Electrical/Water Safety Question

I am looking to condense the amount of floorspace I am taking up for my veg and flower cabinets by seeing if I can safely stack one on top of the other. I would appreciate it if someone could confirm for me that a GFCI breaker would prevent any shock to me or damage to my lights if water spilled while they were running??

I've got a GFCI breaker in my panel for this circuit/room and in the past I've had two levels of vegging plants and lights but I always pulled the plants out for watering and put them back (in plastic bins) after they were dry so I was not as concerned.

What I was hoping to do here would mean a reservoir of water above a T5 panel or two. Flower on top, veg on the bottom. If it's not safe this way, I won't chance it but I assume it is fine since aquariums seem to have just as much electricity above/below/around and a GFCI makes that safe... right?

Thanks,
DB

GFI's sense an imbalance between the Live conductor and the Neutral Conductor, if the sum between them doesn't Equal Zero it assumes there is a voltage leak to ground so It opens the contacts and switches the power off, If too much water gets in contact with the power supply to your lights it would probably cause the breaker to trip, problem is your T5 light fixtures probably aren't waterproof so You could risk damaging your ballasts, T5 ballasts aren't cheap, Most aquariums are equipped with the proper casings for all their electrical equipment. They make Vapor Proof Fixtures but they're an added exspense and now you'll have a lens covering your bulbs. So basically the GFI does give you some reassurance that you won't burn your place down due to electrical fire but you may run the risk of damaging your light fixtures if they get too wet.

skysthelimit said:

So basically the GFI does give you some reassurance that you won't burn your place down due to electrical fire but you may run the risk of damaging your light fixtures if they get too wet.

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Ok, and I'd be protected against dangerous shock if I somehow spilled water all over my lower lights since the GFCI would trip as soon as it detected electricity leaking out... into me? That's my biggest concern really.

Thx!

You should be protected from but remember that a GFCI will only protect you from a Phase to Ground Shock, it doesn't protect between Phase to Neutral or Phase to Phase. So if you dropped water ALL over your lights most likely it would short to ground, also make sure you have your fixtures grounded. Even if you dropped the water all over your fixture and the GFCI didn't trip it wouldn't be likely that you'd experience a shock unless you were in contact with the fixture itself. Another interesting fact, water is actually an Insulator, It's all the minerals in it that makes it a conductor.

skysthelimit said:

You should be protected from but remember that a GFCI will only protect you from a Phase to Ground Shock, it doesn't protect between Phase to Neutral or Phase to Phase. So if you dropped water ALL over your lights most likely it would short to ground, also make sure you have your fixtures grounded. Even if you dropped the water all over your fixture and the GFCI didn't trip it wouldn't be likely that you'd experience a shock unless you were in contact with the fixture itself. Another interesting fact, water is actually an Insulator, It's all the minerals in it that makes it a conductor.

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100% accurate. Someone knows his NEC.

GFCI's are actually required when working near water.

gfci's are totaly safe thats why they are code with in your kitchen and bathroom. the slightest of break in continuity trips them out in nano second. and for your aqarium light i have t-5s on my lights and to be honest there is nothing special about them as far as electric goes. they are still straight pin toms stones they hook into. the lens that covers them isnt water tight and you can see evapotation and condisation gather behind the lens. i keep a saltwater eef tank that requires more lighting than growing and those lens do not affect the out put of light. and yes i have dropped them into the water with no problems or shock.

GFCIs don't sense a break in continuity they sense a leakage of voltage by using a differential current transformer to monitor the loads between the Live conductor and the Neutral.

2. T5 is just a reference to the Diameter of the bulb which is 5/8, T5s come in all different sizes, and Outputs and Color Temperatures, Today most T5s are High Output with higher watts, They're more beneficial than T8's or T12s due to their smaller size. You can fit more in smaller areas and the beam is more directed. And The Tombstone is a G5 bipin base not the G13 that T8s or T12 use.. And you can't use a T8/12 Ballast to power a T5 bulb.

So you are reassuring him not to worry if he drops a live light fixture into a tank of water? Great Advice.. just stick your hands in there and grab it because nothing happened to him.

Just kidding please unplug it first.

the standard now is arc-fault in my area, for BEDROOMS, inside the panel. Of course, GFI in wet areas.

Dude!!! just do a good job when you design and build your table line with plastic so water cant get on your lights

Thanks everyone! I'm set.

reggaerican said:

Dude!!! just do a good job when you design and build your table line with plastic so water cant get on your lights

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Well... of course I'd do that. Just want to be prepared if it leaks or something... who knows. Better safe than sorry.

Go to Home Depot or any appliance/hardware store and pick up a washing machine overflow pan to put your resevoirs in.

skysthelimit said:

Go to Home Depot or any appliance/hardware store and pick up a washing machine overflow pan to put your resevoirs in.

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Ya, I was looking at those, but they're too big generally. I am using a 4'x2' cabinet. Think I'll see if there's a flood tray that's about the right size. Thx