On Fri, May 6, 2011 at 2:25 PM, Olin Lathrop wr= ote: > A mechanical system like a relay is going to be less reliable than a > transistor IF the transistor is not being abused. =A0A properly used > transistor should last indefinitely for most practial purposes. =A0With a > inductive load like a solenoid, you have to make really sure the stored > energy in the coil is handle properly when shut off. > > The best thing would be to use transistors and make sure they are allways > run well within specs. =A0What are the voltage and current requirements o= f the > solenoids? =A0Why do you think you need FETs? =A0Why wouldn't a bipolar b= e able > to do the job just fine? =A0How fast do the solenoids need to respond to = off > and on switch commands? In this case, what would be the difference here in using a MOSFET or a BJT? --=20 http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist .