How many circuits?

[Guest guest]

Would someone be willing to submit a diagram of an "ideal" breaker setup starting with 16 channels and then what it would take to upgrade from there? I think it would be very helpful for us newbies.

[iresq]

july1962 wrote:

Would someone be willing to submit a diagram of an "ideal" breaker setup starting with 16 channels and then what it would take to upgrade from there? I think it would be very helpful for us newbies.

What is ideal, IMO, is to work backwards when trying to figure out your electrical needs.

16 channels running 30 amps will have a different ideal than 30 channels running 16 amps.

As previously stated, you need to work backwards. Start with your strings, then channels, then sides of a controller. Without knowing this information, it's very easy to over wire your electrical needs. The LOR speadsheet utility will help even further refine your power requirements.

For sake of argument, lets say that you are indeed pulling 15 amps per side of your controller. In this situation, you should have 2 - 20 amp circuits supplying power. Ideally, each of these circuits should be on its own phase (though this may not be required).

Faced with this dilemma myself, I decided that it was cheaper to just switch to led lights (mostly). I could run 4 controllers on 1 20 amp circuit but I have it set up with 2 controllers each on a 20 amp. I have plenty of power left for expansion.

If all of this is a little intimidating, it would be very beneficial to calculate your current and projected power needs then have a couple of licensed electricians survey your current situation and provide proposals to upgrade your electric.

[Cray Augsburg]

Glad to have helped a fellow lightolier get a brew. Actually, if my father hadn't taught english to ROTC students, I wouldn't have gotten the beatings I did as a kid . . . and those lessons wouldn't have become so well ingrained (to verb a noun) as to have caught the faux paus.

At any rate, enjoy!

Cray

[Guest guest]

Well, being a total newbie at this, that seems backwards to me. I bought the 64 channel LOR, not expecting to be able to use all 64 channels at the first sitting, but looking to the future. If I'm going to have an electrician out now, I want to know what I need in the long-run, not now with whatever amount of lights I currently have, which isn't that much. It'll be cheaper to pay an electrician to do it all now than to have them come out multiple times to keep upgrading.

That's why I thought if someone could post an ideal setup, and I mean realistic, not wildly overdone, it would be very helpful.

Right now I only have one 20a circuit that runs 2 receptacles in my front yard. I can run extension cords from other parts of the house, but I'd like to avoid that since I'll need the extension cords for the lights.

[JBullard]

july1962 wrote:

That's why I thought if someone could post an ideal setup, and I mean realistic, not wildly overdone, it would be very helpful.

The problem with that statement is all our displays and lights are different. There is no "standard or ideal setup"

Someone running a lot of regular C9's with only a few controllers will have power needs drastically different then I do running 20 controllers (320 Channels) and just over 35,000 LEDs

What you have now "Right now I only have one 20a circuit that runs 2 receptacles in my front yard" is almost exactly what I use for my display, except I run off of three 15 amp circuits, one for each side of the yard, didn't want extension cords crossing my sidewalk!

I chose to invest in LEDs since the electricians were quoting me over $4000 to $5000 to meet my power needs if I stayed with incadescent bulbs. Was able to buy the LEDs and more controllers for less then that ! I pull about 20 amps total for my display.

EDIT: changed two 15 amp circuits statement to 3. Just remembered the other side of my driveway where I plug into the 3rd outlet. Still approx 20 amps total for the display.

[Guest guest]

JBullard wrote:

july1962 wrote:

That's why I thought if someone could post an ideal setup, and I mean realistic, not wildly overdone, it would be very helpful.

The problem with that statement is all our displays and lights are different. There is no "standard or ideal setup"

Well, I think that goes without saying. I think what would be helpful, though, would be to figure that someone was using the maximum amount of power possible for each LOR unit. Using less than that wouldn't effect the outcome either way. But if you don't have enough power, you're screwed. So I think there IS an ideal setup that accounts for maximum power usage.

[JBullard]

july1962 wrote:

JBullard wrote:

july1962 wrote:

That's why I thought if someone could post an ideal setup, and I mean realistic, not wildly overdone, it would be very helpful.

The problem with that statement is all our displays and lights are different. There is no "standard or ideal setup"

Well, I think that goes without saying. I think what would be helpful, though, would be to figure that someone was using the maximum amount of power possible for each LOR unit. Using less than that wouldn't effect the outcome either way. But if you don't have enough power, you're screwed. So I think there IS an ideal setup that accounts for maximum power usage.

If you have the 2 1602 Showtime controllers (rated for 40 amps max with modifications) and never plan on having any more then the 64 channels you now have, then 80 amps would be your max draw.

If you have the PC line of controllers (rated 30 amps each) then 60 amps would be the maximum you would use.

[Guest guest]

If you have the 2 1602 Showtime controllers (rated for 40 amps max with modifications) and never plan on having any more then the 64 channels you now have, then 80 amps would be your max draw.

If you have the PC line of controllers (rated 30 amps each) then 60 amps would be the maximum you would use.

I think you're missing my point. I'm not talking about just myself, I'm talking about any newbie that comes by here. I'm sure I will eventually want more than 64 channels. I was just hoping someone would say something like, "For every LOR 16 Controller box it would be best to have xAmps, split this way, using these breakers...and you could put a max of x controllers on one xAmp breaker, divided up....etc.

I don't know about "40 amps max with modifications" this is the first I've heard that.

But if I have 4 boxes that can each run 30 amps, how is 80 amps my max draw? 4x30=120 amps, no? 2 1602's is 32 channels, not 64.

[JBullard]

july1962 wrote:

I don't know about "40 amps max with modifications" this is the first I've heard that.

But if I have 4 boxes that can each run 30 amps, how is 80 amps my max draw? 4x30=120 amps, no? 2 1602's is 32 channels, not 64.

Sorry, my bad on the math. But if you plan on loading lights on each controller to the max, then plan your power accordingly per controller max rating.

The 1602 controllers in the steel case can handle 40 amps. It is shipped as a 30 amp controller. To convert to a 40 amp unit, the power input cords have to be changed to 20 amp cords with the 20 amp rated plug, and the fuses upgraded to 20 amps from the 15 amps as shipped.

I only use one 18 AWG input cord on each of my 20 contollers and really don't worry about power when using all LEDs, so just mentioned my setup as an alternative for consideration to spending the big bucks on power upgrades and the need for power calculations. I would rather spend my time welding wireframes and building other display elements then worrying about power.

[LightORamaDan]

Please note: Two posts were deleted from this thread per a request of the poster.

Dan

[pdowns]

LightORamaDan wrote:

Please note: Two posts were deleted from this thread per a request of the poster.

Dan

I'd bet I know why! I'm not playing anymore either.

[Guest guest]

What happened?!

[rgardner518]

pdowns wrote:

LightORamaDan wrote:

Please note: Two posts were deleted from this thread per a request of the poster.

Dan

I'd bet I know why! I'm not playing anymore either.

I want to know what happen too?

[JBullard]

In looking back through the thread, I see that a couple of posts that I remembered are no longer there. No big deal, though.

[rgardner518]

cmoore60 wrote:

Jeff,

If you look at Yankees panel layout he is using tandem breakers and both lines from the breaker are feeding a single box ( 2 GFCI receptacles) outside. He stated he would be plugging both sides of a controller into the single box. This could have the potential to overload the neutral.


Quote from Yankee:

"I have each GFI breaker on its own breaker. So for example one pair off tamdem breakers goes to one box using 12/3. The black wire goes to the brown GFI in each and the red goes the the grays. So 10 outlets mean 10 breakers."


I do understand that if his Christmas box 1 breakers were on seperate phased, BUT THEY ARE NOT.

Chuck

I made those changes to both the tandem breakers and to my Whole house surge protector. What do you think now.



Attached files

[rgardner518]

Where do I find the spreedsheet? I need it, I'm blowing fuses on one side of one of my controllers.

[RaceMedic]

On the topic of power ... I am trying to work backward my Amps per channel.

I am using the reference of ... F:Light O RamaPlanetChristmas Figuring Power Needs.htm

I may be reading this wrong but I don't see what the Amps is per C9 LED replacement bulbs ?!

Thanks,

Dave