Can I run a 400 Watt HPS through a 12 gauge power cord?

Hey guys, I recently just bought a 400 watt hps, and I'm planning to start a grow in my closet. Although there are no outlets in my closet, so can I run a 12 guage power cord from my bedrooms outlet, into the closet. I plan on running the 400 watt hps, and probably a 200 watt fan from the power cord. Would it be safe?

This is a 12 guage power cord-

Depends how far your unning it, i believe a 12 gauge is good to 20 amps. But i wouldnt even get close to that, but if your just runing a 400w ballast and a fan you should be ok.

the 400 watt hps draws around 450 watt @120 it will pull ab out 4-5 amps...

Okay so I should be safe, oh and the cord that is running out of the hps is 2 pronged. Will it be grounded if I plug it into the extension cord?

I have a 400w HPS a fan a water pump and air pump and a heater and a water heater on the same circut.

You should have a 3 prong, needs to grounded. for saftey reasons, if you know what i mean.

the hps doesnt have a threeprong, am i screwed?

The third prong is just the ground its a safety precaution its not necessary just there for safety reasons I don't use mine.

Its not a must, but i have all my stuff grounded completely. If it doesnt have the 3rd prong, it would have to be rewired with the proper grounded lug to the case of the ballast. If your not confertable with doing this, then dont. Just use it as is, but just dont overload the circuit. Wiring is not to be played with, this is very serious stuff.

please. PLEASE. make sure your ballasts are grounded. those things suck up a LOT of juice when they are activated (for a short time). but, especcially with the HPS ignition circuit, PLEASE ground all your ballast properly. It is VERY simple to do. if you need any help just ask. I do NOT want to see someones house burning down because they did not know how to run their electrical system properly. if you have a question ask me please.

Allright, how do I ground my ballast?

What ballast do you have? Model # ?

BobMarlay said:

the hps doesnt have a threeprong, am i screwed?

Click to expand...

you are fine lol here is the real deal, there are three prongs 1st prong is a hot of course carrying current to your light 2nd prong is a neutral essentially carrying back overages in power (allot like a ground actually almost identical) the 3rd of course is a ground, now all neutrals,grounds,hots etc etc....go back to your house panel now the grounds tie to the ground bar the neutrals to the neutral bar then they are bonded together by a neutral bond. now im no electrician (actually i am lol) but i can tell you the most important ground is going to be the neutral as it carries the overages produced by the actual ballast back to the panel now the ground is attached to the metal housing around it for fail safe (and i dont mean little overages im talking big ones) grounds are more for GFI (ground fault interrupter) protected sockets usually found in bathrooms, garage's, kitchens, or around any sink or water source in your home. now i doubt the socket you are plugging it into is GFI protected anyway so if you DO use a ground doubt it will save you or any of your equipment if something unfortunate was to happen like dropping your ballast in the bathtub cause im sure you got one of those in your room too hahaha.