I have a specific circuit that flows <0.25A DC. I'm thinking to put a toggle switch on it, but currently I only have switches that are rated at 5ADC@28VDC.

I tried to find the toggle switch that's rated at 0.25ADC with no luck. Is it okay for me to go ahead and just use the switches that I have in hand?

 

I have a specific circuit that flows <0.25A DC. I'm thinking to put a toggle switch on it, but currently I only have switches that are rated at 5ADC@28VDC.

I tried to find the toggle switch that's rated at 0.25ADC with no luck. Is it okay for me to go ahead and just use the switches that I have in hand?

5ADC@28VDC is the max rating that is you should not make more than 5A flow through it.. If it is a toggle switch according to your requirement then you can use it for 20mA or 10 mA also.

 

Switch contacts and relay contacts need to be designed for their load. I forgot what I used to know about when gold plating is destroyed by too much current but I did dig around at e-switch and found one level for gold at 0.4 VA max. The next level is silver at 2 amps and less. Therefore, I suspect a 5 amp switch is the wrong thing for 0.25 amps, but are you designing for 50,000 operations in a consumer product or just hobbying around? I threw a couple of 12 amp switches into my clothes washer for less than a 2 amp load, but I know they will never get to 2000 operations and 125 VAC will punch through any oxide layer. It's a judgement call unless you're designing for a production run.

It's like pulling teeth to find the contact material and amp ratings and the PDF is nearly 10 MB so I'll give you a link:
https://www.e-switch.com/system/asset/document/29/original/E-Switch_Product_Matrix.pdf

 

Switch contacts and relay contacts need to be designed for their load. I forgot what I used to know about when gold plating is destroyed by too much current but I did dig around at e-switch and found one level for gold at 0.4 VA max. The next level is silver at 2 amps and less. Therefore, I suspect a 5 amp switch is the wrong thing for 0.25 amps, but are you designing for 50,000 operations in a consumer product or just hobbying around? I threw a couple of 12 amp switches into my clothes washer for less than a 2 amp load, but I know they will never get to 2000 operations and 125 VAC will punch through any oxide layer. It's a judgement call unless you're designing for a production run.

It's like pulling teeth to find the contact material and amp ratings and the PDF is nearly 10 MB so I'll give you a link:
https://www.e-switch.com/system/asset/document/29/original/E-Switch_Product_Matrix.pdf

It's just a hobby project, not gonna go for 50,000 operations, so I guess it would be fine to use the one I have then?

 

It's just a hobby project, not gonna go for 50,000 operations, so I guess it would be fine to use the one I have then?

That would be my guess in this case.

Ron

 

If the switch carries a rating of 5A and 28VDC..
Its suitable for use with anything with a current rating less than 5A AND also less than 28VDC..
So 2A at 24VDC is fine..
1A at 15VDC is fine
6A @29VDC is not

And yes there are other recommendations/design guides with contact plating/lower current ratings but we certainly don't need to get into that for this application..