TheJackal Posted March 30, 2013 Share Posted March 30, 2013 If I orderd the CTB16PC board only and bought an enclosure, can I run SPT wire from my outlet to the the board and SPT wire from the board to my lights or do/should I run an 3 wire extension cord from my outlet to the board? Since the lights aren't grounded, I wouldn't think it would matter or am I wrong? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dgtlpro Posted March 30, 2013 Share Posted March 30, 2013 Word to the wise...always be safe. It is better to run grounded cord on a CGFI protected circuit. Not running grounded cords on unprotected circuits is just asking for trouble. Just remember Murphy's law! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LightsinMaine Posted March 30, 2013 Share Posted March 30, 2013 I also run heavy extensions grounded to my controllers. Then SPT from controllers to lights Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheJackal Posted March 31, 2013 Author Share Posted March 31, 2013 That's the way I figured would be best anyway. Wouldn't really make much difference pricewise, I think. Would just need to buy an extension cord and cut off the female side, crimp on some connectors and voila. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john fulkerson Posted March 31, 2013 Share Posted March 31, 2013 ya remember murphy he got electrocuted lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plasmadrive Posted March 31, 2013 Share Posted March 31, 2013 (edited) If you are running only SPT cord to your lights from the controller, the only thing you are Grounding is the heatsink on the controller if you use a plastic case. The heatsink can become hot if a triac pops or you get moisture tracking from power to the heatsink. Basically it will ground out the stray voltage and trip your GFCI making it much safer for you if you open the controller while hot. This can also help prevent slow starting burning... but only if the GFCI trips. Bottom line is that you "should" run a 3 wire cord to the controller. However, it won't have much effect on anything outside the controller if all you run after that is SPT cord. Edited March 31, 2013 by plasmadrive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max-Paul Posted March 31, 2013 Share Posted March 31, 2013 I am running LEDs so my whole display draws about 11 amps with all on at the same time. I decided that I dont need no stinking 12 12Ga extention cords. I made up one 10' 12 Ga cord to my first controller that is in the middle of the others. From this one controller all of my power is on SPT. Now the tricky part is that you have to decide to make either the side with ribs Hot or neutral. And do this for all of the other SPT cords. See what I do is I daisy chain the power out to all of the other controllers. You have to feed power to the controllers so that the Hot is on the fuse terminals and the Neutral to the common neutral terminals. If you do not make sure that this is right. You will always have Hot power going out to all of your lights all of the time. First this is something of a safety issue. Second your lights will not dim properly and when the ground is wet and your using LEDs. The lights might stay on a little or a lot, even when no show is running. So, in short, keep the polarity to the controller straight and you will have fewer problems. Once you leave the controller, any thing goes. And you do not need a ground once you leave the controller. BTW if you have a GFI installed, a ground to the controller is not needed to protect you. Of course this is just my 2 cents worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 If I orderd the CTB16PC board only and bought an enclosure, can I run SPT wire from my outlet to the the board and SPT wire from the board to my lights or do/should I run an 3 wire extension cord from my outlet to the board? Since the lights aren't grounded, I wouldn't think it would matter or am I wrong?Most SPT wire is 18-gauge, which is only good for about 7 amps. You could easily exceed that with 16 channels, unless you stick to 100% LED. If you are running only SPT cord to your lights from the controller, the only thing you are Grounding is the heatsink on the controller if you use a plastic case.On the PC controllers I bought from LOR a couple of years ago, the ground wire does not go to the heatsink. Instead, it goes to the aluminum bracket that mounts between the controller and the holes on the bottom, that holds the wire clamps. Grounding that is next to useless, unless you actually have 3-wire fixtures. Now the tricky part is that you have to decide to make either the side with ribs Hot or neutral.All the pre-wired lamp cords I have seen have the ribbed wire as neutral. Also the female SPT sockets I bought have a label that says "ribbed site" that connects to the neutral side. And a search for "ribbed site of a lamp cord" finds lots of discussion that all say the ribbed side is neutral. So that's what I would do. A few years ago the local hardware store was clearing out a bunch of 2-conductor (black and white) orange outdoor power cable, 16 and 14 gauge. So that's what I use to power many of my controllers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plasmadrive Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 Ya know.. I just looked, and you are correct.. the heatsink is NOT grounded.. and yes.. it is next to useless.. but in actuality I think all metal parts are supposed to be grounded.. if I remember my code correctly.. But, none the less.. that bracket is grounded... . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheJackal Posted April 3, 2013 Author Share Posted April 3, 2013 I ordered 3 boards only. Which way would you think it would be better to connect the power? Or is either way ok?or Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plasmadrive Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 either works.. depends on your load.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheJackal Posted April 3, 2013 Author Share Posted April 3, 2013 either works.. depends on your load..I planned on connecting both sides for power and then running SPT wire from the boards out to the lights. Since I'm not using LED's, I want to be sure I don't overload the boards. Thx for the help Plasma. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plasmadrive Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 (edited) I am converting all my controllers this year to one input power cord. I now have almost all LEDs and where I needed two circuits in the past I can now run on one.. I was running about 18k mini incans on two circuits with one controller and you could actually see the far ones dim and brighten as other lights flashed. This year I have ordered all LEDs to replace them.. should be far less power.. you should not have any issues if you are running LEDs.. unless you are running HUGE amounts.. as in tens of thousands on one controller.. And you are welcome if I was of any help. Edited April 3, 2013 by plasmadrive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grump010 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 I planned on connecting both sides for power and then running SPT wire from the boards out to the lights. Since I'm not using LED's, I want to be sure I don't overload the boards. Thx for the help Plasma.I just run a single power cord out of my controllers and jumper inside, nice and neat and clean. I only run LED's on my controllers so not a great power draw. CheersDaryl B. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scubado Posted April 5, 2013 Share Posted April 5, 2013 (edited) Hey Jackal, if you can wait a couple weeks, I can help you out with assessing your needs when I come to Boulder. I'll be there for two weeks with a rental car. Anyone else in the Boulder/Denver area? Send me a PM if you want to meet up. In July, I'll be in the Boston area for two more weeks of training. I was to be in a training class in Deluth Georgia in June, but the class got cancelled. I'm waiting to be rescheduled for that class. Edited April 5, 2013 by scubado Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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