what kind of electrical cord is this? expert needed

jerkin247

Well-Known Member
what kind of electrical cord is the white cord connected to the light apparatus this and where can i get it?
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shit easy to get? this apparatus powers 2 400w lights. one works and the other has but it seems there is a short in the cord. im hoping if i fix it both will work instead of one. any opinions
 
That is romex house cable. Available at any home building supply. 14awg or 12awg. make sure it is 3 wire. Black (Hot), White (Neutral) , Green (Ground).
 
this system may look prehistoric but it actually works. i sold them to someone for a good amount but the white cord seems to short out. im trying to replace it is this gonna be hard to replace if anyone is an electrician?
P5150391.jpg
 
you need more than 14 gauge for 2x400w lights, that's probably why it shorted out in the first place.
2x400w lights = 6.6amps and 14 gauge is only good up to 5.9 amps for continuous power transmission.
I would invest in some new / safer wiring.
 
one thing that is worth thinking about is the safety/efficiency of your equipment. Just looking at that stuff screams evening news. I say get stuff you won't stress about when you are out of the house.
 
you need more than 14 gauge for 2x400w lights, that's probably why it shorted out in the first place.
2x400w lights = 6.6amps and 14 gauge is only good up to 5.9 amps for continuous power transmission.
I would invest in some new / safer wiring.

Pretty sure 14g is rated for 15 amps. 14 g wire should be fine for two 400w lights. Actually, here in Canada its code to load it up to 12 amps, but its rated for 15.
 
I am not sure what that table represents. When I wire a household circut, I use 14g wire and I install it on a 15 amp circut breaker. This is because this is the maximum amount amps the wire is rated for. You should be able to run 800 watts of light on a 15 amp circut.
 
Pretty sure 14g is rated for 15 amps. 14 g wire should be fine for two 400w lights. Actually, here in Canada its code to load it up to 12 amps, but its rated for 15.

thanks for the help ppl. Even though this system works i actually, sold this hunk and 2 bulbs for 275 i was just looking on how to fix it for the ppl that bought it.:hump:
 
I can guarantee you it would not be the supply wire or both lights wouldn't work. first I'd check if one of the wires on the one that doesn't work may be loose in the wire nuts or not properly inserted in the wire nuts enough to actually make contact with the other wires. Just check all connections. Next thing swap ignitors from the one that works to the one that doesn't. Swap bulbs to be sure it's not the bulb. Should all the above fail to make it work you have a blown transformer. Maybe the cap could be bad, but not likely unless it has leaked oil in the box.

Again it is most certainly not the supply wire itself, don't waste your time and money with that idea.
 
ok well one works and one doesnt when he jiggled the wire it came on for a lil so i was guessing it has to be a connection then if it isnt the wire itself
 
oh what I thought was two supply lines is actually the lines to the bulb sockets. Just never seen romex used for that. It's the wrong kind of wire for that purpose because it's not made to be flexible and bent all the time when you move things around romex is only suitable for in wall installed and left alone type stuff.

Should be flexible cables there like extension cord wire etc.

Oh well you'll figure it out, it's something simple.

And someone said it looks like a fire hazard... No, things like this only become a fire hazard when installed wrong near or on flammable materials. There's nothing in a ballast that can catch fire, worst thing they can do is overheat and short out and trip a breaker when PROPERLY installed. No fire there.
 
ok well one works and one doesnt when he jiggled the wire it came on for a lil so i was guessing it has to be a connection then if it isnt the wire itself

There's the prob. Solid wire is not meant to be use like an extension cord. Its for permanent installations where the wire isn't going to be moved.

Get some stranded cord. SWJ or the like
 
i believe 14 is rated for 25A under National Electrical code and this should be fine.... Watts/ voltage = Amps. If ya have 2 400w ballasts this would be total of 800 Watts, and with a ballast factor of .88 (not getting into BF's right now) this gives you roughly 480w each ballast. So 480x2W/120V = 8A. Plenty of room. What make ya think taht it is the white wire. and not the ballast or igniter or even lamp.
 
when it was jiggled it worked for a lil bit and it has some electrical tape on it that may be a sign of shortage. but idk your saying its one of the main cords?
 
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