Electrical Ques. If I can help someone I will...

Will this work? I set up 4 150w HPS, I removed the ballast and housing from the lamp body and used cut down extension cord in between, about 18 ft. The cord rating is 16/3 SJTW, each lamp is 3.2 amp, I think I am OK there. My concern is the heat put off by the ballast and lamp, the rating on the cord says 75C, the lamp and ballast probably gets about that hot. To remedy this I am considering buying a foot or two of wire that has a higher heat resistance and splicing that in at the ballast and lamp (thoughts?). Luckly I have an outlet that all four lights can plug into that goes straight to the 15 amp circuit breaker, no other loads. I calculate that to be 12.8 amps from the 4 lights solely on the 15 amp line. I definetely could use help in the electirical work. Any comments any of the items (including pix) are appreciated and thanks to this whole thread!

should be at least a 14 awg wire man 14 wire is good for 15 amps. also code says not to use more then 80% of the rated breaker so you will be cutting this close but i do not see a fire hazard unless u have crappy connections . i would def up the wire size to 14 awg at all points. Up the wire size to be safe 16 will work but personally I would use 14 at least most cheap extension cords are 16 and some 18 , is the way to go. The thing is if you are connected to a 15 amp circuit then the wire should be able to handle 15 amps for a possible fault current before the breaker trips. Even if the lights not drawing close to that a short could cause more amperage then that wire is rated for. its all about saftey. Its your call but being an electrician for 10 years now i would def recommend at least 14 wire .

Just to be clear....

If you have two ballasts... one is 120V and the other is 240V and the wattage draw is equal, then the amps will be halved.... but the load has been doubled... i.e. twice the volts are applied. it comes out the same in the end of the month for your electrical bill.....

if you have a light set up that requires 4000 watts....that draw will not change whether you have wired up a 240 or 120V ballast system.... get it? In the end it's always how much is needed to power up...not how it is delivered, as long as you follow the code and the equation Volts=Watts X Amps


out.

CrackerJax said:

Just to be clear....

If you have two ballasts... one is 120V and the other is 240V and the wattage draw is equal, then the amps will be halved.... but the load has been doubled... i.e. twice the volts are applied. it comes out the same in the end of the month for your electrical bill.....

if you have a light set up that requires 4000 watts....that draw will not change whether you have wired up a 240 or 120V ballast system.... get it? In the end it's always how much is needed to power up...not how it is delivered, as long as you follow the code and the equation Volts=Watts X Amps


out.

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yes your right there is noway to hook up yur shit to save money no matter the voltage the power is always the same so you get charges the same only gain u can get by using 240 verse 120 is smaller wire size but on a small scal wire size ain't gonna save shit (purchase wise) electric companies charge at kilowatts/hour so if power does not change u don't save anything only way to lower electric bill is to use less lights aka power. amperage times voltage is power(watts) so if u draw 1 amp at 120 you use 120watts verse if u use .5 amps at 240 its still 120watts. hope i helped

XxstelxX, Thanks for the quick response and my fault for not mentioning I am using the 16 guage on each ballast so there is only 3.2 amps on each line. I could run three of the lamps 9.6 amps (61%) to the dedicated 15 amp circuit, and run the other lamp to a shared house circuit, thoughts? That would resolve the 12.8 amps (85%) going to one 15 amp outlet, but may cause other problems on the shared circuit.

As far as the heat generaton and the proximity of the 75C 16 guage cord to the ballast and lamp, I will see what sort of heat resistant wire (&connectors) I can splice in there, any recommendations are welcome. thanks

use 14 wire cord for all the lights the way it is rule of thumb is 80% of breaker when one is sizing a circuit you will be fine the way it is but change all the wire to 14 wire becaue even though the ballast only draws 3.2 amps there is a potential of 15 or more amps in a short condition because its supplied by a 15 amp breaker. Its all about just in case. If short with 16 gauge wire it could easily melt no matter the insulation rateing its the wire that carrries the current(amperage) and thats what melts shit if under sized. so basically its not what the fixture draws its what its supplied by (15 amp breaker). I fu wire a houe and run a circuit from panel to a outlet with say 14 awg(15 amp breaker) you do not ever decrease the size of wire to next outlet EVER! Becaues the potential for 15 amps exist no matter what the light draws. I have seen many melted ballast especially HID (MH and HPS) when they cook they COOK!!! wire size is very important when it comes to fire man . Now if this was just a lamp that wasn't on all the time i wouldn't worry but were it is used for growing and on most of the day i would run 14 wire or 12 wire to all my lights just to be safe. when a ballast shorts out and this is common it can draw as much electricity as its being supplied by before tripping thus small wire in the circuit becomes your weak link. hope I explained this good. thermal rateing of wire really means nothing when it comes to sizeing what u are doin. 75c is very hot and most cords are rated for that. just remember its the copper in the wire that carries electricity and size of copper is what matters.

XxstelxX said:

use 14 wire cord for all the lights the way it is rule of thumb is 80% of breaker when one is sizing a circuit you will be fine the way it is but change all the wire to 14 wire becaue even though the ballast only draws 3.2 amps there is a potential of 15 or more amps in a short condition because its supplied by a 15 amp breaker. Its all about just in case. If short with 16 gauge wire it could easily melt no matter the insulation rateing its the wire that carrries the current(amperage) and thats what melts shit if under sized. so basically its not what the fixture draws its what its supplied by (15 amp breaker). I fu wire a houe and run a circuit from panel to a outlet with say 14 awg(15 amp breaker) you do not ever decrease the size of wire to next outlet EVER! Becaues the potential for 15 amps exist no matter what the light draws. I have seen many melted ballast especially HID (MH and HPS) when they cook they COOK!!! wire size is very important when it comes to fire man . Now if this was just a lamp that wasn't on all the time i wouldn't worry but were it is used for growing and on most of the day i would run 14 wire or 12 wire to all my lights just to be safe. when a ballast shorts out and this is common it can draw as much electricity as its being supplied by before tripping thus small wire in the circuit becomes your weak link. hope I explained this good

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agreed, in a perfect world, you should use 14 gage extension cords on a 15 amp circuit. I'm sure many people here have 16 or 18 gage cords on 20 amp circuits even. a large transformer like a ballast does add to the danger. the way they can short out is much more dangerous then a normal light bulb, so safety should always be kept in mind in your grow room.

the way some electronic parts go out in flames is called the thermal runway. when a transformer reaches the thermal runway temperature, it starts to melt away the protective coating on the wire inside the transformer and damages the coils. the wire shorts out on the inside and starts drawing more current which makes it even hotter yet, until the part eventually causes a fire or burns out and stops drawing power. a large transormer like in a ballast can draw more current then it's rated for and cause problems long before the breaker is tripped. 3.2 amps is what the ballast is rated for when it's working properly. doesn't mean it wont ever draw more then that. many other things can go wrong. protect against these problems as best as you can, and you'll continue growing happily.

I got it, I will change out the wire to at least 14 guage, thanks.

Can someone please explain boost converters that are supposed to 'step up' 120 to 240. I don't really understand how it's possible, but apparently it is because they sell them. What I want to know is if you used one would the amperage drawn be the same as if you used 120 or would it really be half what it was before? Thanks.

I have a question. Can I (me) install a breaker in the box and run 14g for 2 plugs on a 15amp circuit? The wiring in my house is terrible and I don't want to overload any circuits. I have no idea where to start and electricity scared the crap out of me. I know how to wire a light switch and a socket but I've never messed with that scary gray box.

kushmonster said:

I've been a member here for almost a month now and I see alot of people asking electrical questions...

I've been an Electrician for about 10yrs now so if someone has a question pertaining to electrical or wiring, I'll be happy to help if I can

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here https://www.rollitup.org/general-marijuana-growing/147428-energy-savers-large-rechargable-batteries.html

Angus said:

Can someone please explain boost converters that are supposed to 'step up' 120 to 240. I don't really understand how it's possible, but apparently it is because they sell them. What I want to know is if you used one would the amperage drawn be the same as if you used 120 or would it really be half what it was before? Thanks.

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just a fancy term for transformer.... yes the amps will be halved.... the basic equation v=w x a cannot be undone......it's always works....
consequently knowing any two of the variables will reveal the other. They are directly proportional to each other.
In your case your are doubling the load volts from 120 to 240 (times 2)....therefore amps will be cut by 1/2.


out.

Angus said:

Can someone please explain boost converters that are supposed to 'step up' 120 to 240. I don't really understand how it's possible, but apparently it is because they sell them. What I want to know is if you used one would the amperage drawn be the same as if you used 120 or would it really be half what it was before? Thanks.

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it's a trade off. higher voltage and less amps, or lower voltage and more amps. either way you're using the same amount of power and will cost the same. adding a step-up transformer before the ballast wont save you any money, and will only add more inefficiency to the setup. so using one will only cost you more to run it and create more heat.

fureelz said:

I have a question. Can I (me) install a breaker in the box and run 14g for 2 plugs on a 15amp circuit? The wiring in my house is terrible and I don't want to overload any circuits. I have no idea where to start and electricity scared the crap out of me. I know how to wire a light switch and a socket but I've never messed with that scary gray box.

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yes, if you have room in your panel to add another breaker. you might want to find someone to do it for you, or maybe get a do it yourself book.

I have room on the panel, i have no idea how to get power from that box to a breaker to a line to sockets so i can plug something in...is it something i should have subbed out? what is one to think when i tell them what i need? anyone in colorado want to help?

fureelz said:

I have room on the panel, i have no idea how to get power from that box to a breaker to a line to sockets so i can plug something in...is it something i should have subbed out? what is one to think when i tell them what i need? anyone in colorado want to help?

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I'd help if you were local. have anything in the room yet? just say you need outlets in the room to run a drill press for your wifes craft business. don't know much about what she's doing and she's not home, but this is what she said she needs. be creative in your lies. lol. if you have an electrician put it in, go for a 20 amp circuit. only a few dollars more, and you'll be very thankful in the future if you do. less problems, more power available if needed.

i just picked up an inline duct fan for m y room. i'm tryin to wire it up, but i'm confused. it's a 120v motor, white and black wires, green ground. is that something i can hook straight up to a light switch? i tried to look for a switch or control online, but i couldn't fine any. heres the fan link http://www.suncourt.com/InductorHydroponics.html
thanks

burtonblunt86 said:

i just picked up an inline duct fan for m y room. i'm tryin to wire it up, but i'm confused. it's a 120v motor, white and black wires, green ground. is that something i can hook straight up to a light switch? i tried to look for a switch or control online, but i couldn't fine any. heres the fan link http://www.suncourt.com/InductorHydroponics.html
thanks

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Black is 120VAC, white is neutral, and green is ground

to fureels!



im not sure about colarado but standard service around my neck of the woods is 200 amp so ad up the value of all your breakers and if it is below 200 you should be able to add more breakers. just because they fit doesnt mean you have enough power coming from the pole, as always with wiring if your not sure about something ask a pro! be safe.

burtonblunt86 said:

i just picked up an inline duct fan for m y room. i'm tryin to wire it up, but i'm confused. it's a 120v motor, white and black wires, green ground. is that something i can hook straight up to a light switch? i tried to look for a switch or control online, but i couldn't fine any. heres the fan link http://www.suncourt.com/InductorHydroponics.html
thanks

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just grab a three prong extension cord cut the female end off and strip the insulation off about 2 inches then go w-w b-b g-g. wire nut them then tape for good measure. if you soldier then you can do that as well@