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Step 4The Electrical System
The electrical system consists of the three fluorescent lights, the two on/off switches, the plug, the outlet, the fuse and the wires. It allows the unit to be plugged into any standard wall outlet while the lights and auxillary outlet can be controlled by the toggle switches (Figure 4B).
Even though the light fixtures are ment to be celing mounted and wired directly into the house's electrical grid, I wired them with the plug so that this unit could be easily disconnected and then transported or stored. The use of a wall outlet for power also enables a standard programmable timer to automaticly control all of the electronics (Figure 4C).
This step is critical in terms of safety. If you wire this wrong or allow any exposed terminals to cross, you could start an electrical fire. An electrical fire could also result from using wire that is not rated high enough for the current and voltage loads that these devices require. Obviously, you also run the risk of getting an electric shock. MAKE SURE YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING!!
Each of these lights require 120VAC and run at 20 watts. Using Ohm's law ( I = P/E = 20W/120V = 0.167A) I know that each light will draw a current of 0.167 amps. The lights are wired in parallel so that the voltage does not divide between them. This means that the main power cord will carry a current of 0.5 amps. The 18 guage hook up wire that I used was rated for a maximum current of 2.32 amps so it should be safe.
The wire came in a package with three colors. I used black for the live wire, red for the neutral wire and green for the ground wire. It is important to stay consistent with this or you could wire it up wrong and end up in big trouble when you plug it in and flip the switch.
When making connections, only splice a small portion at the top of the wire. Hold the two ends together and slip a wire connecter over them. Twist the connecter and youre done. Make sure you cover any exposed parts of the wire with electrical tape.
In the fluorescent light housing you'll find the live and the neutral wires coming out of the electronic ballast box. The ground wire should be connected to a metal part of the housing (Figure 4D) When you're looking at a standard north american wall outlet, the neutral hole is on the left, the live on the right and the ground on the bottom. This should be kept in mind when wiring up the plug and the outlet. Please note that a plug and an outlet face each other so the live and the neutral wires are on opposite sides(Figure 4E).
The main power cord runs from the plug into the main electrical box. This box is the main hub of power distribution for the electrical system. Inside, all like wires from the main power cord, the light power cord and the outlet power cord are connected in parallel. The live wire for the main power cord is interrupted by a 2 amp fuse before being connected to the other power cords. The live wires for the lights and the outlet are interrupted by a toggle switch before contuining to their respective loads (Figure 4F).
Three wires from the light power cord and three wires from each light run into the left conduit box (Figure 4G). From here it's just a matter of using wire connecters to connect all three wires of each color(Fighre 4H). **Please note that Fig 4H only shows the connections for two lights, I'll update soon!**
To make everything nice and neat I used electrical tape to bundle each set of wires from the lights and power cord. I used zip ties to secure the bundles to the frame. I also used a piece of shrink tubing to cover the wires running from the plug to the first conduit box (Figure 4I).
You'll notice that the entire electrical system is contained within the top portion of the frame. This allows the frame to be taken apart without having to disturb any wires.
When I first turned the unit on I monitored it very closely for hours. I inspected it frequently for signs of electric arcing or current overload. I also felt the wires every couple of minutes to ensure they wern't heating up. Fortunately, everything ran smoothly.
Even though the light fixtures are ment to be celing mounted and wired directly into the house's electrical grid, I wired them with the plug so that this unit could be easily disconnected and then transported or stored. The use of a wall outlet for power also enables a standard programmable timer to automaticly control all of the electronics (Figure 4C).
This step is critical in terms of safety. If you wire this wrong or allow any exposed terminals to cross, you could start an electrical fire. An electrical fire could also result from using wire that is not rated high enough for the current and voltage loads that these devices require. Obviously, you also run the risk of getting an electric shock. MAKE SURE YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING!!
Each of these lights require 120VAC and run at 20 watts. Using Ohm's law ( I = P/E = 20W/120V = 0.167A) I know that each light will draw a current of 0.167 amps. The lights are wired in parallel so that the voltage does not divide between them. This means that the main power cord will carry a current of 0.5 amps. The 18 guage hook up wire that I used was rated for a maximum current of 2.32 amps so it should be safe.
The wire came in a package with three colors. I used black for the live wire, red for the neutral wire and green for the ground wire. It is important to stay consistent with this or you could wire it up wrong and end up in big trouble when you plug it in and flip the switch.
When making connections, only splice a small portion at the top of the wire. Hold the two ends together and slip a wire connecter over them. Twist the connecter and youre done. Make sure you cover any exposed parts of the wire with electrical tape.
In the fluorescent light housing you'll find the live and the neutral wires coming out of the electronic ballast box. The ground wire should be connected to a metal part of the housing (Figure 4D) When you're looking at a standard north american wall outlet, the neutral hole is on the left, the live on the right and the ground on the bottom. This should be kept in mind when wiring up the plug and the outlet. Please note that a plug and an outlet face each other so the live and the neutral wires are on opposite sides(Figure 4E).
The main power cord runs from the plug into the main electrical box. This box is the main hub of power distribution for the electrical system. Inside, all like wires from the main power cord, the light power cord and the outlet power cord are connected in parallel. The live wire for the main power cord is interrupted by a 2 amp fuse before being connected to the other power cords. The live wires for the lights and the outlet are interrupted by a toggle switch before contuining to their respective loads (Figure 4F).
Three wires from the light power cord and three wires from each light run into the left conduit box (Figure 4G). From here it's just a matter of using wire connecters to connect all three wires of each color(Fighre 4H). **Please note that Fig 4H only shows the connections for two lights, I'll update soon!**
To make everything nice and neat I used electrical tape to bundle each set of wires from the lights and power cord. I used zip ties to secure the bundles to the frame. I also used a piece of shrink tubing to cover the wires running from the plug to the first conduit box (Figure 4I).
You'll notice that the entire electrical system is contained within the top portion of the frame. This allows the frame to be taken apart without having to disturb any wires.
When I first turned the unit on I monitored it very closely for hours. I inspected it frequently for signs of electric arcing or current overload. I also felt the wires every couple of minutes to ensure they wern't heating up. Fortunately, everything ran smoothly.
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Aug 10, 2008. 7:12 PMapider36439
says:
why don't you just run the wires inside the pipes ????
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8
Aug 11, 2008. 4:58 AM
LancePenney (author)
says:
LancePenney (author)
says:
The wire is pretty stiff and it would have been very hard to feed it through all the 90 degree turns in the pipe. I suppose I could have tied some string to the wires and pulled them through the pipes but then I would have to wire it up before I glued it together. That would make the structure and the wiring ten times harder to complete.
Reply
May 3, 2009. 9:28 AMauroraoutdoorlighting
says:
If you use stranded wire, it's much easier to feed through the pipes. Plus, you can probably go a gauge smaller since there's more surface area on stranded wire for the electrons to pass through.
Reply
Jul 2, 2009. 8:06 PMbohner
says:
you are wrong with your calculations but within reason your lights would more likely be pulling .23 amps. The reason for that is there is alot more than one calculation you can use to calculate current draw. Because the ballast of the florescent lights you need to use another calculation but you don't have the proper testing tools to actually find the right variables. Your best way to actually find the current draw is to use an ammeter. And just because you use stranded wire DOES NOT mean it can handle more current.
Reply
May 21, 2009. 9:10 AMpasserby06
says:
Most three strand electrical wiring that I've encountered in the U.S. comes with either black/white/green strands, or black/white/bare. A cute ditty for remembering the assignment of these strands is, "Black is hot, white is not and the ground is always green." Commit that to memory and you shouldn't have any problems with messed up polarities. (You'll probably also be cursing my name for not being able to get it out of your head.) ;-) Also, with modern grounded outlets, the black/power lead attaches to the "short" slot, white/neutral attaches to the "tall" slot.
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