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

Hey guys, I am trying to put 4 600 watt lights in one room along with a 12k btu a/c unit which says it uses 1100 watts. I have a feeling that this is to much power in 1 room so im wondering what would need to be done and how much do you think itll cost if I do have to upgrade anything?

Thanks

tsboss1 said:

Hey guys, I am trying to put 4 600 watt lights in one room along with a 12k btu a/c unit which says it uses 1100 watts. I have a feeling that this is to much power in 1 room so im wondering what would need to be done and how much do you think itll cost if I do have to upgrade anything?

Thanks

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If this is just your standard bedroom, this is most certainly too much.

If you want to run on standard 120v 15A circuits, I'd run three... one for each set of two lamps, and then a separate for the AC.

Costs depend on the fixtures you have and whether you can connect to 240v or not. If not, you're going to pretty much need three dedicated 15A circuits that don't touch anything else... there's no doubt you'll want to add fans etc.

You can however run 14/3 extensions (or 12/3 over 25') from other rooms to run things off of. I don't like having cords all over everywhere, but it is possible if you test and run safely. More detail will help here.

-spek

spek9 said:

If this is just your standard bedroom, this is most certainly too much.

If you want to run on standard 120v 15A circuits, I'd run three... one for each set of two lamps, and then a separate for the AC.

Costs depend on the fixtures you have and whether you can connect to 240v or not. If not, you're going to pretty much need three dedicated 15A circuits that don't touch anything else... there's no doubt you'll want to add fans etc.

You can however run 14/3 extensions (or 12/3 over 25') from other rooms to run things off of. I don't like having cords all over everywhere, but it is possible if you test and run safely. More detail will help here.

-spek

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Thank you for your reply. I just did a little search on google and read this:

"There is an allowance of 1800 watts per outlet for 15 Ampere 120 volt convenience outlets ans 2400 watts per outlet for 20 Ampere outlets."

So does each outlet = 15A? If so, couldnt I just plug the 2 lights in 1 outlet (1200 Watts) and the other 2 lights in another outlet(1200 watts) in the same room without it tripping and then run the AC/fans to another room(1100 watts + whatever the fan/scrubber wattage is)? If im not understanding correctly, then what about updating the amps to 20?

Thanks

It's likely that all the outlets in one or even more rooms can share one circuit.

tsboss1 said:

Thank you for your reply. I just did a little search on google and read this:

"There is an allowance of 1800 watts per outlet for 15 Ampere 120 volt convenience outlets ans 2400 watts per outlet for 20 Ampere outlets."

So does each outlet = 15A? If so, couldnt I just plug the 2 lights in 1 outlet (1200 Watts) and the other 2 lights in another outlet(1200 watts) in the same room without it tripping and then run the AC/fans to another room(1100 watts + whatever the fan/scrubber wattage is)? If im not understanding correctly, then what about updating the amps to 20?

Thanks

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No. Each outlet does not equal 15A. The combined power draws on all the 'plugs' combined (including overhead lights) on a 120v 15A circuit make up a total.

So, for instance, in Ontario Canada, it is legal by Electrical Code to put up to 12 'fixtures' on each 15A 120v circuit. That means an entire living room and bedroom (no outlet can be 6' away from any one distance) plus lights can be on one circuit.

No circuit by code shall be run at more than 80% of capacity, and this is for safety reasons. So, for instance:

- 2 x 600w / 120v = 10A
- max capacity of this circuit is 12A (80% rule)
- startup on two 600w will be at *least* 1A each
- if you happen to be running your lamp(s) on a circuit your wife fires your 1500w hair dryer on, or a dehumidifier etc, your circuit trips

If you want to run all of this in one room, you need to literally take a tester (a lamp will do) to see what else is on the circuit. What you want here is two dedicated (or known very unused) circuits so you get clean power with no risk of a kettle, hair dryer or vaccuum tripping your cycle when you're not home. Nor do you want to run an extension on a circuit that is already overwhelmed with less-than-adequate cabling.

I'm drunk and high, but am I making sense?

-spek

spek9 said:

No. Each outlet does not equal 15A. The combined power draws on all the 'plugs' combined (including overhead lights) on a 120v 15A circuit make up a total.

So, for instance, in Ontario Canada, it is legal by Electrical Code to put up to 12 'fixtures' on each 15A 120v circuit. That means an entire living room and bedroom (no outlet can be 6' away from any one distance) plus lights can be on one circuit.

No circuit by code shall be run at more than 80% of capacity, and this is for safety reasons. So, for instance:

- 2 x 600w / 120v = 10A
- max capacity of this circuit is 12A (80% rule)
- startup on two 600w will be at *least* 1A each
- if you happen to be running your lamp(s) on a circuit your wife fires your 1500w hair dryer on, or a dehumidifier etc, your circuit trips

If you want to run all of this in one room, you need to literally take a tester (a lamp will do) to see what else is on the circuit. What you want here is two dedicated (or known very unused) circuits so you get clean power with no risk of a kettle, hair dryer or vaccuum tripping your cycle when you're not home. Nor do you want to run an extension on a circuit that is already overwhelmed with less-than-adequate cabling.

I'm drunk and high, but am I making sense?

-spek

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lol I think that makes sense. Thank you

I want to use a Kill a Watt energy usage meter to determine how much my digital ballast is really drawing.
http://www.amazon.com/P3-International-P4400-Electricity-Monitor/dp/B00009MDBU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1367461702&sr=8-1&keywords=kill+a+watt
will the sudden energy draw of a ballast fry this device?

It won't fry the device. It's rated for 15 amps.

You can save your money and google the amperage of your ballast and multiply it times your voltage...Tadah. Now you have your watts and you can then figure out kilowatts by simple multiplication

They draw roughly 7-8% more than the bulbs rating. So 1k ballast is drawing around 1070 watts.

I saw a great article written on one of the grow forums. It really broke down stuff for noobs. anybody know of which article im referring?

This one time, on this website, there was like some really cool information.

Hi,

I need help adding cords to my T5 fixtures. The I-Beam HO T5 has 4 wires red, white, green and black. My cord has 3 wires black, white and green. How do I pair the wires? I have two of these T5 fixtures which I will use 54 watt HO bulbs. Each fixture holds four of these HO bulbs. Will I need to do anything special to run both of these plugged into a surge protector in my garage?

Thanks in advance for the help!

View attachment 2644506 View attachment 2644507

Gs3000 said:

Hi,

I need help adding cords to my T5 fixtures. The I-Beam HO T5 has 4 wires red, white, green and black. My cord has 3 wires black, white and green. How do I pair the wires? I have two of these T5 fixtures which I will use 54 watt HO bulbs. Each fixture holds four of these HO bulbs. Will I need to do anything special to run both of these plugged into a surge protector in my garage?

Thanks in advance for the help!

View attachment 2644506 View attachment 2644507 View attachment 2644508 View attachment 2644509

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Please refer to the wiring diagram on the unit (or take a pic and post it), but usually the red is for if you wire to 240v. For 120v, *usually* you'd marrette the red and black together and connect it to the black of the feed wire, match white to white and green to green/or bare. I personally would wire them separately (as opposed to connecting both to a single feed), in case you want to separate them on different cycles or areas etc.

Again, not all of these are the same, so verify this against the documentation.

It looks like on the label it states that the fixture is either 120 volts or 277 volts.(You will not have 277 volts in a residence). If that is the case, cap the red wire(277v) and use the black wire. Splice that to your cord and you are ok.

Hey Spek9 and Jimdamick,

Thanks for your help. I ended up joining the red and black wires to the black wire of the power cord and connected the white to the white and green to the green. When I left the red out it didn't work. But when I left the red out I only had one tube in. Not sure if that mattered. But is woking now. Now I guess I need to return the 54 watts 4100k bulbs for 54 watts 6500k and 2700k bulbs.

Hey, I was curious about if I will be needing anything special electrical wise for my grow.
I will have 6 x 600w lights going plus fans etc.

^ your going to need at least 2 circuits if your running 120

How do i figure out the amount of electricity I'm capable of using in total and per socket or in each room?

the principle equation is this: watt= volts x amps You can change the equation around to fit your needs. like say "hey I am runnning 4000 watts, how many amps is that? watt/volts = amps soo 4000/120= 33.3 amps.

Typical residential houses in the US are run with 14 gauge wire on 15 amp circuit breakers. Sometimes 20 amp breakers. The most you want to run on a single circuit is about 18 amps. When you exceed the amp rating of the wire in the walls, it gets hot, and well, you can probably figure out the rest.

A single outlet (meaning the plugs themselves) can handle about 20 amps... but that is really kind of pushing it.

You need to plug stuff in on different outlets and flip the breaker to find which outlets are connected to the same circuit.

A handy trick if your the only one around and the breaker box is on another level is to plug in some noisy stuff (I prefer my shop vac on one outlet and my radio on another) and flip breakers till they shut off.

aint the numbers on the switches in the circuit breaker supposed to tell me how much or something? thanks for the reply btw

4betshove said:

aint the numbers on the switches in the circuit breaker supposed to tell me how much or something? thanks for the reply btw

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They do, yes... but that number is cumulative. So, lets say you have two 600w bulbs running on one 15A circuit... that's ~10A out of 15A in use right off the bat. A circuit is always rated at 80% of its capacity (if it operates at more than that for an extended period, the breaker will overheat and trip). So now you're already up to 10A out of a theoretical maximum of 12A. Now, say this circuit is also wired to four 100W incandescent room bulbs, you're at 13.3A. Also note that in (Ontario) Canada, the maximum number of outlets and lights connected to a single 15A circuit is 12, so there is a good possibility that something else will be connected, somewhere.

If at all possible, you'll want to try to put each light on its own circuit, then spread your fans et-al around across all three. If you must put two 600W on one circuit, find the least-used circuit in the area to put them on, then put the other one on a separate circuit. Three 600W bulbs will trip a 15A breaker for certain (and if it doesn't, the wiring will heat up to the point that it will be a major fire hazard.

Also note that you do NOT want your lights on circuit that also connects to the bathroom or kitchen. In these areas, there are often high-wattage pieces of equipment used (hair-dryers, kettles etc) and you don't want the wife tripping the breaker each time she boils water or dries her hair (bad for the bulb, plants, and she'll likely get pissed off if it happens repeatedly).

-spek