Experienced Electrician! Here to Answer Any and All Growroom Electrical Questions
- Thread starter bricktown73
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AquafinaOrbit
Well-Known Member
Not Bricktown but why not just run a 20amp 12-2 lateral(underground) service from the panel board to the shed?
grodrowithme
Well-Known Member
brick are you still aroun an ansearing ?s im fixing to start my 2nd indoor unit the first is a bedroom so it pretty much had power. we had to run a new breaker and a little wire simple stuff. my new one is in a garage and it has power but i will only be using some of it. just wanted to see if you were still around befor i typed it all up? thanks
how about using 1 timer to trip a few relays?1 relay for each light. the relay won't draw much so you can put several on a cheap timer.
something like this
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/items/5Z546
$20 & it will handle a 1.5 hp motor at 220 so it should be fine for a light
Karloff
Member
You can get a single 240 volt timer that allows for 2 seperate 240 v. loads the clock motor runs off on of the 240 volt circuits and it's load is so low it shouldn't pose a problem on either circuit as long as both sets of lights run at the same time on the same schedule 16/8 or 12/12 otherwise you'll need 2 seperate timers.
I'm not sure if Home Depot or Lowes still sells the 240 volt timers you might have to bite the bullet and go to an electrical supply and ask for a double pole double throw time clock they're a mechanical time clock / analog Digital might be too pricey.
I checked Lowes they sell one but it's got a 120 volt motor double pole time clock but you would need 2 of them and hav access to 120 volts to run the clock motors and they're $50.00 each.
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Karloff
Member
That would work but you have to mount it into some kind of box since the contacts are exposed, it would hurt like hell if you backed up into them might even throw you across the room.
If you could lay your hands on an old central alarm box with a door that would work.
BigBudBalls
Well-Known Member
tele/square-D and AB have enclosed contact contactors. Seen personally up to 60amp trip phase. Usually DIN rail mountable.
(funny story. went into a local electrical supply house here and asked for DIN rail. They had *no* idea what I was talking about. Kinda scarey)
Karloff
Member
I know what you mean.
I deal with it daily
RedEyedRaver
Member
Brilliant, Cheers for the info Karloff
MisterMicro
Well-Known Member
Oh snap i got one question.
Wheres the best place to go to get a computer fan 12v adapter rated for 2 amps?
Wheres the best place to go to get a computer fan 12v adapter rated for 2 amps?
grodrowithme
Well-Known Member
prob a computer store were they sell computer stuff like fans and such
Karloff
Member
As a rule of thumb if you plan out a project it can't hurt to use a larger ballast and a lower wattage fixture most suppliers design there equiptment to give you good service but they don't give the company away so taking a ballast to its top rating will work but if you design a little cushion into your design say a 600 watt ballast and a 400 watt bulb or fixture the ballast will not have to work so hard and run cooler so logically it should last longer bar any manufacturer defects.
And if you plan your electric circuits in the same way taking a circuit at 80% of its rated load you won't be popping breakers for example a 20 amp circuit to run nice and cool you should keep the load to 16 amps. and you'll be in top shape the breakers won't get hot.
An older breaker can begin to trip at lower demands as it weakens I've seen alot of breakers trip more frequently as they get older and older equiptment can start to draw more power to do their jobs as parts age.
Bulbs get dimmer as they age as well so a CFL or HPS bulb will start to produce less and less lumens as they age, but put a new bulb, tube in and they're like a new fixture alot of the growers will only use a bulb for a couple of grows as older bulbs result in smaller yields, but if you have the room you can compensate with additional plants and supplemental lighting.
It probably wouldn't hurt to have a spare bulb on hand especially if you have to order and wait for it to arrive during the Bloom cycle.
That would suck.
jimstar
Member
Great thread!
read 40 odd pages and skipped to the end - I am also interested to learn about how to rig up a PC fan or two for an exhaust pipe.
What is the best and easiest way to do this?
I've heard you can use old 12v mobile phone chargers.
Any advice will be really really really appreciated!
oh, yeah one more thing, should I use a fluorescent light for growing seedlings?
read 40 odd pages and skipped to the end - I am also interested to learn about how to rig up a PC fan or two for an exhaust pipe.
What is the best and easiest way to do this?
I've heard you can use old 12v mobile phone chargers.
Any advice will be really really really appreciated!
oh, yeah one more thing, should I use a fluorescent light for growing seedlings?
BigBudBalls
Well-Known Member
They gotta be *really* old cell chargers. Haven't seen one over 5v in a lloonngg time.
just wonder through your junk pile reading the labels of the wall-warts
Should see
Primary: 120VAC @xWatts
Secondary: 12VDC @yA
Just make sure the wart can supply more amps then the label of the fan. Pay attention to polarity.
zerran elar
Well-Known Member
So im new to growing but my dad has been growing for ages... literaly. hah. Any who I was just sitting here thinking. If I was to buy a house and have him move in what would be the max 1000w lights we could have with out being detected? And another thing is I was wondering If i could have a electician come in and rig up another electic box and say im goin to "rent" out the top of the house or whatever and then set more lights up that way ? It would be in his name and i would have mine in my name... Thoughts?
How much do you think it would cost for this? I posted a thread but it have like 10 views no replys.
anyhelp would be nice, thanks.
How much do you think it would cost for this? I posted a thread but it have like 10 views no replys.
anyhelp would be nice, thanks.
Karloff
Member
I'm not sure what you mean by being detected if your reffering to leaving a heat signature that could be detected by police and you plan to say install 4- 1000 watt fixtures on the second floor of your home you'll light up their detection equiptment like a christmas tree instead a stealthy grower would put the grow room in say a basement as the heat will dissapate and leave a more normal heat signature.
If your reffering to being caught as a result of having a higher electric bill adding an additional 4000 watts per hour per day will or could be noticed if you buy a different home and the utility co. keeps records of usage it might notice that your using more electricity than the previous owner.
I'm not saying that they do that but I guess it's a possibility as for having a second panel installed and telling the electrician that your going to rent it out isn't going to fool anyone besides you would have to get permits and approval to make the home a 2 family residence and if approved you would need to install a second service and seperate all the existing wiring from the first service.
Oh what a tangled web.
Or you could just have a sub panel installed off the existing service for say supplemental air conditioning on the second floor assuming that you don't have central air.
Bottom line it could be done but it might look suspicious to anyone doing it you'll need to use an excuse like I want to move an ailing family member to the home and want to make sure that what ever equiptment he needs has an appropriate electrical supply for medical equiptment etc.
As far as cost I could tell you what it costs in my state but every state has different costs as far as materials and labor costs go so you would have to ask around in your area and alot of it will depend on how large or small your existing electrical service is a new home today has to have a minimum of a 100 amp. service while an existing older home may have a 60 amp service, a better home or one that costs more will probably have a 200 amp. service with a 40 circuit panel.
There are many factors that determine how much it will cost you to add a panel mostly how difficult it is to get from the main panel to the new sub panel location the amount of material choice of panel (Brand) permits, inspections etc.
There's no easy answer.
Karloff
Member
There's nothing easy about a $138.00 jump in your electric bill I'd be willing to bet that's due to the HPS it all sounds great till you concider thats 400 watts per hour 12 hours a day times whatever you pay per killowat hour that comes to almost 5 kw a day and I've heard alot of people use them through the entire grow because of how deep the light saturation is and others use MH at 400 watts times 16 hours a day for vegitative growth that's another 6.5 kw each and every day so CFL's start to sound better all the time. There's a book i just read from a guy by the name of See More Buds it's called Marijuana Buds For Less it's on Amazon for around $13.00 plus S+H it's a quick read.
I don't mind saying I'm a cheap bastard and I try to save a buck where I can according to him you can grow 8 oz. of bud for less than a hundred dollars, I don't know if it's true but maybe worth a look.
AquafinaOrbit
Well-Known Member
CFLs use just as much wattage per lumens as HPS and MH and infact use more. So for a comparable grow lumens wise you would pay more to run CFLs then an HID. Saying CFLs are cheaper in that regard is about the same as saying incandescent light is cheaper then a CFL. (Not as extreme of course) Also even in alaska a 400Watt 12/12 cycle would not pull 138$ in a month. That 138$ is probably his entire bill or he has AC going. (12/12 in NC at 10cents a kilowatt hour (Its rated lower but after taxes) is about 25 bucks using a 600 watt)