B
bentripin
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Electricity is dangerous, and so is letting others in on your operation. Hooking up a Subpanel can be pretty easy and straight forward, this can save you alot of money and you wont have to come up with a good excuse to cover your high electrical needs.
I AM NOT A LICENSED ELECTRICIAN, just a DIY Guy.. I have done this many times and always passed the inspections required by my local permitting office. This is a guide to show you what your in for, this is serious and could result in your death. If you are not comfortable or simply dont understand electricity then I would not recommend this job for you..
Keep in mind, for insurance and zoning purposes a DIY might not be the best idea. However if your grow room goes up in flames good luck w/insurance and I am not too keen on getting permits and inspections on something this private. Even in a 100% legal operation security concerns may encourage you to do this.
In most places its completely legal to do the wiring your self if you pull the permits and get it inspected before you seal up the walls. About the only thing that you must use a certified electrician for is new service hookup from the power company to your circuit box... this is simply because the power company wont let you touch there equipment if your not licensed & insured. If you need to keep it all legitimate then go visit your local permit office before doing anything, they will give you all the info you need... sometimes they might make u take a simple test before giving you the electrical permit so keep that in mind. Be as vague as the'll let you on your permits, there public records and if it says your hooking up 60A 240 in a basement try to make it look like you are remodeling a laundry room or something.
If you do it to code then it will be safe, infact codes now are alot safer than they were 25 years ago so if done right this could be safer than trying to use the existing wiring in an old house.
Now some saftey tips:
This guide is for a 240v (aka 220v) 60A Subpanel, all the equipment and materials I am referencing is assuming this is what your doing. If your wiring up more amps or volts you'll need to research what equipment you'll need to meet code.
220 and 240 are the same thing, same for 110 and 120.. electronics run between those voltages and depending on where you are in the country, season or even time of the day you might be closer to one or the other.. Most newer service runs at the higher end (120v & 240v).. I am referencing the higher voltage in this DIY since thats what your equipment should be load rated against... However it is common to refer to 110v and 220v service in some regions, just be aware of this to avoid confusion.
Materials:
Power Distribution, your working with two 120v phases that together are 240v. You will have 2 hot wires, on opposite phases.. We can run a mixture of 240v and 120v circuits off our subpanel (or all 120v or all 240v if you like) but each phase will only support 60A max. In your subpanel you will see breakers are staggered, every other one is on same phase.. so when running the circuits to the subpanel make sure your not overloading one phase, you want to balance the circuits between them.
You need to figure out how to break out your power, you can calculate how many amps you will need by using this formula: WATTS/VOLTS = AMPS
For example a 400w Light on a 120v circuit will use ~3.6 AMPS, a 400w Light on a 240v circuit will use ~1.8 AMPS.. dont forget to leave your self overhead, on a 20A circuit dont exceed 16A. Personally I would keep it between 12-14A max on a 20A circuit unless you take care to stagger devices on timers so they dont start at the same time and cause an overload.
For each 240v 20A circuit your good for ~3200W with a comfortable overhead.
For each 120v 20A circuit your good for ~1600W with a comfortable overhead.
Most people wont waste there time with 15A circuits, if your needing this kind of power you likely have a few thousand watts of lighting to support..
For each 240v 15A circuit your good for ~2500W with a comfortable overhead.
For each 120v 15A circuit your good for ~1200W with a comfortable overhead.
Keep in mind any sensors or sensitive electrical equipment you might be running in your room will do better on there own circuit, my continuous EC/PH meter gave me erratic temperature readings when on the same circuit as my digital ballasts.. Ballasts and Pumps generate alot of electrical noise, Ive seen HID ballasts causing enough interference that CFL ballasts have trouble firing on the same circuit.. Its good practice to separate noise generating electronics onto there own circuits to prevent interference. If your wiring up 110v circuits its best if you can put the nosiest gear on the opposite phase of any equipment that may be susceptible to interference.
Some example distributions:
1x20A 240v, 4x20A 120v w/2 circuits per phase
2x20A 240v, 2x20A 120v on opposite phases.
6x20A 120v, w/3 circuits per phase
3x20A 240v
Now lets hook this up now that we have planned it out.
First mount your subpanel, it needs to have several feet of free space on all sides.. dont stick it in a corner, put it in the middle of the wall. If its going to be close lookup your local code, they will specify in inches how close other permanent fixtures can be to any circuit boxes.
Next we need to convert your new circuit box into a subpanel, this is easy.. you have 2 grounding points in the box and they will be bridged by a wire/pole. Code says neutral and ground can only be bridged at your main panel, its not safe to have them bridged at a subpanel so make sure you remove this so they are isolated.
The bar I removed:
Now pull your 6/3 romex wire between your boxes, start from one end and pull it to the other.. dont start in the middle, this stuff is too thick to bend easy. You need to run it either through the walls or through electrical conduit (or both), you cant just lay the wire on the ground or nail it to the wall..
Shutoff the power to your main circuit box and install your 60A double pole breaker, flip the new breaker OFF. Dont overload your main with your new power requirements.. adding 60A 240 to a 100A 240 service might cause cause your main breaker to trip if your electric oven comes on. If you need to upgrade your service then you need a licensed electrician.
Hook the 2 hot wires (RED & BLACK) to double pole breaker, one wire per pole (phase). Hook your neutral (WHITE) and ground (Bare copper) to the grounding bar in your breaker box. Make sure your new breaker is off and put your circuit box back together before turning your main power back on.
At your subpanel, hook the 2 hot wires into the main breaker and your ground and neutral to there respective bars.. Make sure everything is secured properly.
Shutoff all the circuits in your subpanel, including the main circuit.. then go turn your new breaker in your main box on.. as long as you didn't damage the wire when installing it this should be completely uneventful. If the breaker pops you likely shorted out the wire durring install.
Grab your multimeter and lets test things..
Check the hots going into the main circuit one at a time against both your neutral and ground.. they should all read ~120v.
Check both your hots together, they should read ~240v.
If all is good wire up your subpanel circuits if you havent already, leaving all the breakers off and then put your subpanel back together carefully. Turn the subpanel main on and one at a time bring your circuits online.. testing all your outlets with your multimeter for proper voltage/polarity and ground before continuing to the next circuit.
Testing a 120v outlet hot & neutral
Be Safe,
- Ben
Images attached for prospairity.
I AM NOT A LICENSED ELECTRICIAN, just a DIY Guy.. I have done this many times and always passed the inspections required by my local permitting office. This is a guide to show you what your in for, this is serious and could result in your death. If you are not comfortable or simply dont understand electricity then I would not recommend this job for you..
Keep in mind, for insurance and zoning purposes a DIY might not be the best idea. However if your grow room goes up in flames good luck w/insurance and I am not too keen on getting permits and inspections on something this private. Even in a 100% legal operation security concerns may encourage you to do this.
In most places its completely legal to do the wiring your self if you pull the permits and get it inspected before you seal up the walls. About the only thing that you must use a certified electrician for is new service hookup from the power company to your circuit box... this is simply because the power company wont let you touch there equipment if your not licensed & insured. If you need to keep it all legitimate then go visit your local permit office before doing anything, they will give you all the info you need... sometimes they might make u take a simple test before giving you the electrical permit so keep that in mind. Be as vague as the'll let you on your permits, there public records and if it says your hooking up 60A 240 in a basement try to make it look like you are remodeling a laundry room or something.
If you do it to code then it will be safe, infact codes now are alot safer than they were 25 years ago so if done right this could be safer than trying to use the existing wiring in an old house.
Now some saftey tips:
- Never work on live circuits, if in doubt shutoff your power main.
- Always test things w/a multimeter before turning on a circuit or plugging in an outlet the first time.
- Plan and Research so you know you have the right components for the job
- Be carefull what you touch, gas and water lines are often used for grounding..
- Use the right tools, trying to strip wires with your teeth is bad.
- Dont Overload, never exceed ratings.. give your self 20-30% margin when calculating circuit loads.
- Let everyone in your house know your working on power, you dont want your kid or room-mate to flip a circuit back on while your working on it.
This guide is for a 240v (aka 220v) 60A Subpanel, all the equipment and materials I am referencing is assuming this is what your doing. If your wiring up more amps or volts you'll need to research what equipment you'll need to meet code.
220 and 240 are the same thing, same for 110 and 120.. electronics run between those voltages and depending on where you are in the country, season or even time of the day you might be closer to one or the other.. Most newer service runs at the higher end (120v & 240v).. I am referencing the higher voltage in this DIY since thats what your equipment should be load rated against... However it is common to refer to 110v and 220v service in some regions, just be aware of this to avoid confusion.
Materials:
- 60 AMP Double Pole Circuit Breaker for your main breaker box. If your panel is old this may be difficult as there are alot of varying styles of breakers and the old ones are very uncommon now.
- 6/3 Romex Wire (6 gauge, 3 Wire + Ground; RED/BLACK/WHITE/COPPER), long enough to reach between subpanel & breaker box, if not running through walls you'll have to use conduit.
- Circuit Box, you can use a box larger than 60A.. 100A box usually gives plenty of room for circuits.. Should support 2 phase and have 2 grounding bars.
- Breakers for your subpanel, you should plan out how your going to distribute power before even starting
Power Distribution, your working with two 120v phases that together are 240v. You will have 2 hot wires, on opposite phases.. We can run a mixture of 240v and 120v circuits off our subpanel (or all 120v or all 240v if you like) but each phase will only support 60A max. In your subpanel you will see breakers are staggered, every other one is on same phase.. so when running the circuits to the subpanel make sure your not overloading one phase, you want to balance the circuits between them.
You need to figure out how to break out your power, you can calculate how many amps you will need by using this formula: WATTS/VOLTS = AMPS
For example a 400w Light on a 120v circuit will use ~3.6 AMPS, a 400w Light on a 240v circuit will use ~1.8 AMPS.. dont forget to leave your self overhead, on a 20A circuit dont exceed 16A. Personally I would keep it between 12-14A max on a 20A circuit unless you take care to stagger devices on timers so they dont start at the same time and cause an overload.
For each 240v 20A circuit your good for ~3200W with a comfortable overhead.
For each 120v 20A circuit your good for ~1600W with a comfortable overhead.
Most people wont waste there time with 15A circuits, if your needing this kind of power you likely have a few thousand watts of lighting to support..
For each 240v 15A circuit your good for ~2500W with a comfortable overhead.
For each 120v 15A circuit your good for ~1200W with a comfortable overhead.
Keep in mind any sensors or sensitive electrical equipment you might be running in your room will do better on there own circuit, my continuous EC/PH meter gave me erratic temperature readings when on the same circuit as my digital ballasts.. Ballasts and Pumps generate alot of electrical noise, Ive seen HID ballasts causing enough interference that CFL ballasts have trouble firing on the same circuit.. Its good practice to separate noise generating electronics onto there own circuits to prevent interference. If your wiring up 110v circuits its best if you can put the nosiest gear on the opposite phase of any equipment that may be susceptible to interference.
Some example distributions:
1x20A 240v, 4x20A 120v w/2 circuits per phase
2x20A 240v, 2x20A 120v on opposite phases.
6x20A 120v, w/3 circuits per phase
3x20A 240v
Now lets hook this up now that we have planned it out.
First mount your subpanel, it needs to have several feet of free space on all sides.. dont stick it in a corner, put it in the middle of the wall. If its going to be close lookup your local code, they will specify in inches how close other permanent fixtures can be to any circuit boxes.
Next we need to convert your new circuit box into a subpanel, this is easy.. you have 2 grounding points in the box and they will be bridged by a wire/pole. Code says neutral and ground can only be bridged at your main panel, its not safe to have them bridged at a subpanel so make sure you remove this so they are isolated.
The bar I removed:
Now pull your 6/3 romex wire between your boxes, start from one end and pull it to the other.. dont start in the middle, this stuff is too thick to bend easy. You need to run it either through the walls or through electrical conduit (or both), you cant just lay the wire on the ground or nail it to the wall..
Shutoff the power to your main circuit box and install your 60A double pole breaker, flip the new breaker OFF. Dont overload your main with your new power requirements.. adding 60A 240 to a 100A 240 service might cause cause your main breaker to trip if your electric oven comes on. If you need to upgrade your service then you need a licensed electrician.
Hook the 2 hot wires (RED & BLACK) to double pole breaker, one wire per pole (phase). Hook your neutral (WHITE) and ground (Bare copper) to the grounding bar in your breaker box. Make sure your new breaker is off and put your circuit box back together before turning your main power back on.
At your subpanel, hook the 2 hot wires into the main breaker and your ground and neutral to there respective bars.. Make sure everything is secured properly.
Shutoff all the circuits in your subpanel, including the main circuit.. then go turn your new breaker in your main box on.. as long as you didn't damage the wire when installing it this should be completely uneventful. If the breaker pops you likely shorted out the wire durring install.
Grab your multimeter and lets test things..
Check the hots going into the main circuit one at a time against both your neutral and ground.. they should all read ~120v.
Check both your hots together, they should read ~240v.
If all is good wire up your subpanel circuits if you havent already, leaving all the breakers off and then put your subpanel back together carefully. Turn the subpanel main on and one at a time bring your circuits online.. testing all your outlets with your multimeter for proper voltage/polarity and ground before continuing to the next circuit.
Testing a 120v outlet hot & neutral
Be Safe,
- Ben
Images attached for prospairity.
