Ok, so my grow area has only one source of electricity (one outlet/one run of wire), on a 20 amp circut breaker (not in the room, nowhere near actually). I am wondering how much I can actually plug into this one circut? I have seen some grow rooms with one outlet and a powerstrip providing the juice for everything, but I don't see that as being safe (fire wise, and tripping the breaker wise and casting cold and darkness on the plants). For lighting I was planning 1 1,000 watt HPS or possibly 2 600 watters, and most likely some 4' T5's for the mothers/vegging. On top of all that i would need electricity for the fans, heating, and other misc items. So is a grow with these lighting options fesable on one 20 amp breaker?
I have 2 600watt lights and 2 (8 bank) t5 set ups plugged into a power strip in one socket and i haven't had a fire, trip or any kind of porblems yet.
You might want to check out industrial cords still, to me that just don't sound safe. If you ever did have a fire your crop would smoke you out. Sounds cool but it ain't. Small investment for a little extra safety.
2000 watts of power would be TOP for that. Theoretically, you could go up to 2400 watts, but that's pushing it To figure out the watt rating of your outlet, do the following math. 120v line x 20 amps= 2400 watts. Wattage is equal to voltage x amperage. However, I doubt your grow area is the only thing on that circuit, so I'd be careful... Whatever you do make sure you use heavy duty cords. When shopping for cords, you'll see the rating on them for voltage and amerage they can . Using the above formula, figure out how much power you will drawing and read the labels on any cord to make sure it can handle the voltage and amperage. More power through a cord than it can handle = fire hazard. Get the construction extension cord that are rated at like 120/40 and splice them into junction boxes like you are wiring a house, or get a GOOD power strip. Either way, you got some knowledge. Peace Bro and good luck!
Thanks for the info man. By cord are you talking about the actual electrical wiring? The electrical that is wired to the area is new, and on the outside of the walls, along with the junction boxes. So just check the rating on that? The grow area is in a shed attached to a seprate garage, which has its own breaker of 20amps. The only electrical being used is a light bulb or two inside of the entire garage/shed area. Sounds like I should be fine as long as i obtain the proper extension cords and/or power strip. Thanks again guys
actually the wire installed in the outlet is just fine. I'm sure its plenty beefy enough, especially if it is new. I was talking about extension cords. I rigged three vanity fixtures together for a CFL grow. I'm getting 468 true watts out of 18 6500k CFL's. I wired them together by running all the wiring from the lights into a junction attached to the fixture, then cut the female end off of an extension cord and ran it into that junction box as the power supply. I like a clean setup. Works great! Sorry, I shoulda been more clear when I started takling about junction boxes and stuff that I meant extension cords and power strip power ratings not the wiring used inside the walls and stuff. Ya you should be golden dude. As you mentioned, it might not be a bad idea to check the power supply to that shed, but like I said if its new, Its prolly just fine. Hell. You might find that that power line going to the shed could handle more than 20 amps! I doubt it, but hey, we can dream can't we? lol. Just do your math, read the labels on anything you buy to make sure it can handle the load safly, and make you connections neat and orderly, and you should have nothing to worry about. GL!!
Get a GFI plug (assuming the circuit you're gonna use is grounded. It'll trip if you have a short. I recommend using DC fans in anything you can. Not the cheapo $3.50 from newegg one, some good server grade (even better if you can scavenge them from a server) fans that go 70+ CFM in a 92mm version, or higher in a 120mm fan. I'm currently using these types, 4 total, 1 for closet intake, 1 for exhausting each mother and veg chambers, and 1 in-line (DIY) helping the light duct. I then exhaust the whole closet with the 465 CFM blower and I have one of the home depot special 6" duct fans (low price and power) also on the light. I like the D/C stuff because it's easy to wire and run off of the typical electronic device wall-wart type power supplies and it won't kill you if you make a mistake with it. It's also going to draw alot less power than a few of those 6" in-line CAN fans, as a downside they aren't as quiet as one would think.
Thanks a million guys. I think everything will be fine now, and I don't have to worry soo much. Heavy duty wiring/powerstrips it is. I will be sure to post my set-up when complete.