Is there a way to wire 5 cfls to 1 wire and Plug?

Yes. I got 5 cfl's hooked into one line. Imo its no different then having a light fixture with 5 cfl's running off one cord. just make SURE you use caps on the wires + big enough gauge wire to support the power aka minimum of 12/14 gauge wire + electric tape.

 

Yes, you have 2 options Series or Parallel. Series connections share the same current (Ampere). Parallel connections share the same Voltage (Volts).

Remember Ohms Law I(Ampere) = V(Voltage) / (Z/R) (Impeadance(Resistance).

You can find the ratings on the bulb package/ballast etc. Just do the calculations to make sure you have enough current or voltage.

 

Don't be cheap and tape connections! Especially not to a bulb.

Take a 2x4, mount 4" round electrical boxes to it, with a porcelain lightbulb socket or something similar. Use 14/2 and your wall plug.

Edit: All this tallied up to under $30. I cannot stress this enough - do not just tape live electrical connections!

Wire the wall plug into one the first box. Take one wire from the wall plug(not the green one if its grounded) use the 14/2 romex and wire it to each of the fixtures one electrical connection, it will be a brass screw. Now take the other wire, and wire it to each of the electrical on the other side. Basically your one wire supplies power to each outlet, and one wire returns it. Thats a simple 110v parallel setup.

I will gladly draw you up a diagram and materials list if you simply explain how you want to hang it, how many bulbs, ect. Just do not try some makeshift lighting rig. I don't wanna see a fellow smoker smoke himself...

You do not want to wire your bulbs in series it will dim the lights.

 

If the bulbs are in some sort of approved socket it will be fine. From your original post it sounded like you were attempting to just tape a wire to a bulb and plug it in.

Ceramic light sockets should do just as well as plastic. If what you have works for you no need to change it.

So your setup is up and working? All good?

 

orrrr, run an extension cord to a box where your light switch will be, then cut the end off a power strip, run cut wire to boxed light switch and wire up... ground as you see fit (green ground screw, tie pigtail grounds together to a ground screw, etc...) hopefully you found a longer than normal power strip.... buy some plug-in light sockets, and bulbs....

if you want to go all out... get some clamps or brackets that are U shaped that you can screw intro the back of your box and space wide enough and in enough heights so you can adjust how close/far they are to the plant... unless this is a bigger operation. then i have another solution.... if you need it ill post it

 

please draw the diagram im tryna do the same thing

 

here ya go real rough ms paint diagram...

if you dont went them to dim through out the line, then run each hot wire to a single hot wire connected to the switch. this is called "pig tailing" tryda up the gauge on the wire a bit so it can hold the amount of electricity going through it....

hit me up if you have anymore questions.



oh, and get a metal single gang box if you only plant on running one socket. the ground wire should be ground off inside the box.... anywhere in the box as long as it doesnt hit a terminal... i always wrap the terminals on the plug with electrical tape so they dont touch another wire or ground on something....

 

I'm in the same boat. I've got a PSU from a PC with all the circuitry removed. Now it's just an incoming plug. The colors are different though. black/white/yellow -- I'm assuming that black is still neutral, white is hot and yellow is ground. Is that correct?
I don't understand what the ground does. How is it best used? Can I safely wire it to the PC case itself? The housing which the PSU was in will be discarded to make room for the cupcake. =D
thanks

 

are those splices with the twist nut plastic things in the red?

 

The black is hot, white neutral, green ground. Wire the neutrals together in the bow with a wire nut. The black from the lights goes to one terminal on the switch and the black from your power goes to the other terminal. Ground with green and ground screw if using a metal box.

Pigtailing is getting all the same colored wiring and wirenutting to one loose wire. The extra wire that you used goes to the terminal. Easier to screw one wire to a terminal than 5 haha

 

Got it?

 

so at every "T", there is wire splicing with wire nuts?

 

I dunno what you mean. If you search the city there is a tutorial in the diy section with pics.

But yes. You hard wire through the pvc pipes. And wirenut within haha. No homo..

 

You can get socket attachments that split each light socket into 2 best thing ever for cfls

 

And their are sockets that have just a stright plug no wire. you can put a few on a power strip mabey even two of the split sockets hydromanDWC was talking about. Or a power strip with five indavidual sockets pluged in.