[Airphotog]

I have been reading and it seems that most people using solenoid valves on co2 systems claim they get hot. Is this pretty common?

 

[Wasserpest]

Depends on the specific solenoid. I heard that Clippard solenoids get hot, I have a Milwaukee solenoid that is just a bit more than hand warm.

 

[Postal Penguin]

I have the Milwaukee solenoids and if I touch them they feel slightly above room temp.

 

[kid creole]

Why shouldn't they get hot? You're putting current through an electromagnet to move a pin that is pushing against a spring. It works 100% of the time it is on. If it didn't get hot, I would assume the spring is too small to be reliable.

 

[Darkblade48]

My Parker solenoid gets warm, but not hot. I can put my hand on it without feeling uncomfortable.

 

[CaliEAB]

Warm but not too hot to touch Milwaulkee solinoid here. That's after 9 hours of doing it's solinoidy job.

 

[Left C]

Clippard solenoids are the ones that get the worst wrap about getting warm. I have a Clippard solenoid that runs 24/7 and has been running that way for 6 months. I just put my hand on it and it is just warm to the touch, but not uncomfortable. I don't have a problem with that.

 

[hbosman]

Clippard solenoids are the ones that get the worst wrap about getting warm. I have one that runs 24/7 and has been for 6 months. I just put my hand on it and it is just warm to the touch, but not uncomfortable. I don't have a problem with that.

What brand solenoid do you use? Is it a Clippard?

 

[Left C]

What brand do you use? Is it a Clippard?

The one that I mentioned is a Clippard solenoid. I'll edit my comment to make it a bit more clear.

The solenoid used in my avatar is a Burkert. It gets warm too.

 

[talontsiawd]

No clue what brand mine is, it says hydrofarm but I think it is just resold. My gets pretty hot.

 

[jkcole]

would anyone agree that they get warm/hot because a cold gas is being pushed threw a small hole and when that gas goes threw the small hole it can freeze? so the heat is to prevent that? just a thought

 

[Juicy19]

would anyone agree that they get warm/hot because a cold gas is being pushed threw a small hole and when that gas goes threw the small hole it can freeze? so the heat is to prevent that? just a thought

This isn't it. It gets hot becuase of the electrical current. CO2 regulators can work without a solenoid, so there's no need for something warm on the regulator to keep things from freezing. The solenoid is there so you can use a timer to control the input timing of CO2.

 

[kid creole]

would anyone agree that they get warm/hot because a cold gas is being pushed threw a small hole and when that gas goes threw the small hole it can freeze? so the heat is to prevent that? just a thought

I don't agree with that. If it were the case, your regulator and needle valve would be heated.

 

[snafu]

is it possible that the clippard is a direct acting valve and the milwaukee is an indirecting acting solenoid? i've noticed that they often call the MA957 a 'Milwaukee CO2 regulator with solenoid diaphragm valve'. in this is the case, it might be operating with less power (and therefore less heat dissipation). if someone has one of those kill-a-watt meter things and one of the two solenoids, it would be interesting to see the power numbers for each.

fyi... here's a nice site showing animations of various solenoid valve types: http://www.buschjost.com/memberzone/shop/BE_VA_00.cfm

Update: The MA957/955 solenoid is a direct-acting solenoid (ref: discussion with Milwaukee Tech Support).

 

[Wasserpest]

The Milwaukee solenoid burns about 5 Watts when open. Not sure about others.

 

[snafu]

just for kicks i looked at the datasheet for a direct acting clippard valve, and it's stated power consumption is 6.5W. of course datasheets are typically optimistic in their specifications. anyways, it doesn't seem that significantly different (30% higher) than the milwaukee.

 

[Airphotog]

The reason I started this thread is that I work in a sales in a hydraulic shop in the Seattle Tacoma area. I was talking to one of our vendors that sells solenoid valves for pneumatic and different gases. He was telling me that most solenoid valves are not meant to be engaged for long periods. They have special coils that are long duration coils so they do not overheat. So I am thinking that a lot of the coils in use by us maybe the wrong type.

 

[kid creole]

The reason I started this thread is that I work in a sales in a hydraulic shop in the Seattle Tacoma area. I was talking to one of our vendors that sells solenoid valves for pneumatic and different gases. He was telling me that most solenoid valves are not meant to be engaged for long periods. They have special coils that are long duration coils so they do not overheat. So I am thinking that a lot of the coils in use by us maybe the wrong type.

If that was your question, why didn't you ask that?

 

[Airphotog]

Wanted some input to see if my theory was right.

 

[DayOlder]

I've got a Professional Aquarium solenoid on a paintball tank and while it doesn't burn the skin I can't hang onto it for much more than 10 seconds.