A Bored Electrician to Answer Your Questions
- Thread starter IAm5toned
- Start date
So i have the seemore buds book and he recommends cutting an extension cord at attaching it to a light fixture. Is this a stupid idea?
And i also have an extension cord with a socket attached. If i cut it in half to get it though a hole a a board and thn splice it back together just using electrical tape, is that a stupid idea? If it is, how can i make it safe?
And i also have an extension cord with a socket attached. If i cut it in half to get it though a hole a a board and thn splice it back together just using electrical tape, is that a stupid idea? If it is, how can i make it safe?
IAm5toned
Well-Known Member
yes that is a stupid idea (using electrical tape to splice it back together)
you need to use wirenuts, tan ones, to be exact. i say tan because wirenuts are color coded by size, the brand doesnt matter. if you dont, the connection will be to loose and it will cause a fire.. so be careful.
as far as actually cutting a cord and using it to feed a light fixture this is a great idea, i do it all the time myself.
HipE
Member
mhmm. just as i figured. looking like i might want to either get a few more cfls or just get a ballast.... thanks a lot though. happy late birthday that i forgot to mention. and again thanks, i will for surely be back to this thread for some more electrical wisdom.
yes that is a stupid idea (using electrical tape to splice it back together)
you need to use wirenuts, tan ones, to be exact. i say tan because wirenuts are color coded by size, the brand doesnt matter. if you dont, the connection will be to loose and it will cause a fire.. so be careful.
as far as actually cutting a cord and using it to feed a light fixture this is a great idea, i do it all the time myself.
Ahh thank you thank you. Should i then wrap electrical tape around the wire nuts or is this unnecessary?
One more thing, i have porcelain light fixtures but i forgot to get the metal bases for it. Is it ok to just screw the fixture to the wood, ,with the wires touching the wood, or is this asking for trouble?
Much appreciated.
IAm5toned
Well-Known Member
as long as the connections are tight, it should be fine, it would be best if you put a layer of electrical tape between the connections on the back of the porcelain socket and the wood. you shouldnt have to tape up wirenuts either, but you can if you want to, ordinarily i dont
IAm5toned
Well-Known Member
absolutely not. not ever. no way
IAm5toned
Well-Known Member
$piceM£rchant
Active Member
hi Im in the uk, dont know alot about wiring but our colours of wires are, http://www.leadsdirect.co.uk/images/technical/uk mains plug wiring.png ere a diagram of our plugs
ive just bought a fan speen controller i need to wire it has 5 places to put wires into (plastic boxes with metal screw on the top)
labelled UZ, U, Z, L and N in that order then to the right it has another box not connected to the main circuit bored with a green and yellow wire coming out, i think this bits for the earth cabel from the plug.
so where do the other wires go? also theres a box labeled 'supply' drawn around all the boxes except for N
ive just bought a fan speen controller i need to wire it has 5 places to put wires into (plastic boxes with metal screw on the top)
labelled UZ, U, Z, L and N in that order then to the right it has another box not connected to the main circuit bored with a green and yellow wire coming out, i think this bits for the earth cabel from the plug.
so where do the other wires go? also theres a box labeled 'supply' drawn around all the boxes except for N
IAm5toned
Well-Known Member
im familiar with the european color code...$piceM£rchant;3639560 said:
but i really need the model number of the switch your using to help you out.
i can tell you the on the supply side of the device, Brown will connect to L, and Blue will connect to N. and Green w/ yellow is the Earth Ground.
Its the UZ,Z,and U terminals im not too sure about it. i have an idea, but without the model number to double check my shitty memory, i dont want to give you bad advice.
so gimme the model number of that switch, and ill draw you a schematic just to make up for the delay in answers...
ps- on reflection, i do seem to remember running across that type of speed controller before, just had to think about it for a second.
sounds like a flakwoods motor speed controller to me
if it IS a flakwoods controller, your motor needs to have a t-stat built into it.... heres a link to the manufacturers connection reccomendations:
http://www.flaktwoods.com/189/7246/1/dbd0ad17-7d16-4902-b17e-dc649b4f528c
$piceM£rchant
Active Member
not sure if its flackwoods, all it says on the front is
WESTMID WMF 5
[021550 0315]
220/240v 50/60hz 1ph 5 AMP
http://img21.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=48386_Electrified3_122_565lo.JPG#
heres a picture of it naked, let me know if u need me to read what any parts of it say, sorry the pictures not too clear
thanks alot for ur help dude
WESTMID WMF 5
[021550 0315]
220/240v 50/60hz 1ph 5 AMP
http://img21.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=48386_Electrified3_122_565lo.JPG#
heres a picture of it naked, let me know if u need me to read what any parts of it say, sorry the pictures not too clear
thanks alot for ur help dude
IAm5toned
Well-Known Member
i would say its a good bet that different manufacturers will use different parts. some will be interchangable, some will not... kinda roll of the dice on that one.
$piceM£rchant
Active Member
thanks buddy ur the shiznit
l8nightblunt
Active Member
I'm hoping you can help me out here, so if you can tell me what you think or the best route to go I'd very much appreciate it . I'm essentially running a 240v line from my dryer. Dryer is one wall away, so I'm going to splice into the 240v line for the dryer, run 12 feet of cable and have a box with two 240v plugs for my lights. The dryer will only be used during the day time while my lights running off of the 240v line will be on at night, and I'll unplug the dryer just-encase, because my girl will probably forget one day and try to dry a load at night and trip the fuse lol. I'm thinking of wiring a relay so I don't have to go out and buy two new 240v timers, * I was running 120v previously and only have one 120v timer*. I'm also going to wire the box for the two 240v outlets *rated at 30amps each* so while I'm doing that Can I run a relay from my new box, with a timer on it so it will turn my power off and on at my predesignated times? Or should I just go pay the $40 bucks and buy two 240v timers and not worry about it? thanks in advance
watercooled@
Active Member
Reading the whole thread, but so far (on posts currently on post #161) these made me realize I was LOL at 5am while everyone in the house was sleeping.
Sending some Karma your way, I'm sure I'll learn some in this thread and may even hit you up with some detailed questions, for now a quick one:
I plan on running 3/0 wire to a sub panel. I plan on using wire taps (wearing big ass rubber gloves and rubber boots, standing on plywood with a rubber pad!) and clamping into my main panel feed lines (looks like 200A service)
My local hardware store carries copper as well as aluminum 3/0 and the aluminum is much cheaper yet still rated 3/0. I will be doing an approx 50ft run and looks like equipment in this room be pulling 90-100 amps (most of it 240v).
Any reason I would dish out twice the $ for copper?
I was planning on running the two 110's into the sub box and then running several grounds across to the grounds in the main panel, will this work ro should I run a dedicated grounding rod?
Cheers!
IAm5toned
Well-Known Member
lol, ok, there are lots of things to consider here:
1) you didnt mention a neutral anywhere. you should have 2 Ungrounded Conductors (hot wires, phase a (blk) and phase b(red)) 1 Grounded Conductor (neutral, or 'white' wire) 1 Equipment Grounding Conductor.(the ground, green or bare wire)so 4 wires for a 240v subpanel... the neutral needs to be the same size as the two 110v feeders, which will be 4/0 (i'll explain that later, keep reading) the ground, however can be #6 Cu, or #4 Al. so you save a penny there, because you will need to run a ground:
2) if your sub panel is in a seperate free standing structure like a shed or unattatched garage, then it needs it's own ground rod. codes require that you should also bond (connect)the ground of the sub-panel to the ground of the main panel. again, the wire size for this connection is #6Cu, or #4Al. if you do not have space in your main panel's ground bar for such a large wire, you can bolt a grounding lug to the inside of the main panel. note that i said bolt, and not screw... if the sub panel is simply located somewhere else in the same builiding as the main, than an additional ground rod is not required. however tying the 2 grounds together (between the main and the sub) is something you have to do.
3) the neutral bar in the sub panel shall not be bonded to the can enclosure... this bonding screw is bright green in color, and should be removed if it comes installed in the panel's neutral bar, or discarded/set aside if it comes loose inside the panel.. this is important, do not overlook it.
4) your subpanel needs to have a 100amp main breaker. no if's ands or buts, its a must have. as your using taps, than you are required to have the ability to disconnect electrical power from the panel, at the panel.
5) and speaking of taps, be sure your taps are rated for Cu to Al terminations. this means your tap must be rated for terminations of 2 different types of metal. this is important, as dissimilair metals in physical contact with each other that are conducting electricity create oxidation,electrolysis, and harmonics. the oxidation is rust, electrolysis is the transfer of molecules of one metal to another, and the harmonics are minute vibrations that will loosen the aluminum wire over time. make sure you use NoALox Anti Oxidation Compound on all your aluminum wire termination. apply the shit liberally, filll up the lug with it.... and make sure the connections are tight. then recheck them again in 24 hours. the rechecking the connection are a crucial step, as aluminum will compact inside the lug and may require retightening immediatly after installation and annually thereafter.... seriously.
6) 90-100 amps is alot to add to an existing 200 amp service. i hope your service drop can accomodate the additional load with no problems.
7) I also hope that your taps are of the insulated type, designed to pierce the insulation of the live wire your tapping into, and not the uninsulated type that requires you to strip the cable you are tying into. be careful, and do not let any part of you or a tool you are holding become grounded when installing the taps. its also a good idea to use rubberized splice tape to cover the tap when your done....
8 )if your taps are outside, remember to make 'drip loops' in the cable so that water will not run down the cable and into the tap... this is important.
9) if the aluminum wire your going to be adding is going to be direct burial cable, or otherwise buried underground, i would suggest not doing it, and paying the extra cash for copper wire. even tho aluminum wire/ range cable is sold as direct burial wire, it is simply not suited for the job, it will last maybe 12-15 years max, then it will burn in half somewhere along a point underground. ive made alot of money on side jobs replacing the wire runs to sheds and garages because they were originally done in aluminum direct burial wire.
10) remember that because you are using taps, and aluminum wire, the wire must be rated as the same size of the wire your tapping into. if you have a 200amp service, than your aluminum wire should be rated for 200 amps, even though you are only pulling 100. this is for safety reasons.... but where im going with this is 3/0 aluminum is not rated for 200 amps... you would need 4/0. using anything smaller will get you in trouble.
11)MOST IMPORTANTLY!- make for damn sure your taps are on the CORRECT side of the power meter. nothing will get you busted quicker than ripping off the power company. it will not take them long at all to find you, and meter readers are trained to spot taps. seriously. you hear about the power companies calling the cops on suspected growers? this is exactly why they do it. the utility company cant tell what you have plugged in your house, but stealing from them is a felony, and a federal offense. and since an illegal electrical tap will get you in trouble with building codes, when the cops show up they will typically bring an electrical inspector or a fire marshall with them when they serve the warrant for stealing the power, and then the inspector/marshall will be shown the tap, and he will follow it directly to your grow. assets seized....
ever hear about the Tennessee Grow Cave bust? A guy spent an estimated 6 million building a concealed commercial scale operation in a cave with a house built over the top of it. the place had hidden blast/bullet proof doors, booby traps, biological warfare grade air filtration systems, backup generators, multiple concealed enrences and escape hatches, really the whole nine yards. Except he didnt want to pay the electric company an additional 10k for the right size transformer to service all his equipment. so he built it all, and then tapped into the power companies shit illegal. 18 months it took them to find him, and it only took that long because he tapped into the power companies lines underground.... and they still found it!just a few things to consider