# The power switch on the cabinet



## volunteers (Mar 4, 2011)

My router cabinet table is almost finished. I need to mount a power switch on the side of cabinet for the router. I went to Home Depot and found most switches there are used inside the wall. Any switch to recommend for the cabinet? Thanks


----------



## kp91 (Sep 10, 2004)

volunteers said:


> My router cabinet table is almost finished. I need to mount a power switch on the side of cabinet for the router. I went to Home Depot and found most switches there are used inside the wall. Any switch to recommend for the cabinet? Thanks


Sears has one for around 20 bucks that has a paddle on it you can shut off with your knee.

If you want to use a lightswitch style, you can use a surface mount conduit box.


----------



## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

volunteers said:


> My router cabinet table is almost finished. I need to mount a power switch on the side of cabinet for the router. I went to Home Depot and found most switches there are used inside the wall. Any switch to recommend for the cabinet? Thanks


I'm using one of these:
H8241 110V Paddle On/Off Switch

I really like it as it can't accidentally be left on, ie; if power is interupted while the router is running the switch turns itself off so when power is restored the router won't unexpectedly start. Only thing is BOTH hot and neutral need to be bussed through the switch.


----------



## crquack (Oct 10, 2008)

What the last two said.

I still like to be able to unplug the router physically. Some of the box switches that are sold for router tables make this rather difficult (Freud). The socket which is an integral part of the switch faces away from you and is hidden under the table.


----------



## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

Will, my first table used a switched outlet in a steel "Handy box". (See photo) While having this type of switch makes it easy to shut off the router it is also easy to bump the switch and turn the router on unexpectedly. The paddle style safety switches prevent this from happening; they also make it very easy to cut power in an emergency. Regardless of which method you choose always unplug your router when making adjustments or bit changes. Like pilots using a check list, unplugging every time is the smart way to avoid accidents.


----------



## 2bigfeet (Mar 3, 2011)

I have a couple of Kreg switches and one Jessem. They both have an extra plug to power up a shop vac at the same time as your router. Comes in handy. One or the other may mount easier for you. I like Jessem's mount better...

Jessem

Kreg



~


----------



## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi

Just my 2 cents,,I'm not a big fan of the paddle style safety switches it's removes the golden rule from every manual I have read
"UNPLUG the Router" anytime you work on it.
I'm a big fan of the switch on the cabinet with a outlet right next to the POWER plug.
If you get in a jam with the milling it's easy to just pull the stock back from the fence/bit, you don't want to take your hand off the stock and let it free float so to speak..  and you don't want to shift your weight to hit it with your hip or your knee or other body parts that are sticking out 


==========


----------



## jlord (Nov 16, 2009)

I prefer the commercially sold safety switches. I do not like extra clutter of cords hanging out of my router cabinet that can catch on other machinery as I roll it in & out to use. When working on the router I just unplug the power going to the safety switch from the wall source. It's right there at the cabinet.


----------



## kp91 (Sep 10, 2004)

bobj3 said:


> Hi
> 
> Just my 2 cents,,I'm not a big fan of the paddle style safety switches it's removes the golden rule from every manual I have read
> "UNPLUG the Router" anytime you work on it.
> ...


Bob,

What I like about the craftsman switch is there is only a 12 inch pigtail coming out of the switch. You can still unplug the whole shebang from the extension cord when changing cutters.

I agree... never have a finger where there is a plugged in power tool!


----------



## papawd (Jan 5, 2011)

I mounted switch on easy access with hand on bottom of work table the switch is wired to outlet ...it works for me took about 2 hours to figure where I wanted it as I was building the cabinet


----------



## N'awlins77 (Feb 25, 2011)

*I use a 20 amp light switch, mounted on the right side wall, top left of wall. I've got a duplex outlet mounted on the inside of the wall (inside cabinet), right behind the switch, where I also plug the shopvac. Only cord on the outside of the cabinet comes out the back and goes to a power surge strip just above my workbench. Has worked wonderfully so far!! *


----------



## MDS (Mar 20, 2011)

Is there any reason no one seems to mention a simple power strip? They are easy to mount, you can plug in your shop vac to start with the router, unplugging the router is simple and they are very inexpensive.


----------



## newwoodworker (Mar 27, 2009)

MDS said:


> Is there any reason no one seems to mention a simple power strip? They are easy to mount, you can plug in your shop vac to start with the router, unplugging the router is simple and they are very inexpensive.


I used this method it worked fine I used it for about 2 years before I changed to a switched receptacle not for any reason other than I built another table and incorporated it into the design.


----------



## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

MDS said:


> Is there any reason no one seems to mention a simple power strip? They are easy to mount, you can plug in your shop vac to start with the router, unplugging the router is simple and they are very inexpensive.


Hi - I have a lot of power strips around but I wouldn't like one in this application. The reason is that the power switch on them is typically pretty small which could make them difficult to get to in an emergency shut down situation.
I agree with some of the posts about not liking a lot of appendages hanging off the thing either. My switch is wired to a electrical outlet on the back of the table. All wiring is internal except the main power cord to the table and the router cord that loops out the back into the outlet.


----------



## joel74 (Jan 21, 2011)

I'm about to add a switch also. 

The popular switches sold by Kreg and Jessem, etc. are all 15 amp rated. How can that be safe when my Triton 3.5hp router alone is 15 amps and the vac adds another 5-10 amps? They sell their paddle switches for this "dual" purpose but I'm afraid to trust it. I know many of you are using these switches. How are they working for you? Can someone more "electrically inclined" than I please explain why/how a 15 amp switch can work... safely?

I could wire my components to one 40 amp switch/relay (per Maryland code) and split/send the router through one of my 20 amp circuits and the vac to another. But materials alone will cost $100. And, I don't want to overdo it if you say I'm worrying unnecessarily. 

Thanks for making this make sense. Joel


----------



## Cochese (Jan 12, 2010)

bobj3 said:


> Hi
> 
> Just my 2 cents,,I'm not a big fan of the paddle style safety switches it's removes the golden rule from every manual I have read
> "UNPLUG the Router" anytime you work on it.
> ...



I've never had either of these problems while using a paddle style switch.


----------



## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

joel74 said:


> I'm about to add a switch also.
> 
> The popular switches sold by Kreg and Jessem, etc. are all 15 amp rated. How can that be safe when my Triton 3.5hp router alone is 15 amps and the vac adds another 5-10 amps? They sell their paddle switches for this "dual" purpose but I'm afraid to trust it. I know many of you are using these switches. How are they working for you? Can someone more "electrically inclined" than I please explain why/how a 15 amp switch can work... safely?
> 
> ...


Hi Joel - I wouldn't worry about it. I'm not an in-depth electrical guy but there have been many discussions about rated HP vs actual current draw. Actual draw on both those appliances is likely about half what is listed on the label. The label stats MAXIMUM current, which means that the motor has either stalled or shorted or something really bad has happened. The only problem that has much probability of occuring is tripping the breaker on startup where both the vac and router start at the same time. The starting current for both devices may exceed the 20 amps for a second or two but the breaker should handle an temporary overcurrent condition,
Cheers,


----------



## jlord (Nov 16, 2009)

joel74 said:


> I'm about to add a switch also.
> 
> The popular switches sold by Kreg and Jessem, etc. are all 15 amp rated. How can that be safe when my Triton 3.5hp router alone is 15 amps and the vac adds another 5-10 amps? They sell their paddle switches for this "dual" purpose but I'm afraid to trust it. I know many of you are using these switches. How are they working for you? Can someone more "electrically inclined" than I please explain why/how a 15 amp switch can work... safely?
> 
> ...


Hi Joel,
I've never had a problem running the router & a vac thru the same switch. I now mostly use the larger dust collector now. Don't have to clean out the vac as often.


----------



## joel74 (Jan 21, 2011)

Glad to hear you've had positive experiences running your router and vac through a 15 amp switch. I already called Woodcraft and asked them to hold a Kreg switch for me. I'll pick it up tomorrow. Thanks for sharing your experiences!! Joel


----------



## barking spider (Dec 26, 2010)

I have used paddle safety switches, regular wall switches, a switched outlet on a box with a long cord, and plugged into a wall outlet that is controlled by a wall switch.

None of the switches have been mounted where I could accidentally turn one on. While I try to unplug my router when I change bits, I have never had the occasion where I turned a switch on or had one start up unplanned.

I also have never had to do an EMERGENCY shut down.

Have I just been very lucky these past 20 or so years? While I am all for safety, I think that we sometimes tend to over think things.

All of my 120V outlets in my shop are on 20 amp circuits. I have never had a problem starting up my router table with my shop vac plugged into the same outlet as my router.

I place all of my switches where I am not likely to brush up against it while I am using the tool. I really don't think it matters what type of switch you use, as long as it is rated for the load you plan on using. 
Thats just me. BY the way, I still have all my fingers.


----------



## papawd (Jan 5, 2011)

Will be planning to purchase a power strip and mount inside my cabinet.. I was lookin at Lowes tonight and they have a 4 gallon shop vac on sale for $20.00 till 05/15/11..this will be mounted on back of my roller cabinet and mount straight to dust collection and I will still be able to roll all around .....


----------



## jlord (Nov 16, 2009)

The only thing I didn't like about the shop vac was it needs to be emptied often. Suction was good till it filled up.


----------



## papawd (Jan 5, 2011)

Yes I agree James with fillin up quick but am still thinkin of giving it a try.. I have a small shop and it fills quickly with dust so any I catch may help, then again I might get aggravaited emptying every time I turn around and change back either way it may be fun to try something new


----------



## jlord (Nov 16, 2009)

papawd said:


> Yes I agree James with fillin up quick but am still thinkin of giving it a try.. I have a small shop and it fills quickly with dust so any I catch may help, then again I might get aggravaited emptying every time I turn around and change back either way it may be fun to try something new


Hi Warren, 
Most of the time I use the dust collector but if it is just to route something quickly on that table I use the shop vac as it is still mounted underneath the table & rolls with it. It's the small square Rigid vac. Works well when not full.


----------



## DJeansonne (Mar 27, 2009)

*router switch*

I used the switch from Rockler which is the paddle-off type. It has a plug pigtail about 12 inches long. This swich works well for me. The only thing I didn't like was that it was surface mounted on the back. This made flush mounting it more difficult. I had to recess a mounting board in the cabinet to get the outside or front face relatively flush with the outside of the cabinet. This would not have been a problem on the side of the cabonet but I wanted it on the front.

I like the emergency tap shutoff as opposed to using a toggle switch but to each his own.


----------

