how to wire linear actuator and 3 wire switch

[keithcoady]

Looking for help with this one. I have a linear actuator for my snowblower chute and can't seem to get it working.

The switch is a sealed 3 wire single pole double throw switch with center off.

Currently I have it wired with the center wire of the switch going to battery positive.

The other two wires from the switch are going to each of the two wires coming from the actuator. One goes to red and the other goes to the black wire from the actuator. I also have battery ground going to those wires as well.

There were no instructions so I'm only going by something I found on youtube.

I'm getting absolutely nothing, not even a click. I have it wired into an inline fuse and the fuse is good.

Anybody have any ideas how to wire this and what could be wrong?

Storm coming tonight and would love to get this working this evening if at all possible.

Could it be that I need a double pole double throw instead of the single pole double throw switch?

Thanks in advance for any help with this.

Keith

 

[85Hokie]

Place the switch in your hand....
Get out your ohm meter.
Place it on continuity, beeps when circuit is closed.
Place one lead to center - place another to one of the other posts, rock switch.
Place to other post - rock the switch,
does it connect middle to outside leg? It might be opposite of what you think.
moving it left might connect middle to right post etc.....

report back what you find.

 

[keithcoady]

Thanks Hokie, just checked it. Center wire from the switch is common. Rocked the switch changing each outside wire and got continuity. Nothing from outside wire to outside wire.

 

[85Hokie]

Thanks Hokie, just checked it. Center wire from the switch is common. Rocked the switch changing each outside wire and got continuity. Nothing from outside wire to outside wire.

Describe what you have on the actuator now - describe the wiring from point to point.

Dumb question - is the actuator naturally grounded? OR is there a ground wire that goes to it?

Got pics?

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Looking for help with this one. I have a linear actuator for my snowblower chute and can't seem to get it working.

The switch is a sealed 3 wire single pole double throw switch with center off.

Currently I have it wired with the center wire of the switch going to battery positive.

The other two wires from the switch are going to each of the two wires coming from the actuator. One goes to red and the other goes to the black wire from the actuator. I also have battery ground going to those wires as well.

There were no instructions so I'm only going by something I found on youtube.

I'm getting absolutely nothing, not even a click. I have it wired into an inline fuse and the fuse is good.

Anybody have any ideas how to wire this and what could be wrong?

Storm coming tonight and would love to get this working this evening if at all possible.

Could it be that I need a double pole double throw instead of the single pole double throw switch?

Thanks in advance for any help with this.

Keith

Yes you must have a double pole double throw switch to make it work.
A single pole will not work on it's own.
Two center poles will be + to one pole and - to the other pole.
there will be a jumper from the outside poles crossed over, this swaps direction of the polarity.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

It can be done with a single pole switch, but you will also need 2 relays to make it work.
One direction of the switch will engage one relay for forward (out) and the other direction will engage the other relay that would provide power for reverse (in).

 

[keithcoady]

Thanks so much for the replies guys, very much appreciated. Looks like I'm off to Canadian Tire for a dpdt switch.

By the way Hokie the actuator is not grounded just 2 wires coming from it that should be going to the switch. No ground wire.

I had those two wires each going to the outside of the switch. The red one from the actuator to the left switch wire and the black one from the actuator to the right switch wire.

Each of those wires were connected to battery ground.

The center switch wire was connected to the center wire on the switch.

Keith

 

[Tooljunkie]

Wolfman posted the simplest diagram for your actuator. I wouldnt consider relay type switching if wiring isnt your thing.

 

[flyidaho]

The linear actuators I use for transitioning my skis under the wheels on my skiplane, only have two wires. The skis have been my sole use of them, until recently.

I keep a spare one on hand, in case I need it for the plane, but just borrowed it to make a timed dog/cat door opener. I just got a new dog, 1.5 years old, and have the pet door in my heated shop rigged so when I crank a bathroom vent type timer, in conjunction with a relay, to 10 minutes or so, with the new dog and the old cat in the shop, I then have a window of opportunity to get in the car and drive off without the drama of the dog seeing me drive off. In operation for 10 days now, it's working perfect. the dog is in or near the shop when I return, cool, calm, and collected. I of course first bonded him to the shop, making sure he knew that's his home, where the food is, where I'll be coming back to. I'm in a rural area, on 40 acres. Getting back to your post, I had planned to use this extra actuator to gin up some kind of rotater for my blower, but this need was more immediate. Changing the linear motion to rotary motion seems like a fun project.

Back to the dog: I also give him the STAY command every time I close the shutter and leave, the idea being I can soon just use STAY and not need the actuator system, then i can get back to my rotater project.

 

[keithcoady]

Will be picking up a dpdt switch tomorrow, none in stock anywhere this evening.

 

[Lil Foot]

NIW's diagram is spot on. Used the same setup for the linear actuator that lifts the dump bed on Lil Foot. (not your grandpa's golf cart)
P.S. Yes, I know the coil spring is bent. Uncle in-law who has had the cart the last 11yrs severely overloaded it. Haven't had time to replace the coils yet.

 

[mendonsy]

Make sure that the DPDT switch that you get is rated for at least as much current as your actuator draws, preferably a lot more. The actuator motor may draw a lot of current when starting under load. Something like this with your existing switch might be a better solution.
Winch-Solenoid-Contactor-Replacement

 

[sagor]

Yes you must have a double pole double throw switch to make it work.
A single pole will not work on it's own.
Two center poles will be + to one pole and - to the other pole.
there will be a jumper from the outside poles crossed over, this swaps direction of the polarity.

Wiring diagram is correct, but be sure to include a fuse on the supply (battery) side to the switch. All you need is some short in your wiring, and everything goes up in smoke without that fuse.

 

[Lil Foot]

Wiring diagram is correct, but be sure to include a fuse on the supply (battery) side to the switch. All you need is some short in your wiring, and everything goes up in smoke without that fuse.

Absolutely right, I always forget to mention that, because it's just second nature to me.

 

[keithcoady]

Hope to get the correct switch tomorrow. I always run an inline fuse to whatever I connect to the battery and make sure it's at the battery not 3 or 4 feet away.

 

[asgard]

I was originally going to wire my actuator and rotator through 2 switches but in the end, liked the idea of a single joystick control.

It is a little more complex as each contact has to be wired through a switching relay, that makes 4 relays with a split feed via 2 fuses. As only 1 position can be powered at a time. I used a switched ground rather than a switched positive, that allowed me to only have to run 4 wires to the joystick and then group connect the other side to a frame ground.
4 top relays are for the joystick, bottom 2 are for LED ROPS lights, the fuse box is somewhat hidden at the very bottom.

Just a slight spin of the operator interface.