this post was submitted on 20 Jun 2023
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I'm planning to add a momentary switch to a single loop DC circuit. Will this cause any amount of resistance in the circuit? I'm a complete noobie when it comes to electronics, any resource links or clarification is appreciated. I know the type of material/width of wire and a pot will cause resistance but will any component put in line with the circuit cause resistance, and if so how do I go about measuring the resistance for each component within the circuit?

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

What are you switching? There’sa good chance (but no guarantee) even an ultra-cheap switch is fine.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

A 12 volt battery w/ a pot and a few other components. The plan is it wont be running more than 5 milliamps through it. I ended up getting this so not exactly a conventional momentary switch.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

That is pretty much exactly a conventional momentary switch. It just happens to be packaged for use controlling something a little different.

It should be fine for your application.

One thing to note - the contacts will probably "bounce" as the switch is closed. Produce a string of momentary connections and disconnections for, oh, say the first few thousandths of a second. That's perfectly normal for a mechanical switch.

That won't matter in its intended application. But if you are using it with electronics, say counting the number of times the switch is operated - the results can be unexpected.

You can look up "debounce" to see how this can be worked-around.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Thanks, I appreciate the clarification on the switch just having a different housing. I'll have to do some further research on "bouncing", interesting stuff.