Your Resident Electrician for all your electrical questions!

[Young Frankenstein]

After 25 years experiance on the field and 15 years at the office, as an electrican I think I can answer most of your questions.

Thanks to my fellow electricians for helping answering your question's.
And the team is:

Myself and
anemonekeeper

[pgr11]

Cool of you to offer your help. Wonder your thoughts on this. When ever we would set up an outlet on a landscape job that was outside we put it in an outdoor waterproof box with the flip lid. So when I set up my tank I put one over my outlets in the house in the event water got spilled behind the tank the outlets would be protected. Do you see any issue with this?

[cdness]

So my tank is nearly overloading my living room circuit so I'd like to add two additional 20 amp lines to the wall behind the tank. It would be 2 breakers with two outlets on each run. It will need to go up to the attick and back down the wall.

So what materials should I use for running the wire?
Does it need to be in conduit if it is in the attick?
Do I need to have the work inspected before hooking to the breaker box?

Thanks so much for offering your assistance. There are many diyers who like getting expert advice before doing a job

[Young Frankenstein]

Cool of you to offer your help. Wonder your thoughts on this. When ever we would set up an outlet on a landscape job that was outside we put it in an outdoor waterproof box with the flip lid. So when I set up my tank I put one over my outlets in the house in the event water got spilled behind the tank the outlets would be protected. Do you see any issue with this?

It would be safer with the outdoor "Buble cover" preventing salt water thets very conductive from entering the receptacle. Usually the outdoor receptacles are GFI's Ground Fault, sensing current changes between neutrals and hot wires, preventing electrocution.

[Young Frankenstein]

So my tank is nearly overloading my living room circuit so I'd like to add two additional 20 amp lines to the wall behind the tank. It would be 2 breakers with two outlets on each run. It will need to go up to the attick and back down the wall.

So what materials should I use for running the wire?
Does it need to be in conduit if it is in the attick?
Do I need to have the work inspected before hooking to the breaker box?

Thanks so much for offering your assistance. There are many diyers who like getting expert advice before doing a job

Pipe EMT for Electrical Metalic Tubing, is best, MC "Metal Clad cable" is secongand last is ROMEX. I would run separate neutrals and ground, therefore you need a total of 6 wires if you run EMT, if you rum MC or ROMEX run 2x12/2. Some counties allow you to do electrical work, most require a lisenced electrician to either file or do the work, as always I would advice to use caution because electricity can be deadly.

[pgr11]

It would be safer with the outdoor "Buble cover" preventing salt water thets very conductive from entering the receptacle. Usually the outdoor receptacles are GFI's Ground Fault, sensing current changes between neutrals and hot wires, preventing electrocution.

Thats what i meant to say was the bubble covers

[Young Frankenstein]

[VegasRick]

So my tank is nearly overloading my living room circuit so I'd like to add two additional 20 amp lines to the wall behind the tank. It would be 2 breakers with two outlets on each run. It will need to go up to the attick and back down the wall.

So what materials should I use for running the wire?
Does it need to be in conduit if it is in the attick?
Do I need to have the work inspected before hooking to the breaker box?

Thanks so much for offering your assistance. There are many diyers who like getting expert advice before doing a job

Do you have empty breaker slots in you panel? I dentify the brand of panel and buy breakers that work in it.
Most of the places I have lived allow home owners to do their own work, but you might want to check with someone local who is familiar with the local building codes.
Romex should be fine and it doesn't need to be in conduit in the attic. Separate runs of 3 wire 12 gauge should do the trick for 20 amp circuits 14 guage for 15 amp circuits. Make the first outlet on each run a gfci outlet and follow the directions to make all outlets behind them protected
Generally pulling wire into a panel should be left to a professional, the buss or wire coming from the meter to the main breaker stays hot with the main breaker in the off position

[Reef Breeders]

Do you have empty breaker slots in you panel? I dentify the brand of panel and buy breakers that work in it.
Most of the places I have lived allow home owners to do their own work, but you might want to check with someone local who is familiar with the local building codes.
Romex should be fine and it doesn't need to be in conduit in the attic. Separate runs of 3 wire 12 gauge should do the trick for 20 amp circuits 14 guage for 15 amp circuits. Make the first outlet on each run a gfci outlet and follow the directions to make all outlets behind them protected
Generally pulling wire into a panel should be left to a professional, the buss or wire coming from the meter to the main breaker stays hot with the main breaker in the off position

+1, if you do not know what you are doing, electrical is not a DIY project to try. If you have your hand touching the circuit panel, and your other hand touches a hot wire, or worse, the wire coming from the meter, you are in trouble for sure. Some older houses will have the fuse before the panel, in that case your best bet would be to turn everything off, or just hire an electrician and don't risk it.

[steamer51]

Here is one I posted a page back, let me know what you think.

"Electrical help please

I have a bunch of 24" normal output bulbs at 17 or 18 watts like would be used in a freshwater hood. I have read about overdriving bulbs by wiring the ballasts together on normal output 40 watt shop lights (two fixtures become one at twice the wattage) as long as they have the right kind of ballasts. I have some new 48" shop lights (with the correct ballasts) that are normal output at 40 watts. If I take one apart, move the endcaps together to 24" to fit the bulbs would 40 watts going into a bulb made for 17 or 18 fire the bulbs or burn my house down?

I also have a couple of high output 24" bulbs that are T5 not T8 (the shop lights take T8 or T12) at 24 watts. If I changed the end caps to T5 and moved them together to fit 24" would the bulbs fire or would it be a hazard? I also have some 48" Coralife fixtures that are T5 normal output (28 watts not 54 watts HO). If I shortened them to 24" would 28 watts normal output ballasts fire bulbs requiring 24 watts HO? Just trying to use bulbs won at frag swaps that I couldn't win the fixtures for without buying new fixtures. Thanks."

[Young Frankenstein]

I have never heard wiring 2ballasts for one bulb to overdrive it, to me it sounds more like a fire hazard. You could with a 24 watt ballast most of the times feeda 24 watt T5, T8 or T12, the new electronic ballasts are more flexible and would allow you to run diffrent wattages.

[Young Frankenstein]

People, dont forget in small counties, you can wire yourseld and call for inspection.

[Young Frankenstein]

Any questions ?

[revhtree]

Yes where have you been since 2008? LOL!

I am going to sticky this thread since you are our resident electrician. Any objections?

[Young Frankenstein]

Yes where have you been since 2008? LOL!

I am going to sticky this thread since you are our resident electrician. Any objections?

Not at all, will be glad to help also you will find out there will be others that will help

[jcharrsn]

Ok, i would like to build my own "surge protector" to handle the plugs for my tank. I would like to put switches on each plug so that I can turn them on and off at my own discretion. I was thinking about doing two metal boxes one for switches and one for outlets and connecting them together. I am thinking 12 outlets and switches should do the trick.

What type of wire would you suggest for the wiring?

Where should I get the metal boxes that would accomodate what I need?

Is there a way to add surge protection to this and where can I buy it?

Is there a way to put a GFCI somewhere in the design of the box?

[Young Frankenstein]

Ok, i would like to build my own "surge protector" to handle the plugs for my tank. I would like to put switches on each plug so that I can turn them on and off at my own discretion. I was thinking about doing two metal boxes one for switches and one for outlets and connecting them together. I am thinking 12 outlets and switches should do the trick.

What type of wire would you suggest for the wiring?

Where should I get the metal boxes that would accomodate what I need?

Is there a way to add surge protection to this and where can I buy it?

Is there a way to put a GFCI somewhere in the design of the box?

1) For the main circuit feeding power #12 THHN and for the branch control wiring #14THHN, wire.
2) Boxes are sold at every electrical supply house and HD, you can also make one just like I did. After numbering and coloring use the HD epoxy (Super Glaze) to make everything shiny.
3) Surge protectors are also sold at HD and they will cover the entire house, you can also get a surge suppressor circuit breaker or GFI breaker.
4) I do have some GFI protection, I know it doesn’t sound good. I don’t have any GFI Feeding the main circulation pump. There is allot of nuisance fault triggering.
5) I get my supplies cheap here. Maybe they will sell to you also, switches for about 0.50 to 1.00 (15A) http://www.electricasbc.com/
6) And last here is some photos of my computerized controller.

Checks the following
1) Amperage of main motor
2) Temperature
3) Turn heat
4) Turn on cooling
5) Halides
6) Actinic
7) Dosing pumps
8) Cleaning skimmer pump
9) Even turns on water for my plants and orchids

A custom controller is just that……….no one makes it exactly the way you need it J

[Young Frankenstein]

[Young Frankenstein]

Here are some photos of the PLC I am using, hope I gave you some ideas, let me know if you need any help with the design, considering you can do electrical work and be safe !!!!

[jcharrsn]

That is pretty awesome. I am thinking more simple for my first try. Do you have all your equipment hard wired to the controller or is it plugged in to an outlet?