Experienced Electrician! Here to Answer Any and All Growroom Electrical Questions

BigBudBalls

BigBudBalls

Well-Known Member
IAm5toned said:
no, daisy chaining the power strips is not the right answer. by daisy chaining the strips, your passing all of the load through the first strip, which should kick the breaker on it.....
the correct way is to have a parrallel splice on the cords, a "t tap" on the 3 wire 120v circuit.
Click to expand...
So? The power strips typically hace a 15a breaker in them, same as the one in the breaker panel (usually)
[qoute]
daisy chaining is making a parrallel circuit into a series/parrallel circuit, and when you do that, voltage drop becomes a major factor. undervoltage causes components to overheat, which causes the breaker to trip on the forst power strip. by splicing the cords together, the load is evenly divided between the 2 strips, whereas if they are daisy chained, all the load goes through the first strip. am i making sense?[/QUOTE]

Where does the series part come from?
 
IAm5toned

IAm5toned

Well-Known Member
BigBudBalls said:
Where does the series part come from?
Click to expand...
across the hot bus of the first power strip..... from line voltage to the last receptacle on the first strip, where the second strip is plugged into. all the devices plugged into the first strip, excluding the the last outlet where the second strip is plugged into, are in parallel. but all the load for everything that is connected to the second power strip must first pass through the first power strip, the load has to travel from line, to the last outlet, to get to the second strip, making it series-parallel connected. you can plug in the second stip on any outlet in the first, it doesnt change the outcome, just the length of the series connection.

try this out for yourselve, if you think im shitting you.
plug in say 1500-1600w each to two power strips. now plug one into the other, and plug the other into an outlet, and see what happens. the first strip will kick. now unplug the second from the first, and plug it directly into the same outlet the first is plugged into. presto! they both work now.
following me yet?
 
harper2002

harper2002

Well-Known Member
Im looking at sticking a grow tent in my room but only thing is I only have one socket.... will this handle a 600w HPS, fan and nft?
 
IAm5toned

IAm5toned

Well-Known Member
as long as your not running anything else too big on the same circuit.
most circuits are good for 1440w of grow power in a house.
thats per circuit, not per outlet. a circuit can share several outlets, or just one, depending on how the house is wired. most circuits share outlets.
 
Sub Zero

Sub Zero

Well-Known Member
IAm5toned

I have a question about 5vac coil 15 amp 120vac relay.
I found one tiny and cheap, but the legs are dinky.
Big concern or not? If you need mo info, I'll get it to you.
Thanks in advance brother...:joint:
 
BigBudBalls

BigBudBalls

Well-Known Member
Sure thats not 5VDC coil with 15A (120V) contacts?
(can't say I've ever seen 5VAC coils or control logic)

Sub Zero said:
IAm5toned

I have a question about 5vac coil 15 amp 120vac relay.
I found one tiny and cheap, but the legs are dinky.
Big concern or not? If you need mo info, I'll get it to you.
Thanks in advance brother...:joint:
Click to expand...
 
IAm5toned

IAm5toned

Well-Known Member
Sub Zero said:
IAm5toned

I have a question about 5vac coil 15 amp 120vac relay.
I found one tiny and cheap, but the legs are dinky.
Big concern or not? If you need mo info, I'll get it to you.
Thanks in advance brother...:joint:
Click to expand...
need to know what your going to use it for, and a model number if you have it (of the relay)
 
IAm5toned

IAm5toned

Well-Known Member
it should be fine, if all your running is one pump.
its definitly rated for inductive loads, so i see no reason why it wont work, after all, your using it for one of its intended designs, cycling a load.
i wouldnt try running a ballast with it tho, not sure if its rated for continuous duty or not.
 
IAm5toned

IAm5toned

Well-Known Member
schwa said:
my buddy gave me a fixture and it has these rock things in each of the cords. They get pretty hot which is my worry. have you ever seen one before and does this one look safe?View attachment 1069380View attachment 1069381
Click to expand...
that is a resin-encased ballast from an underground canister light. the ballast core has been encased in resin to protect it from ground moisture coming from conduit/cable entry points that condenses on the heat sinks of the core during the lights off period. ballasts get pretty hot, and a resin encased ballast gets a bit hotter than normal. it should be fine, but if you notice an increase in the heat, like it gets hotter than normal, you might want to check the cord connections on the ballast, and make sure there not loose.
 
Sub Zero

Sub Zero

Well-Known Member
IAm5toned said:
it should be fine, if all your running is one pump.
its definitly rated for inductive loads, so i see no reason why it wont work, after all, your using it for one of its intended designs, cycling a load.
i wouldnt try running a ballast with it tho, not sure if its rated for continuous duty or not.
Click to expand...
Thanks man, after reading this thread with all the crazy ideas, I knew that relay was too small.
I just know some clown will plug in ten pumps on my little ol timer, can you say law suet. I want to put a resettable 15a fuse in this but damn, $5.00 or so for one.
Any ideas??? Thanks + Rep!
 
Sub Zero

Sub Zero

Well-Known Member
You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to IAm5toned again. Sorry bud... I'll get back to you soon... :)
 
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