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I'm looking at mag starters that come with heaters. Are there equivalent solid state units?
For instance, I'm looking to install a motor starter for my 7.5hp 3phase 21.6amp pressure washer motor. I like the Square D and Allen Bradley starters. But these electro magnetic types are rather expensive. Is used a good option? Are there solid state alternatives which are more cost effective and require manual reset on power loss like the electro magnetic type? I guess they would be resettable, instead of dropping $50 for new heaters each time they trip. But, will I be losing some security because solid state options fail closed? Decisions, decisions.
Do not buy used starters. As a matter of fact, do not buy any used electrical switchgear, since you will not know what kind of faults they have been subject to.
Solid state starters are not cost effective when compared to switchgear starters (for good reasons). If they were, you would never see a switchgear starter anywhere.
I suggest you buy a European contactor complete with thermal overload. The overloads of this type use bi-metal strips & protect against loss of phase symmetry (amongst other things). The overloads can be selectable between automatic & manual reset. Make sure that if you select this type of contactor, the AC-3 current (or power) rating is used. The overload must be rated such that you can select 125% of the full load current of the motor. A failure to do this will result in constant overload tripping on starts. In short, you must set the overload to 1.25 times the Full Load Current. This is standard practice.
