TS3650 Circuit Rating

[gabron]

I couldn't find anything on this in the forum, I'm just trying to get the community opinion here.

I ran a new power line in my basement so my workshop would have at least one dedicated line for it (for now). Since I have done that my table saw works a lot better. No more tripping the shared circuit. However, I'm now concerned after I read the manual about putting the saw on a cirucit with a 15 amp breaker.

The saw has its own overload protector for heat, high current, and low voltage, which I was assuming would work well and reset if it tried to draw too much power. So, I ran some 12/2 line and put it on a 20 amp breaker. I was hoping to keep it this way since I am at this point, running a shop vac and a light and possibly a radio on the same circuit while I run the saw.

After running the saw for hours today, performing lots of repetitive cuts (cutting slats for cribs), I noticed that the motor casing was very hot to the touch, in fact too hot to leave my hand on it.

The saw has never reset, but I've had the 15 amp breaker reset plenty, and the 20 amp breaker has tripped once. Should the saw overload mechanism be enough to protect me from burning it out? What are your thoughts, can I leave it on a 20 amp breaker, or should I replace it with a 15?

Thanks

:confused: Gavin

[woodslayer]

Leave the 20, the circuit is not pumping 20 amps into the saw, it simply has a higher reserve capacity if the demand is placed upon it. Which quite frankly, the saw, shop-vac lights and radio is a significant load for one circuit. You would probably be fine if it wasn’t for running the shop-vac at the same time. I would think that is rather dangerous when you trip the circuit in the middle of a cut and all of a sudden you are in the dark and the blade is still freewheeling.

Woodslayer

[wbrooks]

many people including myself have all their 120V circuits plumbed with 12/2 and running on 20A breakers. If you run any motor at or near capacity it will be hot to the touch. Besides, if the motor has issues and is on the way to burn out (not to worry - covered by warranty) changing to a 15A breaker will not really help.
Good point Woodslayer, perhaps you should run the vac on the original circuit

[gabron]

Okay, that is what I figured. I'm going to run another circuit so I have one that is dedicated to bigger power tools, and then one I can run smaller things on like the light and the shop vac and radio. I was just posting because I was concerned since I have never seen the table saw trip, and I figured it has been under some significant loads that could have done it. The circuit always breaks at the breaker box.

[wbrooks]

Perhaps consider running some 6/3 and a 40A breaker from your main box to a pony panel in your garage. Then you can easily run as many circuits as you want in your garage including 220V for larger tools. Then when you trip a breaker it is a short walk to the garage panel and the lights will stay on

[Bob D.]

Keep your lights on a separate circuit so that (as has been said before in this thread and in the past) you do not end up in the dark with a spinning blade.

For safety it is advisable to have the lights on their own breaker, no fans, radios, or anything else that could trip the breaker.

I realize that most garage and basement situations will not be wired this way but if you are making the space into a dedicated workshop area then it is no longer casual use so receptacles and lights should not coexist on the same circuit.