above is minimal.

With that said, it is possible that if your ambient temperature in your casting area is zero or close to it that it will take a very long time to get your lead up to temperature.
The heating elements on the Lee pots work marginal at best at typical room temperature.

In areas where you are trying to cast and the ambient is below ,let’s say, 50 then I suggest you put a cover on the top of the furnace the help retain the heat.

On my automated Master Caster, I run 240v.
It is a 240v four wire connection.
Two hots, one neutral and one ground.
I did it this way so my panel would run off of 120v.
I still have 240v in the panel but it is limited to the SSR that controls the pot.
The on/off switch on the front is 120v and the power supply even though it can accept 240v is only running on 120v.
The plug that my panel goes into is also the same plug that I can plug my generator into and back feed my main house.

[GregLaROCHE]

Isn’t 220V in the US two phase? I think those Lee pots are designed for overseas markets where 220V is single phase. That’s what I have here in France. If that’s the case, you may be only supplying it with 110 and that’s why it’s not getting hot. What kind of plug did it come with and how many wires? Maybe Lee makes a two phase 220V pot. If so, let me know and my comment is irrelevant.
Also, I’ve never timed it, but my pot running on 220V single phase seems to get hot faster than what I’ve been hearing about 110V pots.

[Mal Paso]

We have Split Phase, single phase with a center tap (Neutral).

[BattleRife]

Also, I’ve never timed it, but my pot running on 220V single phase seems to get hot faster than what I’ve been hearing about 110V pots.

Here is a chart showing actual warmup of my Lee Pro 4-20, part of data logged while I was casting .38 bullets ( I monitored pot and mould temps from beginning to end). This gives some idea how long it should take to heat a stock Lee 110V pot, half-full of lead.

This was done in my western Canadian garage in February. The garage is heated to make it tolerable but certainly cannot be considered a warm environment.

https://i.postimg.cc/XJ9DGNZL/Warm-Up.jpg

[HATCH]

The Lee pot will work in the US.
US 240 is 2 hots
Homes get 2 hots and a ground which is turned into a neutral.