Ext Cord Length for HK 55

[Stephen B]

[size=13pt]UK, Aussie and other members who have the 220/240Volt HK55; what is the longest extension cord you have used with this saw, or [member=41214]Phil Beckley[/member] what is Festool's recommended length?

With thanks.

 

[Stephen B]

[size=8pt]

UK, Aussie and other members who have the 220/240Volt HK55; what is the longest extension cord you have used with this saw, or [member=41214]Phil Beckley[/member] what is Festool's recommended length?

[size=13pt]
Apologies for the bump. It's been a couple of days now and I thought (perhaps foolishly) that there might be broader interest beyond just me  [eek] regarding this question. 

Also, I just noted that according to my IPad World clock, UK members who might have experience with this are 'enjoying' some daylight hours.    [smile]

With thanks in anticipation of some replys.

 

[Stephen B]

UK, Aussie and other members who have the 220/240Volt HK55; what is the longest extension cord you have used with this saw, or [member=41214]Phil Beckley[/member] what is Festool's recommended length?

With thanks.

[size=13pt]I am bumping this for the last time. Promise.  [smile]
It's just that next week, is the week I need this saw.

I find it 'interesting' that no user/dealer/rep. of 240V HKs has been ready to answer this question.

I have had the same question on Festool Australia's FaceBook page and there has been no acknowledgement there either. Until recently they had a statement that questions would be answered within 24hrs.  [poke]

Anyone?!! Don't be - [scared] [smile]

 

[Michael Kellough]

You have one too many unknowns.

You can ask, "How long can I go with an X gauge cord?"
or, "What size cord do I need to go Y feet?"

 

[mattmass]

I have a fair amount of extension cord experience - I use them a lot as an electric vehicle owner. However, it's very easy to break your local electrical codes with extension cords. My official recommendation is to submit an official request to Festool with this question AND research the codes applicable to your local area.

Now, with that out of the way...

The HK55 has a 1200W motor. You have an advantage because you have a 240V model.

At 240V, that's 5A. At 30m, with 14AWG (I'm afraid I don't know the wire gauging standard outside of NA), you'll only see a voltage drop of 1.3%.  The voltage drop isn't going to significantly affect performance. You'll basically be limited by the thermal capacity of the extension + saw cord. But, assuming you will not be running the saw for hours at a time, I think you'll run into zero problems with a 30m cord @ 14AWG. But, I would recommend periodic (every hour or so) checks at the connectors to ensure you aren't getting too hot.

 

[Stephen B]

Thanks [member=62340]mattmass[/member] and [member=297]Michael Kellough[/member] for you replies. Very much appreciated.

Michael was right to suggest that more detail was required. So I have just matched matmass's reply with my ext cord specifications.

The ext  cord I own is 240V/10amp with a core thickness of 1mm. This is rated as heavy duty and complies with Australian OH&S regulations.  An alternative is this one with 1.5mm Core.

[attachimg=1]

According to a chart on Wikipedia, an American Wire Guage of 14 is equal to 0.64mm, so a 1mm cord should be fine.

I have had no problems in the past with a Makita SCS, and several Metabo drills using 20 metre extensions. Do not intend running HK off Vac except when in the Untidy Shop or indoors.

 

[Coen]

Wow! A lot of bad math!

First; Cables are never advertised (well, not where I live at least..) with "core thickness" but with the surface area of their cross section. For cords said to be good up to 10A, that's usually 1 mm2. The diameter is then 1.13mm

2nd; 14 AWG has a diameter of 0.064.... INCH. That's 2.08 mm2. I don't know how you missed both that and dropped a zero, but... it's wrong  [tongue]

3rd; when calculating voltage drop... you _double_ the length. You know, live wire and return wire...

So 5A, 14AWG (2.08mm2), 30 meter (60!) results in... 2.5 Volts lost. Or 1% from the original 230V

That's just the cable. So not taken into account are... wiring in the building, from transformer station to your home, contact resistance in your fusebox, outlet, connectors, etc, but those stay equal regardless of cable length.

But 1mm2, 5A, 30 meters is 5.1 V lost, or 2.2%

The biggest problem with cabling resistance is with things like running a water boiler and a tosti grill (totalling 16A) from a rolled-up 20m household extension cord. That will burn off 177W in the extension cord itself....

 

[Stephen B]

[size=13pt]Your right re core measurement [member=8955]Coen[/member] .

Due to the top of the chart being off the IPad screen, I quoted the inch rather than mm column for equivalent 14AWG. Again according to that chart 14AWG is 1.628mm diameter and as you state 2.08 square mm.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_wire_gauge

Great to get some discussion going on this thread.

 

[Coen]

[size=13pt]Your right re core measurement [member=8955]Coen[/member] .

Due to the top of the chart being off the IPad screen, I quoted the inch rather than mm column for equivalent 14AWG. Again according to that chart 14AWG is 1.628mm diameter and as you state 2.08 square mm.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_wire_gauge

Great to get some discussion going on this thread.

You calculate resistance with cross section. That's in meters squared. Cords aren't advertised with diameters, but with cross sections.

I edited my previous post while you wrote your reply though, I was wrong on one calculation; I did U = I/R, resulting in a 10V drop instead of U = I * R = 2.5V drop. But hey, it's 5:30 am here.

 

[mattmass]

3rd; when calculating voltage drop... you _double_ the length. You know, live wire and return wire...

Haha yes [embarassed]

 

[DzordanoBruno]

Ts55 And 50metr

 

[Michael Kellough]

Ts55 And 50metr

With what size cord?

 

[DzordanoBruno]

3x1.5mm2 and sometimes I use this 50m kabel + Powerhub..

Edit:
I am using Ts 55 + Nilfisk vacuum

 

[Xoncention]

Ts55 And 50metr

With what size cord?

Ts55 And 50metr

If you are using a standard 3 core flex with a cross section of 2.5 mm2, such as V-90 PVC or PVC/PVC 0.6/1kV cables then you will get about 18 mV/A.m voltage drop per meter of flex, so this equates to about 900 mV/A over that length.  This does not take into consideration your connectors, or other environmental conditions etc.  I would tend to go for a 15amp rated flex, rather than the standard 10amp.  Cheapest way to see what works for you would be to get a couple of standard extension leads and daisy chain them together and see if this works for you before rewiring your tool.  That is a pretty long cable to have permanently affixed to your tool.

 

[DzordanoBruno]

Sorry I am not electrician I am using this setup with 16A braker and everything works.

 

[Stephen B]

[size=13pt]Well a lot has happened in the month or so since this thread commenced. Given my recovery from several health issues *,  today I got to finally use my HK55 in real work.

Today's task is making deck bearers by cutting MGP10 TP9045 timber and laminating two lengths together with batton screws. My thoughts  re my new saw -

* it ran well on 35 metres of extension cord [note this is 240V]

* dust extraction was excellent, even though or maybe because I had no bag nor DE and no dust clogging despite the timber being slightly damp from rain [ [member=13058]Kev[/member] ]

* each cut was accurate

* the 420 rail was OK, but I feel that the 250 would be better balanced with this timber dimension

[attachimg=1]

[size=10pt]______________________________________

* See -http://festoolownersgroup.com/general-friendly-chat/hospital-technology/msg481665/#msg481665

 

[Stephen B]

[size=13pt]Cutting joists this afternoon from MGP10 TP14045.

Dust extraction not as good as yesterday. Is it the lack of wind, or the outcome of a wider timber being sawn?  [smile]

I am still exploring ways to cut timber away from the ends, say cutting in half, and to avoid jambing/kickback. Did not happen but definitely a potential problem. Rail better suited to this timber width.

Still no issues with length of power cord.

 

[Stephen B]

Working again on the # 'Great Australian Shed'. Using the HK55 rather than a Compund Mitre Saw.

HK55 appears to be fine; no apparent power loss and is at the end of 65 metres of power ext cord. Please note: 240V.

# [size=10pt]http://festoolownersgroup.com/member-projects/designing-and-building-a-true-australian-shed/msg463981/?topicseen#lastPost

 

[Nat X]

I think most people would get the one with the battery rather than worry about 65 meters of extension cords.

 

[Stephen B]

[size=8pt]

I think most people would get the one with the battery rather than worry about 65 meters of extension cords.

[size=14pt]
Agree [member=41196]Nat X[/member], however look at the specifications as I did when I was deciding between each. The HK55 with cord has much more torque and power. Well at least at 240V. Conversely if I was using one on a roof every day, battery would be the obvious choice.