Electrical Question

[MichaelJ]

Roughly how many outlets am I going to have to have? With all the electrical devices there are, I'm thinking that I'm going to have to upgrade my 100Amp service to a 200amp. Another question is... can you use heavy duty extension cords for the lights?


Michael

 

[jbundas]

You'd need to have one hell of a big system to overload a single 15A circuit. That's almost 2000W. Here's a conservative list of a beefy sample system:
800W - nice MH lighting system
200W - Heaters
100W - Sump return pump
50W - Skimmer pump
100W - Misc. powerheads and such
--------
1250W - Plenty of room on a single circuit

Look at some of the things you're planning on running and add em up. So far I don't know of anyone who has had to upgrade existing wiring in their house to support their tanks and I know a bunch of large tank sps folks with lots of water flow and lighting.

 

[MichaelJ]

Great!

that's good to know, I was Kind of worried for a second.

thanks for your imput...


Jackson

 

[Fingolfin]

You'd need to have one hell of a big system to overload a single 15A circuit. That's almost 2000W. Here's a conservative list of a beefy sample system:
800W - nice MH lighting system
200W - Heaters
100W - Sump return pump
50W - Skimmer pump
100W - Misc. powerheads and such
--------
1250W - Plenty of room on a single circuit

Not so fast.

Those numbers you stated are the steady-state power consumption. What causes the breaker to trip is the immediate current spike when power returns right after the outage. The coils in the ballasts and the motors in the pumps draw a lot more current during the startup than in the steadystate.

It would be wise to distribute lightings and pumps to different breakers if you can.

And it is perfectly fine to use heavy-duty extension cord for the lights. As long as it is equivalent or more capacity than the wire between the breaker and the outlet in the wall.

 

[MichaelJ]

Not so fast.

Those numbers you stated are the steady-state power consumption. What causes the breaker to trip is the immediate current spike when power returns right after the outage. The coils in the ballasts and the motors in the pumps draw a lot more current during the startup than in the steadystate.

It would be wise to distribute lightings and pumps to different breakers if you can.

And it is perfectly fine to use heavy-duty extension cord for the lights. As long as it is equivalent or more capacity than the wire between the breaker and the outlet in the wall.

Thanks... I'll do that , don't want no breaker tripping going on.