Experienced Electrician! Here to Answer Any and All Growroom Electrical Questions

[eDude]

Sounds stupid but double, treble, check everything. All plugs are all the way in, the ballast isn't set to run at 240V when it should be at 120V. Bulb is all they way in the socket.

If you had both caps (new and old) and you can tell that one is much different, then you might have had a bad cap. So, that's one thing. The igniter, I've done a million of those.. are you sure you didn't put the bad one back in the ballast.. it happens.. I take mine out and tie the wires into a knot so I don't get them mixed up.. Also, it might be too late but are you sure you wired the igniter in correctly. There are three connections that have to be correct and one is to two wires if I remember correctly. When I do igniter's, I do one wire at a time. Disconnect from x1 then connect to x1 on the good one. Then move on to the next. If you take them all off at once you run the risk of mixing them up cause sometimes they are not all labeled.. It's a mess but if you take a good hard look at it and I'll see if I can't find you a diagram you might be able to find something..

Also, it doesn't stink does it? If the ballast smells really really bad then it's done.. that's what happens when the main coil fries. Check that out and I'll look for a diagram for you.

 

[wyteboi]

your ballast is bad , bigbud.

did you have the MH runnin in it for a long time with no probs ?

does the ballast have a switch to go from MH to HPS ? if so make sure its set to hps. with a HPS ballast you dont need no conversions. a regular MH will fire an run just fine.

even if you did put a conversion hps in there , that wouldnt hurt your shit, and the MH would still work fine.

send it back to them .... the whole thang.






thanks edude for helpin !







soil

 

[eDude]

No, worries, I think he has a regular HPS ballast and the MH was a conversion bulb and the HPS is a standard HPS. It's always confusing with convertible ballast and convertible bulbs..

Just so I'm clear with everyone, I'm not an electrician but I do have a degree in electronics and have worked with core-n-coil ballast for years. so, let me know if I get something wrong.

I agree, you should talk to them again. You didn't sign up for this bull crap, and like I said, it was a little much of them to ask you to fix your ballast. I looked at there site. Not a bad company, I guess, but they look like they like to keep customers happy. At least that's what they say in the 'feedback' section.

You've gone above and beyond to try to make this work. They need to step up.

 

[GunRunner]

I have a question, I don't know if it has been asked already but the search function didn't yield much, so here it goes:

I get a lot of unscheduled power outages (that sometimes last for a few hours) where I live and I need to find a way to compensate for that.
One idea I have is using a UPS-like system with a car battery.

Can I run 3 x 23W CFLs along with 2 PC case fans and a small aquarium air pump on a car battery?
What are the things I need to know/take into consideration?
How to get all my equipment to switch to backup power automatically once the grid goes down?
Also is there a way to recharge the car battery off the main grid when power is back on?
How long can I expect the battery to power up the equipment before it needs to be recharged?

Many thanks

 

[wyteboi]

I have a question, I don't know if it has been asked already but the search function didn't yield much, so here it goes:

I get a lot of unscheduled power outages (that sometimes last for a few hours) where I live and I need to find a way to compensate for that.
One idea I have is using a UPS-like system with a car battery.

Can I run 3 x 23W CFLs along with 2 PC case fans and a small aquarium air pump on a car battery?
What are the things I need to know/take into consideration?
How to get all my equipment to switch to backup power automatically once the grid goes down?
Also is there a way to recharge the car battery off the main grid when power is back on?
How long can I expect the battery to power up the equipment before it needs to be recharged?

Many thanks

you would need to google homemade battery back up , an you'll find what your lookin for. you dont have many watts , so this is very doable an yes you could recharge your battery when your grid is back up.







soil

 

[cheeze me]

I have a question, I don't know if it has been asked already but the search function didn't yield much, so here it goes:

I get a lot of unscheduled power outages (that sometimes last for a few hours) where I live and I need to find a way to compensate for that.
One idea I have is using a UPS-like system with a car battery.

Can I run 3 x 23W CFLs along with 2 PC case fans and a small aquarium air pump on a car battery?
What are the things I need to know/take into consideration?
How to get all my equipment to switch to backup power automatically once the grid goes down?
Also is there a way to recharge the car battery off the main grid when power is back on?
How long can I expect the battery to power up the equipment before it needs to be recharged?

Many thanks

Hi yes that will be fine no problem, last run I did we had 6 hours of power outages daily and my 1000w ups system did the trick very nicely, powered around 200-250watts of cfl's and a fan for an hour to two hours at a time.

Pm me if you need specific information.

This brings me to a question of my own, what do I need to do to get an hps to work with a ups system? just buy a beefy 2kv ups? Or is there something special I need to buy/do?

 

[BigBudGrower]

Thanks for all your help, Im sending the ballast back. I would have to say that htgsupply.com is really really good about keeping customers happy. They're gonna send me a new one as long as i give them a $50 deposit until i send back the old one. I too think the whole ballast is just shot. Hey i got one more question for ya'll. What does it mean when the arc tube in my MH conversion bulb turns black around the ends? Like i said earlier, it started turning black after i replace the ignitor and capacitor, but then the whole system shutoff again.

your ballast is bad , bigbud.

did you have the MH runnin in it for a long time with no probs ?

does the ballast have a switch to go from MH to HPS ? if so make sure its set to hps. with a HPS ballast you dont need no conversions. a regular MH will fire an run just fine.

even if you did put a conversion hps in there , that wouldnt hurt your shit, and the MH would still work fine.

send it back to them .... the whole thang.






thanks edude for helpin !







soil

 

[GunRunner]

Thanks for the help fellas

All in all my system will be using less than 100 watts and wont need to run for more than 2 hours at a time. And then the battery will have about 12 hours to recharge on the grid again.

So what parts am I looking at here?

I see I need an inverter to convert AC to DC and a Battery charger, but I am clueless as to what ratings to look for, so if anyone can shed some light on what is a good setup for 100 watts for two hours etc, I would be very grateful

 

[wyteboi]

This brings me to a question of my own, what do I need to do to get an hps to work with a ups system? just buy a beefy 2kv ups? Or is there something special I need to buy/do?

nothin special , just a "beefy ups" , thats all , one that can run more then 1000 watts.







soil

 

[wyteboi]

Hey i got one more question for ya'll. What does it mean when the arc tube in my MH conversion bulb turns black around the ends? Like i said earlier, it started turning black after i replace the ignitor and capacitor, but then the whole system shutoff again.

they all start doing that after awhile, its not a big deal except the fact that yours is still new an you think the ballast is what caused it. if it dont seem right then see if they will send you another bulb too.







soil

 

[basehaze1]

Hi,

Moving my 1 room grow op to new house I bought. Dedicating 2 rooms in basement at 200 (sq feet) each. I have my 110 pretty much set but moving into the 220 area I am trying to take it slow. I'm running 4 - 1000 watt ballasts. (2 are digital and 2 are magnetic)

I constructed the rooms in a way to where I will have all of my ballasts outside of the grow areas in there own closet. Closet is large and vented with 2 -squirrel fans to assist cooling. My basement is 1450 (sq feet) My breaker panel has a 2pull 30 amp and a 2-pull 40 amp from a preexisting range and dryer that were electric. I have removed the old wire from both breakers. I purchased 100 feet of 10-3 orange wire and several 220 single outlets with hardware mounting (outlets are 15 amp) From the breaker box to the closet for ballasts would need to run 56 feet of the 10-3 wire.

My questions: Which breaker should I run this on? Was also told maybe to put a 2pull 20 amp breaker in place. The outlets I have chosen at 15 amp are they ok or need changed to match whatever breaker I use. Any advise here is welcome and thanks in advance!

On the side here for readers. When it comes to ducting air. Has anyone ever tried to assist heating of the home from the heat of the lights? My ducting runs both the heat and cold air in very good areas above my rooms. I also have 4 very large filters. Think its possible to duct the heat to the existing ducts and push it thru the house?

Regards,

 

[mrmadcow]

Thanks for the help fellas

All in all my system will be using less than 100 watts and wont need to run for more than 2 hours at a time. And then the battery will have about 12 hours to recharge on the grid again.

So what parts am I looking at here?

why not just buy a pc UPS? something like this
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/APC+-+550VA+Battery+Back-Up+System+-+Black/9307788.p?id=1218081368684&skuId=9307788&st=ups&cp=1&lp=3
most ups use a 12 volt battery so you could swap it out w/ a car battery for longer run time but if the car battery is fully discharged,it could burn out the UPS trying to rechage it. use a car charger to make sure it is fully charged first.

 

[mike91sr]

Looking at running 3000w on a single 15a circuit, , trying to see if I can convert to 220v to allow this or if I have to add a circuit?

 

[711grower]

i have a simple question and i apologize if this has already been discussed. i have a single 15 amp dedicated wall plug in my living room. would it be ok to run a heavy duty extention cord through the ceilng to the attic then down into my grow room to run a few accessories. thanks

 

[wyteboi]

Hi,My questions: Which breaker should I run this on? Was also told maybe to put a 2pull 20 amp breaker in place. The outlets I have chosen at 15 amp are they ok or need changed to match whatever breaker I use. Any advise here is welcome and thanks in advance!

On the side here for readers. When it comes to ducting air. Has anyone ever tried to assist heating of the home from the heat of the lights? My ducting runs both the heat and cold air in very good areas above my rooms. I also have 4 very large filters. Think its possible to duct the heat to the existing ducts and push it thru the house?

Regards,

if you went by code an safety , you would need the breaker to not be bigger then the outlets.

are all your ballast wired for 220v ?

what all will be runnin off the 10/3 ?

i would say just use a double pole 20 for the box but you will be usin more then 15 amps on that wire , so your gonna need to use the existing 30 ...... an then maybe use a separate single 15 for each light or something like that. (off the 10/3 (30amp)


As far as using your lights for house heat , yes i currently do that right now. that probably = 20% or more of my house heat.

i just run the clean hot air right into the basement an it rises. it also helps me to know when my carbon needs replaced.

if you actually took the time to put a couple vents in the floor it would work even better.



soil

 

[wyteboi]

Looking at running 3000w on a single 15a circuit, , trying to see if I can convert to 220v to allow this or if I have to add a circuit?

even if you could the circuit would be completely maxed out.

if your ballast have the adapter inside to switch to 220 with just a simple cord then yes you can run them at 220, but if they are regular multi-tap ballast then i have found no way possible to get 220 out of a single phase panel.
(the ballast needs a 220 leg an a neutral an there is no such thing as a 220 leg in single phase setup. (you have 2 - 110 legs , but not one single 220)







soil

 

[wyteboi]

i have a simple question and i apologize if this has already been discussed. i have a single 15 amp dedicated wall plug in my living room. would it be ok to run a heavy duty extention cord through the ceilng to the attic then down into my grow room to run a few accessories. thanks

yes as long as your cord is heavy duty an is rated for 15 amps or more. since it will be in the attic , then make sure there are no tears in the coating of the wire.






soil

 

[711grower]

thank you.

 

[NFTfan]

Please remember that there will be UK growers on here asking about electrical issues.........I know the theory is the same, but there will be differences based on our 230v system.....I am also a sparky, nice thread though dude!

 

[Rotweiller]

Hello

I need to put a fan into my New grow tent and all i have at the moment is a "Domus model T1" Extractor fan (the type you have on a Bathroom/Kitchen Wall). http://uk.farnell.com/domus/t1/fan-w...0mm/dp/1265795
What I’d like to know is can i wire it up to a Normal UK 230V 3 Pin Plug and use it as a normal fan? or is it the type of fan that Has to be wired up to a Light switch first? Here is a Photo of the Fan showing the connections available: Earth on the left, Neutral in the centre and SL on the right. If it can be used Should i just use 2 core cable? Live/Neutral into Live/Neutral connections? The "SL" connection is (I'm Guessing) Switch Live for the built in Timer and don't think i would be using it? Or should i Bridge the SL to Live and wire up Live and Neutral as normal? Please Help My Temp's are very high 92f and need sorting out.
Many Thanks if you can help

Forgot to ask. What size Fuse should i use ? 3AMP, 5AMP or 13AMP? The fan is rated 50Hz 15Watt.