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What is a soft starter?
A soft starter is an innovative device used to control the acceleration of an electric motor. It is designed to reduce the sudden, high start-up current that occurs when a motor starts up. Instead of abruptly turning the motor on at full power, a soft starter gradually increases the motor’s speed, reducing stress on a generator or battery inverter, helping prevent sudden power surges.
Soft starters are essential to modern HVAC systems, serving as a bridge between the power supply and the motor, ensuring a more controlled and reduced start-up current, light flickering, start-up noises, as well as giving compressor protection.
How does a soft starter work?
The primary function of Surestart® soft starters is to ensure that compressor motors start optimally every time, achieving a balance between delivering neither too much nor too little torque.
Our Surestart® soft starters help optimize the startup time based on factors like compressor size, power supply, and loading. This approach promotes enhanced reliability during each startup.
Do soft starters save energy?
Yes. Eltwin Hyper SureStart® soft starters are innovative devices that reduce start-up current, providing a smoother and more controlled startup without stalling. Our SureStart® soft starters reduce the start-up current in HVAC systems by up to 70%, making it easy to operate for smaller generators and solar or battery inverters.
This saves homeowners the significant cost of an oversized generator or prevents the stalling of a smaller one - not to mention, they can still provide a full startup torque.
Are all three phase motors compatible with a soft starter?
Sure-Start for commercial applications is specifically engineered to optimize the starting of large scroll compressors up to 20 horsepower.
Are soft starters bad for motors?
No. With a more gradual acceleration, Eltwin Hyper SureStart® soft starters helps generators and inverters start up your HVAC system smoothly, and they minimize the mechanical stress the motors are often faced with. The peak load is therefore reduced, and the soft starters contribute to an extended lifespan of the compressor.
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What is the difference between a hard starter and a soft starter?
While a soft starter smoothens the startup significantly, a hard starter immensely increases the startup current of the application.
The result is electrical and mechanical stress which may lead to equipment failure and power grid disturbances in the worst-case scenarios.
