How to choose the right circuit breaker for your winch?
A circuit breaker is an automatically operated electrical switch designed to protect an electrical circuit from damage caused by overload or short circuit. The basic function is to detect a fault condition and then interrupt the current flow.
To choose the correct circuit breaker amperage rating for you COMEUP winch, we need to know the current draw at full load. For example Seal Gen2 9.5rs, the current draw at 9,500lbs is 380A
We want to choose a circuit breaker that will allow full load current draw for a set period of time. The circuit breaker manufacturer will provide a chart similar to the one shown below. The opening of a circuit breaker is not determined only by the amperage rating, but by the amount of time and the percentage over its amperage rating at which it is being operated. The higher the percent of the load current to amperage rating, the faster the circuit protector will trip. This chart is for reference only, you should refer to the circuit breaker manufacturer’s chart for the specific unit you are considering.
For our Seal Gen2 9.5 winch, a 190A circuit breaker would be ideal because it can hold full load current of 380A for 30 seconds.