# The Most Dangerous Grow Room Component



## stumpjumper (Oct 15, 2012)

Electricity.

It can kill you or burn your house down or both.

Please do thorough research when doing any electrical work and better yet, hire a licensed electrician if you can. Internet forums are filled with a lot of self-proclaimed "experts" but there is bad advise floating around everywhere. Please make sure that what you are doing is 100% correct. Don't just take one persons word for it.


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## hotrodharley (Oct 15, 2012)

As a former ER man I back that 100%. Not many second chances with electricity.


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## Xub420 (Oct 15, 2012)

YEP...Cant forget ur working with water and electricity. Deadly Combination!


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## SpicySativa (Oct 15, 2012)

Amen... Don't be "that guy" on the evening news who gives us all a bad name...


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## achaser87 (Oct 15, 2012)

agreed 100%. the other day i was in home depot, asked the same question to someone at wal-mart and rona. Came out with 3 different answers.


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## Organicuz (Oct 17, 2012)

Needed to be said, especially with the threads in the last week! (LOL). Not too much DIYin' with electricity, if you think you're dong it right - hire a professional to help or at least get a second opinion before it hurts you. Last year at work some independent contractors came out to fix some old ass A/C units on top of a refrigeration building. Well, after a little wire sticking out of an electrical box made a current with his arm when he had his hands stuck in the box to work on the wires, he literally got his forearms STRIPPED of flesh! (Why the power there wasn't turned off idk) He had a fraction of a second where if he wouldn't have started pulling his hands out when it struck, they would've been stuck in that box and he would've been electrocuted to death. It's not worth the risk especially when you have multiple ballasts coming from the same source.. Be careful, do some research, and ask someone with a bit of background and you should be good.

Adios,
OC


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## Warlock1369 (Oct 17, 2012)

It's simple. If you don't know what your doing don't tuch power. Be safe realize there are something's you don't want to practice on. Electrical is the first.


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## tibberous (Oct 23, 2012)

Whats crazy is when spiders try and build webs on relay arrays and the webs slowly catch fire.

Electricity is safe if you know what your doing, use common sense and don't try and get creative, and don't assume something is dead (testers are like $10). I've been shocked with 110 a few times and no real damage was ever done - stick to 110 and 20 amp breakers and 12 gauge wire unless your really sure of what your doing.


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## farmit420 (Oct 23, 2012)

good option for breakers are (20 amp GFCI) the new building code standard for Northeast. these cover some safety but not all... electricity is no joke... no a pro grower but been a builder for 15 years! best to all-


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## DWARD99 (Oct 23, 2012)

Hi im new to this site for the sole purpose that im in the research and planning phase of making my own stealth grow box. this forum is so informative, i have to admit im getting addicted. Any advice on setting up a small two chamber grow box? I was thinking a single lower watt hps light in the flowering chamber. Idk what would be best for the 24 hour chamber? and then whats the best way to only have one plug coming out of my box? ive seen alot of post with boxes that have power strips built in...is this safe?


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## Giyan (Oct 29, 2012)

All of you are correct.. for the most part 110 is harmless especially if you have some fast reflexes. dont try this plz... my cousin and i were into.remodeling.for his dad. we learned everything from the ground up of building and repairing most stand alone structures so electricity was a bit of a beast and in a league of its own. anyways we were messing with 110 plz dont try this. and we figured out that as long as we were touching each other the electricity would bypass the first contact and hit the next in line or the last grounded person if u will. it was a fun summer but dumb needless.to say we shock each other all year. but to be frank electricity is dangerous and the first rule of electricity handling is respect the crap out of it. then turn the breaker and double check its dead. follow those two.rules.and.itll be ok


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## hotrodharley (Oct 29, 2012)

Giyan said:


> All of you are correct.. for the most part 110 is harmless especially if you have some fast reflexes. dont try this plz... my cousin and i were into.remodeling.for his dad. we learned everything from the ground up of building and repairing most stand alone structures so electricity was a bit of a beast and in a league of its own. anyways we were messing with 110 plz dont try this. and we figured out that as long as we were touching each other the electricity would bypass the first contact and hit the next in line or the last grounded person if u will. it was a fun summer but dumb needless.to say we shock each other all year. but to be frank electricity is dangerous and the first rule of electricity handling is respect the crap out of it. then turn the breaker and double check its dead. follow those two.rules.and.itll be ok


Like he said - don't do this!


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## smw5767 (Oct 30, 2012)

The only thing that worries me a little is Oscillating Fans,just regular household types people use in their grow room's,some leave these Fans on 24/7,is this,or are THEY safe?
Cheers Guys.


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## ArcticGranite (Oct 31, 2012)

Don't break ohms law. If it ain't grounded, it ain't dead. And you may be.


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## LeafGnosis (Oct 31, 2012)

Yeah, I had seen a procedure in which really made me realize about electricity. They had put a new unit to power the large MRI machines and the guy was wearing this very heavy protective suit all the way to the gloves and was holding a 6 foot pole just to turn on the switch..  They told me that it was so powerful that an arc on turning it on could blow a person back a few feet...


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## newbie9 (Oct 31, 2012)

If its a medium to large indoor grow. Dedicate atleast 1 breaker to it. This way you can shut it off with on switch. That 20amp breaker will be well over enough to power 2 ballasts 2 fans and all the pumps and filtration you need. If its worth doing its worth doing it right. Have an electrician come in. Just tell him your growing tomatoes and peppers indoors. He wont give two shits as long as hes gettin the work. SAFTEY is always first. Seeds come and go, we only have one life.


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## newbie9 (Oct 31, 2012)

and a 110v plug can kill you.


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## ThE sAtIvA hIgH (Nov 12, 2012)

smw5767 said:


> The only thing that worries me a little is Oscillating Fans,just regular household types people use in their grow room's,some leave these Fans on 24/7,is this,or are THEY safe?
> Cheers Guys.


i was wondering this myself , if the motor blew or something will it catch fire ?


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## hazey grapes (Nov 12, 2012)

*most dangerous grow room component?*
nosy effing neighbors!


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## Cali Cali (Nov 13, 2012)

Ever seen an HPS light bulb explode.... Hot burning gas is strewn everywhere.... Pretty fucking gnarly... 

Just saying...


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## ASMALLVOICE (Nov 15, 2012)

ThE sAtIvA hIgH said:


> i was wondering this myself , if the motor blew or something will it catch fire ?


You can avoid a risk of fire, by having the fan and any other incidental(< I mean no disrespect by that word ) equipment that runs 24/7 ( air pump, fans, circulation pumps (large reserviors) plugged into a GFCI - Ground Fault Circuit Interuptor
The moment an electrical failure occurs (the instant there is a loss of potential< for electricians) such as motor winding failures or any fault on the protected circuit, it shuts down within milliseconds and requires a "manual reset" in order to be placed back in operation. These are manditory if the outlet is placed with 6 feet of a water source( sink, bathtub and the likes) These can be added between the existing outlet you use now and the devices you are concerned about ( dont plug the whole rooom into it, please) and you should be able to rest a little better at night.

Hope this helps

Peace

Asmallvoice


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## MaineWeed (Nov 18, 2012)

I'll be the 3rd person to ask....How safe is it to leave one of those oscillating fans on for your whole grow? I and most that I know who grow always leave on our fans 24/7 from veg right on through bloom never turning them off, should we rethink our fans on time for safeties sake?


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## smoke and coke (Nov 18, 2012)

Cali Cali said:


> Ever seen an HPS light bulb explode.... Hot burning gas is strewn everywhere.... Pretty fucking gnarly...
> 
> Just saying...


the HPS is nowhere near as bad as an MH bulb when it shatters. i have seen an MH take out the safety glass in a fixture in a papermill i worked at.

my circ. fan runs 24 hours a day.


keep the electricians busy with work. please call them and get it done the right way. and while he is there, ask for an estimate for a generator. seems like for the last year or so, generators are the best thing since sliced bread.


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## TheJuice (Nov 19, 2012)

There should be an official thread on this type of stuff on here


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## cues (Nov 19, 2012)

The most common mistake I see in grow rooms is having anything electrical on the floor.


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## ilikecheetoes (Nov 21, 2012)

fucking h2o2. shit burns like a mofo if you get it on you. stings for hours.


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## slipstar059 (Nov 25, 2012)

Most dangerous grow room component? Humans...


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## Digger Dave (Nov 28, 2012)

Most people are in the grow room a few times a day,check your stuff out,each time ya go in and find problems,fix.NO biggie.


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## terrancelloyd (Dec 6, 2012)

A key component in any grow ventilation setup are the grow room fans. Fantech Fans is a top manufacturer of grow room fans, and they offer several popular models, including duct fans and inline fans.


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## Highocaine (Dec 16, 2012)

Get a non-contact ammeter. Cheap as hell from any wholesale automotive store, and could save your life.



ilikecheetoes said:


> fucking h2o2. shit burns like a mofo if you get it on you. stings for hours.


Dissolve baking soda in warm water, and soak your hands for 10 minutes. So much relief.


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## Mr.J420 (Dec 25, 2012)

I'm in the building business and wired my grow room in my home on my own but I still had the local electrical authority come and inspect my work. I am not an electrician but understand the concepts. They gave me some good advice and didnt ask too many questions, best of all I have a sticker saying my reno is approved and legal! Always have work certified by the proper authorities, or just have it done by a certified electrician.


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## urgod (Dec 25, 2012)

carbon dioxide. shit could leak and kill you. or a combination of electricity and your co2 tank. electrical fire, + co2 tanks= shrapnels


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## Sobs (Dec 25, 2012)

For those wondering about equipment being ran 24 hours I have read of a few growers that change out any oscillating fans air pumps and water pumps every 3 months. Just to keep the equipment fresh and wear and tear on equipment. They justify the money spent by the money saved on ganja.


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## Grandpapy (Dec 25, 2012)

^^Good advice, my breaker just tripped at 3:12 am for no apparent reason, glad I was awake.


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## Alexander Supertramp (Dec 25, 2012)

Power strips are used and abused causing many melt downs. Buy top quality and only load them 50% of what the max amp rating is. Its easy to overlook the fact we are running them 12-18+hrs a day. Day in and day out. Thats a work load.......


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## ScoobyDoobyDoo (Dec 25, 2012)

any electrician will tell you that running at 50% much more conservative than need be. if you are goint to exand in the future then you should leave room on the circuit. As fas as the electronics; well; wring and most electronics are most efficient when running all the time if properly ventilated.


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## echelon1k1 (Dec 25, 2012)

Everything in your grow room should run off a RCD or GFCI. Lower the trip current the safer you will be.

Less than 5mA trip current will save your life anything over probably won't.


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## Budwolf77 (Jan 17, 2013)

Be safe and don't overload your breakers. I have not had any problems with power surges. If you got 10 things plugged into one socket be prepared for problems. Try to spread it out if you can. I had a closet with a lot of fluorescents and had harvested my crop. I had a false wall where the closet was. I removed it and put my clothes back in. I was using dirt so clean up was fast and cleaning was quick, now here's the part to remember. While at work I got a call from my neighbor saying my house was on fire. NOT from my closet but from the fireplace I presume. The house burned down. This was at night. The next morning I went to the closet and there was my light still Connected to the closet rod by some wires that I just had not taken down yet. The light's just sitting in the corner even thought not plugged in or anything told the fire fighters something may have been going on here. Just a fluke. But I learned the hard way always totally clean up any signs. I did not get into any trouble but the landlord was hawking me after that.


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## Nizza (Jan 17, 2013)

urgod said:


> carbon dioxide. shit could leak and kill you. or a combination of electricity and your co2 tank. electrical fire, + co2 tanks= shrapnels


actually if the co2 bottle leaked/exploded theyre made to blow out of the top where the opening is; the "shrapnel" being the on/off valve. when this blows off the bottle can be propelled. The safest way to store a compressed tank is in a small area because it can't build up momentum if that did happen


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## ManyAndVaried (Jan 17, 2013)

newbie9 said:


> If its a medium to large indoor grow. Dedicate atleast 1 breaker to it. This way you can shut it off with on switch. That 20amp breaker will be well over enough to power 2 ballasts 2 fans and all the pumps and filtration you need. If its worth doing its worth doing it right. Have an electrician come in. Just tell him your growing tomatoes and peppers indoors. He wont give two shits as long as hes gettin the work. SAFTEY is always first. Seeds come and go, we only have one life.


2x1000 = 2000. 2000 / 120 = 16.7. So you're within 3.3 amps of serious overload and you haven't even accounted for losses or fans or diddly squat. I'd say you're seriously overloading a circuit, and your power factor sucks as a result. Dangerous? Yep. Seriously inefficient? WAY yep.


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## Astral Zoom (Jan 20, 2013)

I know electricity and i know she scares me sometimes


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## bewareofdogandowner (Jan 20, 2013)

110, 277/480, 24vdc...it can all kill you, neutral wires in a three phase 4 wire system can kill you, because....its not the volts that kill, its the amount of current the circuit sees...ie your load. 1200 watts on a 20 amp circuit continues duty


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## Figong (Jan 21, 2013)

I believe Jorge said it best in one of his videos.. all things power-based above waist level and properly mounted.. all plants/liquids stay below... not exact words, but pretty solid and nothing to misunderstand.


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## guy incognito (Jan 23, 2013)

I made electricity my bitch. I wired up my whole grow with 5 circuits by myself. 

Arr arr arr arr arr


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## WeedChip (Jan 25, 2013)

Doing electrical works is a risky business, at some point you will probably be tampering with the main circuits, Although in essence it's all simple circuits and wiring without a socket tester how do you actually know every wire you put in is ok? Your things may still turn on but they could have no earth, some things will turn on still if the Live and Neutral are the wrong way but this can cause short circuits (fire)

Tread carefully, if you set up a grow and it burns down a house and someone dies, YOU are liable, It is Manslaughter. 

This is where the REAL risk in growing is, if your electrics fuck up and you hurt or kill someone, or even just cause fire damage. 


My Greatest advice to anyone doing their own electrics is simple, buy a socket tester. Not expensive and it could save your life, let alone your plants. 
The tester will tell you if the wiring has been done wrong (earth missing L/N switch and several other things)


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## guy incognito (Jan 25, 2013)

WeedChip said:


> Doing electrical works is a risky business, at some point you will probably be tampering with the main circuits, Although in essence it's all simple circuits and wiring without a socket tester how do you actually know every wire you put in is ok? Your things may still turn on but they could have no earth, some things will turn on still if the Live and Neutral are the wrong way but this can cause short circuits (fire)
> 
> Tread carefully, if you set up a grow and it burns down a house and someone dies, YOU are liable, It is Manslaughter.
> 
> ...


Yes. Verify any circuits you work on are in fact dead. Plug something in and check it. Get a multimeter and double check it. Get a socket tester to ensure it is done properly after the fact.


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## ricks0626 (Jan 28, 2013)

hey guys, i'm new here and planning a grow. i have a 400w hps. my ? is about the ground. my apartment has no ground, just the 2 slot plugs. what do i do? is it ok to just get a adapter to plug it in??? please help! thx


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## smoke and coke (Jan 28, 2013)

best thing to do is get an electrician to take out the outlet and check for a ground. 

they would most likely do it hot unless there was an issue but its advised for anyone else to turn off the power to the outlet. 

it is most likely bx cable and the armor is the ground. need to check the clamp inside the box to make sure the armor is inside the clamp and the clamp is snug. 

use a meter and test that the box is grounded. install a ground pigtail to the box. make up splices with a pigtail if needed. install a new 3 prong outlet and restore power.

test with a meter or polarity tester.


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## NewSchoolgrower (Jan 28, 2013)

Never put your ballast on the ground. 2 reasons why. 

A) Heat rises so might as well mount them up high where the exhaust fan can vent it right away.
B) Water leaks on the ballast and shorts shit out and or kills you. lol

be careful ppl.


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## SupraSPL (Feb 3, 2013)

I have been working on greenhouse wiring since I was a kid and have been zapped by 120v many times and once by 240v right across the chest. In most cases it is not harmful but there is potential danger if you are locked, grounded, sweaty hands or if the wire somehow penetrates your skin. Even phone lines can zork you a bit if it the wire stabs past your skin. Working on hot wiring is very lazy lol.

Cheaping out on wiring can get you into trouble. Overloaded or damaged/corroded wiring, timers, extension cords and connections will heat up. Most of the time the breaker will do its job but inspect your wiring regularly and overbuild it.

GFCI is a great idea for an extra layer of protection. When it senses an unbalanced load between line and neutral it will kick off.


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## Shivaskunk (Feb 3, 2013)

This is what electricity can do. That was my bedroom...I ws very careful with my grow rooms power...didnt put a second thought to my lizards heating lights on a non grounded non GFCI outlet. Lost everything i own...and my pets which was worse.


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## Bear33 (Feb 6, 2013)

I have free access to 10 Sodium halihde lamps with built in balast for 400 watt bulbs designed for outdoor parking lot use. Are they dangerous, do they use too much elec, and are they to hot. They are free?


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## craftymofo (Feb 6, 2013)

Bear33 said:


> I have free access to 10 Sodium halihde lamps with built in balast for 400 watt bulbs designed for outdoor parking lot use. Are they dangerous, do they use too much elec, and are they to hot. They are free?


If you put them all on 1 circuit yes it would be a probem. Keep the amps under 80% of the curcuit and you will be good. 400 watts uses a little under 4 amps so you could safely get 3 on a 15 amp breaker. running 110/120 that is.


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## ThaMagnificent (Feb 9, 2013)

great info in this thread!


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## Malevolence (Feb 9, 2013)

Budwolf77 said:


> Be safe and don't overload your breakers. I have not had any problems with power surges. If you got 10 things plugged into one socket be prepared for problems. Try to spread it out if you can. I had a closet with a lot of fluorescents and had harvested my crop. I had a false wall where the closet was. I removed it and put my clothes back in. I was using dirt so clean up was fast and cleaning was quick, now here's the part to remember. While at work I got a call from my neighbor saying my house was on fire. NOT from my closet but from the fireplace I presume. The house burned down. This was at night. The next morning I went to the closet and there was my light still Connected to the closet rod by some wires that I just had not taken down yet. The light's just sitting in the corner even thought not plugged in or anything told the fire fighters something may have been going on here. Just a fluke. But I learned the hard way always totally clean up any signs. I did not get into any trouble but *the landlord was hawking me after that*.


Probably because you burned down his property.


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## Ganjagreat91 (Feb 14, 2013)

I have a line above water all my electrical connections 4 feet off floor


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## tusseltussel (Feb 14, 2013)

http://youtu.be/aJypSVZo37Y they sell theese units that are like a cannister you hang in your grow room that are filled with that powdery stuff fire extinguishers use and they work like a sprinkler system. if there is a fire they spray in like a 10 foot diamiter of where they are.... ------> http://www.htgsupply.com/Product-Watch-Dog-Automatic-Fire-Extinguisher-12kg.asp 

http://youtu.be/3OOUEZuTvZQ


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## HighTimesJudge (Feb 16, 2013)

can wait for free energy, need some magnet experimentation to run the setup lol


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## Guitar Man (Feb 27, 2013)

Cali Cali said:


> Ever seen an HPS light bulb explode.... Hot burning gas is strewn everywhere.... Pretty fucking gnarly...
> 
> Just saying...


One way to avoid this from happening (I've been replacing and servicing outside HID lights for 15 years); when a HID light doesn't come on, or goes off and on during "Lights On", replace it immediately! This is why these lights burst sometimes, but if replaced, you won't spew shit all over your nice plants that will be a pain in the ass to clean up.

Another important safety factor for ANY grow room/space: A Fire Extinguisher. Mount one (or more) in the grow room and show other household members where it is, and how to use it in case you aren't there to put a fire out.


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## esbie (Mar 3, 2013)

Shivaskunk said:


> View attachment 2510030This is what electricity can do. That was my bedroom...I ws very careful with my grow rooms power...didnt put a second thought to my lizards heating lights on a non grounded non GFCI outlet. Lost everything i own...and my pets which was worse.


A prime example of the FUD that this thread expouses. Not necessarily meant to single you out, as I have read every post in this thread. 

My statement is; Don't be/act stupid, and you won't get stupid results.
There are a few posts that were to the (real) point and have value... most of the others, see FUD.
Personally speaking from 3+ decades of non-catastrophical electrical usage/installation/troubleshooting/fixing/and redesign, the majority of the time being an electrical installation specialist.
Yes, I've been shocked on 120 & 220VAC circuits (mostly fixing others' foolery), and including installing multiple whole house panels, hot. And yes, I've made mistakes of my own. Point being, if you don't do something completely braindead stupid you will live to appreciate and learn from it... If you do, chock another win for Darwin. 

As I post this, I see Bear33's post "blah blah free sodium halihde lamps... are they dangerous? blah blah"... WTF. Stick your tongue in the socket, lemme know. 
And then 'craftymofo's reply of 'Math!.. What's real world experience good for?!'

Harsh? Maybe. But at least this thread is smarter for my contribution.
C'mon kids... it's just a few wires. If you can't figure it out, you don't deserve to play the game... If you feel the need to 'hire a professional', good on you, you've got more money than sense... must've done something right, somewhere.

To more poignantly address the thread, and reiterate a previous post, the most dangerous component is the person 'in charge'.
Call me what you want. I've been there, done that, and lived to tell the tale.


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## WestSide Ukiah (Mar 3, 2013)

Definitely use GFCI outlets wherever required. --Like wet locations. But I don't bother to use them in non-required applications just for "extra safety". They can be prone to nuisance tripping.

Also, I've seen gfci outlets burn up too. So they aren't exactly the definitive answer to electrical safety. 




And I wouldn't worry about running fans constantly in the grow room any more then I would worry about running anything else unattended. Most of the fans I see fail go out with a whimper, not a bang.


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## tusseltussel (Mar 3, 2013)

WestSide Ukiah said:


> Definitely use GFCI outlets wherever required. --Like wet locations. But I don't bother to use them in non-required applications just for "extra safety". They can be prone to nuisance tripping.
> 
> Also, I've seen gfci outlets burn up too. So they aren't exactly the definitive answer to electrical safety.
> 
> ...


Only one gfci per circuit. Multiple on the same circuit will fight each other. 1 will protect everything in Line after it


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## WestSide Ukiah (Mar 3, 2013)

tusseltussel said:


> Only one gfci per circuit. Multiple on the same circuit will fight each other. 1 will protect everything in Line after it


It's true that you don't typically use additional gfci receptacles on the LOAD side of a gfci receptacle. But not all circuits are wired in a fashion that allows simply putting in ONE gfci receptacle and daisy-chaining the rest of the receptacles on the circuit. 

You might have a circuit from the panel coming into a j-box and THEN splitting left and right to feed a chain of receptacles. You wouldn't make all those receptacles GFCI's with one gfci receptacle. The first receptacle to the right, and the first receptacle to the left would each be a gfci. And sometimes you don't want every receptacle on a circuit GFCI protected.

So you can feed multiple GFCI receptacles with a single circuit for many reasons. And sometimes it makes more sense to just use a GFCI Breaker... The scenarios are endless.


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## GoGoGadgetGanja (Mar 5, 2013)

Im no electric junky so i have a question u guys may think is stupid lol so here it goes...Im doing my first cfl grow for one plant...I plan on using a serge protector(power bar) with six outlets...all the outlets will be used for light receptical clamps and lamp reflectors...in each of the six cord light outlets i will insert Y adapters so one plug in will hold 2 lights. I will have 12 26watt 27k cfl's all together running from one power bar.....is this ok?


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## hotrodharley (Mar 5, 2013)

Bear33 said:


> I have free access to 10 Sodium halihde lamps with built in balast for 400 watt bulbs designed for outdoor parking lot use. Are they dangerous, do they use too much elec, and are they to hot. They are free?


Low bay shop fixtures or self-contained with ballast. I have 2 I converted to remote ballast operation. However, by you simply asking you indicate a general lack of knowledge on the subject. Learning on the job or firsthand is fine except with things like electricity, open heart surgery, nuclear reactors etc.


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## GoGoGadgetGanja (Mar 5, 2013)

I have a serge protector power bar with 6 3prong plugin outlets...is it ok if i use all six with 2prong cord attachments to power 12 26watt cfl's?


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## Myles117 (Mar 5, 2013)

i am going to be runniing 4 600 watt HPS bulbs in my flower room, can they all be on a single 20 amp circuit or do i need to split them between two circuits? i have seperate circuits for the fans and pumps so this is strictly the lights.

thanks alot


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## Edgar9 (Mar 5, 2013)

smoke and coke said:


> the HPS is nowhere near as bad as an MH bulb when it shatters. i have seen an MH take out the safety glass in a fixture in a papermill i worked at.
> 
> my circ. fan runs 24 hours a day.
> 
> ...


So I'm assuming having a hps or mh in an air cooled hood wouldn't be totally safe. I always thought the danger would be minimized b/c of the bulb being in the hood. Sounds like the glass could break and there could be fire.


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## smoke and coke (Mar 6, 2013)

Edgar9 said:


> So I'm assuming having a hps or mh in an air cooled hood wouldn't be totally safe. I always thought the danger would be minimized b/c of the bulb being in the hood. Sounds like the glass could break and there could be fire.


i use an open fixture with an hps bulb.

a mh bulb should be used in an enclosed fixture with a glass lens. 

but you can also buy a mh bulb with an arc protected sheild so it can be used in an open fixture.

using an air cooled hood should be fine for either bulb.


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## Sir.Ganga (Mar 6, 2013)

Extension cords and overloading circuits are the main cause of fires, not just in grow rooms. A little bit of math to figure out amps will go a long way to making sure your not overloading certain breakers.

1000 watts is almost 10 amps on 110v and about 5 amps on 220v. One light and an exhaust fan run on 110v is the limit for a 15 amp breaker. 2-3 amps should be the buffer, in other words 12-13 amps should be the max load for a 15 amper.


Play Safe.


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## 209 Cali closet grower (Mar 6, 2013)

I always keep a redneck fire alarm in my room


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## bird mcbride (Mar 6, 2013)

Myles117 said:


> i am going to be runniing 4 600 watt HPS bulbs in my flower room, can they all be on a single 20 amp circuit or do i need to split them between two circuits? i have seperate circuits for the fans and pumps so this is strictly the lights.
> 
> thanks alot


You can get away with the 20amp breaker at 240vac.


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## Myles117 (Mar 6, 2013)

its 120v.

i think ill use 2 lights per circuit and play it safe. i just wanted them alll on the same timer


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## smoke and coke (Mar 6, 2013)

209 Cali closet grower said:


> I always keep a redneck fire alarm in my room



lol how old is that wallpaper. j/k


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## bird mcbride (Mar 9, 2013)

Myles117 said:


> its 120v.
> 
> i think ill use 2 lights per circuit and play it safe. i just wanted them alll on the same timer




I use relays rated for the amps needed and are all activated by a small wall timer. In my circuit the relays have 28vac coils and employ a 120vac induction coil for start-up which are very low amperage and are pluged into the timer. The contacts of the relays are rated at 15amp/120/240vac. I run my HID's 240vac because I can get away with less wiring and I feel it's safer. If you don't understand this stuff you should either study or find someone that does. Plugging HID lighting directly into a wall timer can cause a fire.


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## Myles117 (Mar 9, 2013)

this type of stuff interests me so little.... ill talk to my electrician about it. Aprreciate the time spent to guide my dumb ass


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## Doer (Mar 10, 2013)

With hydro, GFI circuit breakers, are needed. And I think the most dangerous component is me, by far. 

My thing is turning my back on pumping water and let Mr. Murphy push the hose output onto the floor.


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## echelon1k1 (Mar 10, 2013)

Doer said:


> And I think the most dangerous component is me, by far.


spot on...


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## fb360 (Mar 11, 2013)

20V and .1A can kill you!

Here is a great resource for anyone who cares:
Electrical Safety - http://www.allaboutcircuits.com/vol_1/chpt_3/1.html


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## Rhet (Mar 29, 2013)

Im new to the board and happen to be a licensed electrician. If needed i can anwser questions and remember don't be scared of electricity just respect it.


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