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Growroom Electricity and Wiring
- Thread starter Phillthy
- Start date
Well, the thread seems to be working again so I'll try this here first. I thought that you did a pretty good job of answering your own questions! You need a double-pole switch, you should be able to find them in the same configurations as standard, single-pole switches. You are correct in your thinking that you need to break both hot legs going to the light. It is the same idea as what you are used to, but both wires need to go through the switch. Holler back if you see this, if not I'll pm you with it in a bit.
gotcha rives thanks alot for your time. I'll grab one at home depot tomorrow.
pufferfish
Member
hay all strating a new grow room in the garage...5x400 watt hps...3x250 mh lights a/c ect..ect..ect i gota call an electrician what are my electrical needs
I'm definitely not an electrician but personally I'd get a 30 or 40 amp 240v "dryer" plug (depending in how much that AC is gonna pull) installed as well as a 20 amp 120 line to run fans n stuff. you can just say you want to put your dryer out in the garage this summer to reduce heat or something. That 30 amp 240v circuit can run like 7k+ worth of lights..it's a little overkill..but I'd prefer to have it incase of future expansions...
again I'm not an electrician but I don't see any responses...
find your breaker that that plug in is on and see if it's 15 amp or 20 amp..if it's 20 amp you should be ok to run a 1k light as long as you're not running more then 500 or so more watts on that circuit. a 15 amp circuit is too small to safely run a 1000 watt light on imo...the ballast uses a little extra energy too and your 1000 watt light might actually be pulling 1100 or 1200 watts .. and that's ( I think ) too much watts to be pulling on a continuous load off of 15 amps. 80% rule.
as far as timers I've ran a 1k light off of a outdoor walmart timer thingie with no problems (the timer with the big black spike) that's kinda pushing it though. That's one of the only "normal" timers I could find that could handle 1000watts.. most digital timers max at about 800watts. I'd recommend getting something like a cap mlc lighting controller thingie just to be safe.
If there is no other load on the circuit feeding the receptacle that you have in mind, then it would be fine. Even if you figure 1200 watts with ballast losses (should be pretty conservative), you are at 10 amps on a 15 amp circuit. You can trip the breaker feeding the receptacle that you have in mind and see if anything else goes off. As StealthDragon mentioned, you want to stay under 80% of the circuit capacity for continuous loads, so stay under 12 amps if it is a 15 amp circuit. Volts x amps=watts, or watts/volts=amps. I think that the best timers for this application are the Intermatic T101 water heater timers. They are kind of crude and clunky, but tough as hell and live forever.
StealthDragon's route is probably going to be your cheapest and most portable alternative. If you own the home rather than rent, a minimum 60 amp sub-panel will give you lots of future flexibility and be the basis for a very expandable, safe installation.
pufferfish
Member
thanx guys a 240v it is gona start in a few...
pufferfish
Member
ok now im thinkin...if my lights n stuff run off 120v...how do i plug it into a 240v..do i need some kind conector ?.........now abote the timer.what one is good
Yah`mon
Member
Hey quick question for any lighting expert. Here's a pic of a friends set up... not wondering if its hooked up correctly... an electrician did it and it's been running for 9+ months...
So to the question... does this seem like a solid design to go by? I was thinking about doing the same thing basically... but just on a smaller scale.
Thanks for any input.
If anything is unclear ask for more detials... I think the arrows should cover it mostly.
Yah`mon
So to the question... does this seem like a solid design to go by? I was thinking about doing the same thing basically... but just on a smaller scale.
Thanks for any input.
If anything is unclear ask for more detials... I think the arrows should cover it mostly.
Yah`mon
SquekyTuba
Member
I need some help. How would i wire 20 CFLs? would i splice them into one cord? Should i use heavy duty extension cord? Total wattage is 600 watts.Thanks
This doesn't really answer your question, but what I'd do (because too I'm lazy and stupid to learn how to wire them
) is buy 3 or 4 power strips, plugging 6 CFLs into each power strip. Hardware stores sell those little outlet sockets and Y-splitter sockets.SquekyTuba
Member
haha yea i guess that works but right now im using 3 cfls and i splice the wires into one but thats only maybe 60 watts and 600 watts is a little more serious i think. I dont know much about wiringThis doesn't really answer your question, but what I'd do (because too I'm lazy and stupid to learn how to wire them
A
ak-51
240V Nema 6-15 GFCI?
240V Nema 6-15 GFCI?
Are there any GFCI units that can plug in-line with the standard NEMA 6-15 240volt plugs used on ballasts? If necessary I can hardwire it into the cord myself. I have done enough wiring to be confident that I can do this safely.
This is the male end that I'm working with:
Here is the kind of outlet that I have rigged up in my room:
My limited understanding of GFCI's before was that it monitored the flow from the hot to the neutral and shut it off if they were too different, which would usually indicate dangerous leakage somewhere. If the 240v NEMA 6-15 plug has no neutral, just two hots and one ground, how would that work? Does anybody use GFCI units with their 240V ballasts? If so then which ones? The only ones I have found are these high priced hub units, but they don't even have the right male plug for what I am using!
Please help! I want my growroom to be as safe as possible.
240V Nema 6-15 GFCI?
Are there any GFCI units that can plug in-line with the standard NEMA 6-15 240volt plugs used on ballasts? If necessary I can hardwire it into the cord myself. I have done enough wiring to be confident that I can do this safely.
This is the male end that I'm working with:
Here is the kind of outlet that I have rigged up in my room:
My limited understanding of GFCI's before was that it monitored the flow from the hot to the neutral and shut it off if they were too different, which would usually indicate dangerous leakage somewhere. If the 240v NEMA 6-15 plug has no neutral, just two hots and one ground, how would that work? Does anybody use GFCI units with their 240V ballasts? If so then which ones? The only ones I have found are these high priced hub units, but they don't even have the right male plug for what I am using!
Please help! I want my growroom to be as safe as possible.
dancingroots
Member
ak 51 you could get a 20 amp gfi breaker for that circuit about $50 its not what your looking for but will work fine.
dancingroots
Member
The rec in pic is a 20amp rec for 110v. it's a good choice.
dancingroots
Member
SQ TUBA GO TO A hardware store or electrical supplier and get a temparary lighting cord for construction sites light' they come in different lenghts complete with light sockets atach add light bulb and just plug in
dancingroots
Member
pipe is the way to go
pipe is the way to go
pipe is the way to go
looks nice and neetHey quick question for any lighting expert. Here's a pic of a friends set up... not wondering if its hooked up correctly... an electrician did it and it's been running for 9+ months...
So to the question... does this seem like a solid design to go by? I was thinking about doing the same thing basically... but just on a smaller scale.
Thanks for any input.
If anything is unclear ask for more detials... I think the arrows should cover it mostly.
Yah`mon
dancingroots
Member
do not see a sub panel
do not see a sub panel
do not see a sub panel
when I wire grow rooms in most cases I would put a sub panel close to the distrabuting panel or balasts to compensate voltage drop and help with heat in the wire due to the long 20/4 or 24 light timeslooks nice and neet
