where do I start?

[Hkeyees]

i guess i probably havent looked enough but i really havent seen and oven building guide.
im just trying to build a small oven, maybe like 3x3x3 or something like that.
i would prefer it to be 110v.
where do i start?
what materials should i use?
what do i insulate with?
how much will this oven cost to build?
thanks and any help would be greatly appreciated.

[sal1355]

try this.


http://www.powdercoatoven.4t.com/Index.html

[sal1355]

oven insulation

[kcenicola]

Attached is the Bill of Material, schematic and picture of the 4X2X3 oven that I built.

If you want to make one cheaper you can eliminate the cost of the Gas Piston, Analog Thermometer, Voltmeter and Timer Switch and knock off about $130 of the total cost from what I have shown.

This is a 240Volt oven. To make it a 120Volt oven a different relay part number is needed. Your oven will draw less current if it is a 240V which is significant because if you make it 120V you'll be tripping your breaker. My oven uses a 3500 watt element. At 240Volts thats a 14.5 amp draw. At 120Volts, that's a 29.2 Amp draw, which will trip a 20amp breaker in your house.

The extension cord on this design allows you to not have to run a dedicated 240V recepticle near the oven.

Email me at kcenicola@nhasupply.com if you need more assistance or advice.

Ken

[Hkeyees]

well the only 240v outlet i can find is in my basement by the dryer, and the oven would need to go into my garage, so i think it would be easiest to make it 110v.
if i made my oven say 2.5x2.5x2 could i use smaller heating element that would run off 120v and not draw too many amps? i dont mind if it takes a little longer to heat up.
also what are the Analog Thermometer, Voltmeter and Timer Switch use for and would i get along fine without them?

im really trying to make this as cheap as possible if you can tell.

[kcenicola]

Hkeyees,

I put a voltmeter on my control box that just lets me know that the oven is plugged in. The needle reads 240V when I plug it in. You don't need this.

I put an analog thermometer in the oven before I knew that the little temp controller box tells you what the oven temperature is in a built in red LED display. So my oven tells me the temp in two ways, the thermometer and the controller. You don't need the thermometer if you use the controller.

The timer switch is something I put in istead of a regular on-off switch. So If I forget that the oven is on, it will automatically turn off in 45 minutes. For a cheaper oven, you just need an on-off switch like a regular lightswitch.

I see people using toaster-ovens as powder coating ovens and I believe they use 120V heating elements that are 1500 Watts. I will try to find some of these. I'd lke to make a Bill of material and schematic for the 120V oven using the most least expensive components for people like yourself who are trying to keep it inexpensive, 120V, and fully functional.

Ken

[kcenicola]

For a 120Volt oven, a nice way to provide heat would be to use the coiled heating elements from those single burner 120V auxiliary stovetop burners they sell at the local hardware store.

They go for about 10 bucks a pop. If they are 750 Watts a piece you could use 2 of them for a total of 1500 Watts. At 120Volts thats 1500/120=12.5 Amps. This is a safe current draw on a circuit with a 20amp breaker. You could actually use three elements and total 2250 Watts but then you'd be drawing 2250/120=18.75 amps and you'd have to be sure that you were plugging into a recdepticle that had a 20amp breaker with no other lights or devices hooked up to that circuit.

If you insulate your oven well and seal up all the seams it will still get very hot in there, it just may take a little longer.

[clayboyrat]

As I recall. I think a used house oven would work for you. There wired for 220. Witch is really two 110 lines.Thats why the 3 prong plug.With the round one being ground.Most work with one of the 110 prongs going to the burners on top and the other to the oven. Maybe it can be rigged as a 110 unit. Am not sure. So check with some one who know more then I before you get the shock of you life.

[kcenicola]

HKeeyes,

I've drawn up a schematic for a 120V controller. It would drive two 750 watt stove burners.

I can build you the assembled unit for $200 plus shipping. It would include:

4" X 4" X 4" steel housing
Digital temperature controller/thermometer with thermocouple & relay
Toggle on/off switch
10 feet of rubber jacketed 12Gauge cord with 20-amp male plug
Two 750Watt Stove burners with 200degC teflon wire

All you would have to do is build the oven, mount the burners, bolt this unit to the ouside, run the burner wires to the burners, and screw the thermocouple to the inside wall of your oven.

If you need anything else, just email me at kcenicola@aol.com.

Ken