Grow light question (in regards to the wires in the walls)

sdf

sdf

Well-Known Member
ok so I'm trying to figure out what watt light to use for my closet grow. Me and my girl rent a bedroom in a house with roommates and we each got a huge closet so I'm using mine to grow. Well today I went up in the attic to put some boxes up there and I noticed some DIY wiring up there. It looked ok (as in not an immediate danger) but I looked on the cables running around up there and most of them said 600w max. I know I have a 20 (maybe 30 I'll double check) amp breaker but I was wanting to throw either dual 600s or a 1k light in my closet but now I dont know.
My questions are:
1. is there a way to check the wire gauge on the outlet in the wall without cutting a hole in the wall?
2.Would it be 600w max for the entire room or just each outlet?
3.If I ran a 1k at 50%, would it be ok or would the ballast still draw more than 600w?

Thank you for the help and I will +rep
 
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denris

Well-Known Member
Are you sure it didn't say 600 volts max? It means the insulation will protect up to 600 volts not that it is used at that high a voltage. Your questions suggest you don't know enough to mess with electricity And as a Fireman and a former electrician I hope you get someone to help you Good Luck Denris
 
sdf

sdf

Well-Known Member
i know i dont know enough to mess with it, hence why im asking. I'm pretty sure it said 600 watts but I can double check tomorrow.
 
sdf

sdf

Well-Known Member
nope its 600V thanks. Im about to upload some pics of the wiring. Can someone decipher the gauge of the wire for me?
 
lushgreen

lushgreen

Active Member
Plug something like a fan heater, that pulls more watts than any lights you plan to run, into the power outlet and turn it on.
If the breaker / fuse blows, you have your answer.
 
steelheadguy

steelheadguy

Member
It most likely says 600v. Hopefully if the wiring is correct, it will be suitable for whichever size breaker is on the circuit.

At 20 amps on 120v you could use a 1000w ballast. watts/volts=amps.
 
steelheadguy

steelheadguy

Member
That wire is size 10. Which I think is good for ~35 amps. So it is going to depend on the breaker size how many amps can run through this circuit.
 
D

denris

Well-Known Member
A cable that big might mean its for 220? 10ga is not usually not used for outlets More like stoves or dryers Why can't you remove the outlet and look at the wire hooked to it Denris
 
sdf

sdf

Well-Known Member
i just checked and yea that wire runs to the dryer I believe. I will go back in the attic tomorrow, I want to open up the outlet but I dont know what Im looking at, Ill take a picture to show you
 
SixStringStoner

SixStringStoner

New Member
OK, be super careful if you don't know what you're doing. You don't need to take off the wall plate to the outlet, it's a sure bet there's 10/2 common household wiring in there. What you need to do is turn off your breaker and see what else is on the same circuit (see what other outlets turn off). If it's your bathroom or your TV, you may have an issue that means finding another power source or trying different lights. If it's just the bedroom, you should be OK.

Good luck!
 
hermex

hermex

Active Member
If you have an outlet to use then just find out what else is on that circuit and add up how many amps are in use when your lights are in use. With some general construction knowledge- being generally handy that is - and being able to learn new things off of youtube, adding a dedicated outlet is not that hard if you have an open breaker or one that you can free up. It's ghetto, but I've run extension cords from outlets of different breakers when I couldn't run dedicated circuits for the operation.

If you work with power then always make sure things are off and that you are extra careful. Have someone around to spot you that will know what to do if you get jolted. Be safe and invest in a circuit tester if this is something you will ever fiddle with again.

I have a 30 amp breaker feeding four outlets using 12 gauge wire. This is a step up than if you were going to add wiring for outlets or lights in your living room (14 gauge) and probably a step down from what is in your picture if it is feeding a dryer...I'm no electrician though! 12 gauge is what I used for my washer and gas dryer and is commonly used for garages and areas with higher power demands. On my four outlets I run two 600w HPS, a 6" vortex, two oscillating fans, and a duct booster fan for my intake.

I've had operations that blew breakers and some where I couldn't run the AC, dryer, and lights or when the fridge kicked on it'd all go....from then on it's been custom all the way. Good luck! In short, that wire looks sufficient to run your two lights and some accessories, but if you blow breakers you might have to feed your fans or one of the lights off of an outlet that is on another breaker.
 
sdf

sdf

Well-Known Member
I can't add any outlets because I'm renting. I did look at everything plugged up and my current draw is around 12.7amps excluding my tv(couldnt get to it while its on and girl is watching something). The main reason for the high amperage is My internet modem draws 10 amps (I know right) so Im going to see about relocating it. Tomorrow I can test all the outlets and see which ones work and which dont with the breaker off. I was wondering If I put in a bigger breaker could I run more amps or would I still need to watch it because of the wire? How can I tell if I have overloaded a wire if the breaker can handle it but not the wire? Thanks so much you guys
 
D

denris

Well-Known Member
Look back at the modem it can't use 10 amps! You would be a good cand. for led I use 300 watts for lighting total which leaves 1500 watts for fans, on a 20 amp circuit Don't increase the breaker size it is set by the wire size and you could start a fire. Use the lights at night and early morn. when the tv and comp. are off if you work days Denris
 
sdf

sdf

Well-Known Member
If I just didnt run my ps3 while the light was on, would it still draw power or should I unplug it while my light is on?
 
sdf

sdf

Well-Known Member
I found someone near me selling blackstar 240w UV led grow lights, drawing only ~130w and 1a I could use this and either get an additional one later or a 400w
 
hermex

hermex

Active Member
To answer the breaker question...you can tell if you've overloaded the wire but not the breaker because you are standing out on the street tweeting a picture of your house up in flames and the fire department pulling out your grow equipment piece by piece. Breakers are designed to protect wires, it is just a convenience that it protects your electronic equipment.

Luckily, you can just plug everything in and see if you blow a breaker. The PS3 has to be on to be drawing power....side note. stagger your timers so that your light/fan kicks on and then a minute later your 2nd light comes on. Appliances can momentarily draw more when they kick on.

I'd love to experiment with different lighting sources to save power, but do I want to potentially sacrifice a harvest....up to the individual. When I rented I had fan/light and my oscillating fans on one circuit, light/AC on another, and the dehumidifier on another...there were some extension cords involved, it wasn't pretty, and I couldn't necessarily turn on all my living room lights at the same time, but we got through it with only one tripped breaker during a light cycle. Because of the shag carpet and it being behind the door, the hole I drilled to get the living room outlet down to the basement couldn't be seen, I cut and re-assembled the cord so my hole was really small....Your TV probably takes a lot of power if it's a flat screen, moving that to a non-grow related circuit could help you out.
 
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