Slow or fast blow type fuses are and can be offered in both glass and ceramic bodies.
Ceramic fuse fast or slow.
There are a number of different types of fuses available and these differ in size shape and material.
The marking will be somewhere on the case of the fuse.
Also called fast blow ceramic fuses they are highly sensitive to changes in current flow and don t tolerate temporary overload currents or power surges.
The breaking capacity of a ceramic fuse is important because it defines the amount of current that can be stopped by the fuse.
There will also be the risk of suffering serious injury or the worst electrocution.
Ceramic and glass are two common materials used to make fuses.
This means that ceramic fuses can be used in circuits that have a higher current.
Identification is necessary since using the wrong type will damage your equipment.
Read the manufacturer s label if it says fast or slow the fuse type is as it is labeled.
That means that the fuse is slow acting rated at current of 500 ma for voltages up to 250 v.
On glass tube fuses it s usually engraved sometimes very badly on the metal part of the body.
By contrast a fast blow fuse is used in home appliances.
By using a slow blow fuse you bypass this problem because as mentioned before the slow blow fuses withstands that sudden high current flowing from the circuit enabling the motor to start.
A thick wire with a tiny spring at one end makes it a slow blow fuse while a thin wire means that it s a fast acting fuse.
The bad experience with glass fuses comes from the fact that they re cheaper to build and more ubiquitous conditions that are highly correlated to the abundance of sub standard parts china.
If it says f it means the fuse is a fast blow and if it says t or s it means it is a slow blow.
The two main materials that are used to manufacture well built fuses are glass and ceramic.
Fuses made of ceramic also offer protection against overheating.
Therefore a slow blow fuse is ideal in such circumstances.
For example assume a nominal load of 15 amps and an ambient temperature of 105 c.
There is no good way to non destructively detect what type of fuse a fuse is if it is unmarked.
Selecting a fast blow fuse is fairly straightforward.
Time delay fuse vs fast acting fuse.
The capacity of a ceramic fuse is higher than any other fuse.
Other letters will indicate unique fuses for your specific device.
Start by choosing a fuse rated to carry about 33 percent more than the expected load i e the normal current should be 75 percent of the expected load current then adjust for ambient temperature.