HHO Tek™ Power Saver

Conserve your home's energy

The HHO Tek 1200, 3200 and 3400 conditioning units have been lowering consumer electric bills by as much as 25% for nearly four years.  The technology has long been used in industrial/commercial applications, but the rapid rise in home electricity costs has created unprecedented consumer demand.  The HHO Tek units work by conditioning the inductive motor load and correcting the Power-Factor back to 1, or as close as possible, thus eliminating wasted electrical consumption.

 

How will you Benefit Most from The HHO Tek Power Saver

Low power factor results when inactive motors are operated at less than full load. This often occurs in cycle processes — such as those using circular saws, ball mills, conveyors, compressors, grinders, punch presses, etc. — where motors are sized for the heaviest load. Examples of situations where low power factor (from 30% to 50%) occur include a surface grinder performing a light cut, an unloaded air compressor and a circular saw spinning without cutting.

The following industries typically exhibit low power factors:

Table 1. Typical Low Power Factor Industries

Industry	Uncorrected Power Factor
Saw Mills	45% – 60%
Plastic (Esp. Extruders)	55% – 70%
Machine Tools, Stamping	60% – 70%
Plating, Textiles, Chemicals, Breweries	65% – 75%
Hospitals, Granaries, Foundries	70% – 80%

 

Anyone who has heard a refrigeration unit groan through a brownout or been frustrated by an inexplicable series of control system trips should have a healthy respect for the effects of power quality on equipment reliability and energy efficiency. Few doubt that sags and harmonics contribute to downtime, off-spec production and shortened equipment life.

But, like so many potential projects that improve uptime, product quality and life cycle cost, it’s hard to make a financial case for spending on power conditioning. These days, it’s much easier to gain support and financial backing for the rapid paybacks you can calculate from improving energy efficiency.

So what are the clear benefits to correcting poor power factor?

Benefits From Correcting Poor Power Factor

Improved Voltage Conditions
Low voltage, resulting from excessive current draw, causes motors to be sluggish and overheated.
As power factor decreases, total line current increases, causing further voltage drop. By adding capacitors to your system and improving voltage, you get more efficient motor performance and longer motor life.

Reduced Losses
Losses caused by poor power factor are due to reactive current flowing in the system. These are watt-related charges and can be eliminated through power factor correction.

How Can I Select the Right Power-Save Units for My Specific Application Needs?

Once you’ve decided that your facility can benefit from power factor correction, you’ll need to choose the optimum type, size and number of capacitors for your plant.

There are two basic types of capacitor installations:
1. Individual capacitors on or near to linear or sinusoidal loads,
2. Banks of fixed or automatically switched capacitors at the feeder panels or substation.

Individual vs. Banked Installations

Advantages of individual capacitor banks at the load:
■Complete control; Capacitors cannot cause problems on the line during light load conditions
■No need for separate switching; Motor always operates with capacitor
■Improved motor performance due to more efficient power utilization and reduced voltage drops
■Motors and capacitors can be easily relocated together
■Easier to select the right capacitor for the load
■Reduced line losses
■Increased system capacity

Advantages of bank installations at the feeder or substation:
■Lower cost
■Total plant power factor improved — reduces or eliminates all forms of kvar charges
■Automatic switching ensures exact amount of power factor correction, eliminates over- capacitance and resulting over voltages

Consider the Particular Needs of Your Plant
When deciding which type of capacitor installation best meets your needs, you’ll have to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of each and consider several plant variables, including load type, load size, load constancy, load capacity, motor starting methods and manner of utility billing.

Load Type
If your plant has many large motors, 50 hp and above, it is usually economical to install one Power Save unit per motor and switch the capacitor and motor together. 
If your plant consists of many small motors, 1/2 to 25 hp, you can group the motors and install one Power Save unit at a central point in the distribution system. Often, the best solution for plants with large and small motors is to use both types of capacitor installations.

Load Size
Facilities with large loads benefit from a combination of individual load, group load and banks of fixed and automatically switched capacitor units.  Power Save can only assist with smaller fixed capacitor units, we recommend you consult your utility supplier to provide large-scale banks and switching banks at the sub station.
A small facility, on the other hand, may require only one PS unit at the control board.
Sometimes, only an isolated trouble spot requires power factor correction. This may be the case if your plant has welding machines, induction heaters or
dc drives. If a particular feeder serving a low power factor load is corrected, it may raise overall plant power factor enough that additional capacitors are unnecessary.

Load Constancy
If your facility operates around-the-clock and has a constant load demand, fixed capacitors offer the greatest economy. If load is determined by eight-hour shifts
five days a week, you’ll want more switched units to decrease capacitance during times of reduced load.

Load Capacity
If your feeders or transformers are overloaded, or if you wish to add additional load to already loaded lines, correction must be applied at the load. If your facility has surplus amperage, you can install capacitor banks at main feeders. If load varies a great deal, automatic switching is probably the answer.

Utility Billing
The severity of the local electric utility tariff for power factor will affect your payback and ROI. In many areas, an optimally designed power factor correction system will pay for itself in less than two years.

Method	Advantages	Disadvantages
Individual Capacitors	Most technically efficient	Higher installation and
	Most flexible	maintenance cost
Fixed Bank	Most economical	Less flexible
(Power-Save units)	Fewer installations	Requires switches and/or
		circuit breakers
Automatic Bank	Best for variable loads	Higher equipment cost
	prevents overvoltages
	medium installation cost
Combination	Most practical for larger	Least flexible
	numbers of motors

 

PS 3200/ 3400 Power Save Units for Industry:

Specifications:

• Utilizes Self-Healing Low Loss Capacitors
• 20 Year Design Life
• Surge Suppression – 2000 Joules, satisfactory protection for: Electrical Storms, Lightning Activity and Power Utility Spikes
• Let Through Voltage – 150V line-to-neutral
• Load Rating – 20A (this means it discharges up to 20 amps at a time)
• Six-Way Electrical Protection
• EMI / RFI Noise Reduction 0-40dB
• The PU 3200 is rated for a 200 amp inductive load
• The PU 3400 is rated for a 400 amp inductive load
• Either unit will work in a 208/440 environment
• Both units are in NEMA 3 rated 7” X 7” X 8”   enclosures 

 

PS3200, sizes fractional motors up to 75hp 
PS3400, sizes motors 75hp up to 300hp