It's that time of year again... Christmas light controller

Using Arduino Motors, Mechanics, Power and CNC
1

So last year i decided to build some Christmas lights and a controller.
Now stupidly forgot to check the voltage rating of the mosfets i was using (had them sat around for a few years) and decided to put 230v dc across them, and ofcourse they didn't last long :confused:
Roll on a year later and i want to actually use the controller but can't decide between an IGBT or Mosfet, and whats best to drive them as everything thats logic level i can find isn't going to work with the high voltage.
Would be great to know what others have used to control a 230v dc with PWM.
By the way i'm an electrician and play with mains electricity on a daily basis so not worried about the whole you shouldn't be doing this :slight_smile:
Cheers

2

Normally an SSR is the choice to control mains with logic levels.

The only advantage of IGBT is the voltage rating. Mosfets are always superior in every other way.

3

Fair enough, an SSR isn't really going to be suitable for PWM though is it?
So you'd think i'd be better off driving a 600v mosfet? cheers

4

If you already have the zero-crossing worked out then use the MOSFET.