PLUG FUSES

What are Plug Fuses?

Plug fuses are short fuses that look
somewhat like a mushroom.

To insert a new plug

fuse, simply hold
the head of the fuse
and screw the base
into the fuse outlet,
thus plugging the
hole

 Most plug fuses are

designed for circuits
rated for 125 volts or
less; thus, in many
buildings, they protect
the lighting and wall
outlets in buildings. In
addition, plug fuses
have a low maximum
capacity for amps;
often, they can only
handle fifteen or
twenty amps.

 Type "W" fuses are an

older style fuse utilizing
an Edison base and are
all but obsolete. They
are general purpose
plug fuses and "fastacting", that is they have
no time-delay fuse
element but will quickly
interrupt the circuit
once the rated
amperage is exceeded.

SL and TL fuses are medium duty time delay

fuses and are now the most commonly used
plug fuses found in the home.

. The only difference between the "TL" and the

"SL" fuses are the types of bases. The "TL"
fuse uses an Edison base and the "SL" fuse
uses a Rejection base

 S and T fuses are heavy duty

time delay fuses and used for
circuits having critical or high
motor loads or circuits having
motors that cycle on and off
often (e.g. a sump pump).
The "T" fuse uses an Edison
base and the "S" fuse uses a
Rejection base.

(Heavy Duty Fuses)

CARTRIDGE FUSES

What are Cartridge Fuses?

Cartridge fuses can be several different
lengths, but they are always cylindrical.

Function
Fuses protect important electronic circuits from
being oversupplied with power--so much power
that the other electronic components can be
damaged as a result.
A fuse should self-destruct before any large
surge of electricity is sent into the rest of the
circuit it protects. The right fuse will protect a
circuit no matter what amount of power is
needed to cause the fuse effect.

Warning
Using the wrong fuse can harm your
electronic circuit. When a fuse that is too
large is inserted into a circuit, it can act as a
resistor to the power supplied and reduce the normal
amount of energy. This lack of power can create a
draining effect on parts and eventually lead to damage.
A fuse that is too large will also not break the circuit
of a voltage that is high enough to harm components
but not high enough to burn the fuse filament. A fuse
that is rated too low will continually burn out and
need to be replaced with the correctly rated fuse.

Considerations
Cartridge fuses are rated and
marked for use in the appropriately
powered circuits.
Cartridge fuses may be color-coded or marked with
the appropriate rate.
Determine the correct size fuse filament for your
circuit before inserting a fuse into the system for
protection.
Cartridge fuses are standardized, and the
equipment they are used in can accept any correctly
rated and shaped cartridge fuse for electronic
security.

 The primary difference between fuses refers

to the time it takes an electrical current to
melt the metal element in the fuse. Time
delay fuses (also known as slow blow or time
lag fuses) take a long time to melt, so they
will not trip on momentary overloads

 Examine the breaking capacity of a fuse. The

breaking capacity refers to the maximum
current that the fuse can interrupt.
Residential fuses usually have a breaking
capacity of at least ten thousand amps, but
larger power systems require a breaking
capacity of two hundred thousand amps or
more