Question about power...

[spreerider]

with your demand of 1440W you will be fine but are slightly pushing it and in even a small fault like a pump getting jammed it will draw larger than its highest current and could cause nusance trips,
a single duplex recepticle is both plugins they are usually on one circuit but in kitchens each plug on the duplex recepticle should be on a different circuit so you can plug the toaster 1400W and the kettle 1500W at the same time and not trip the breaker,
If you are worried contact a local electrician and have them quote a new run from the panel to your tank and install a GFCI for both circuits it could save your life in the event of a fault.

[mike31154]

Some good advice here, but be careful, not all is necessarily according to code. Might be a good idea to go to your local renovation center and invest in a book called the "Electrical Code Simplified" for your province. I have the BC edition and it cost all of $11.95 but I consider that money wisely spent since I'm doing a fair amount of rewiring in my older home. I used to maintain electrical systems on aircraft, so I'm comfortable working on my house wiring.

"you might have your fridge on the same cct as your tank"... not legal according to code in BC. A fridge has to be on it's own circuit and the only other load that may be plugged into that receptacle is a "clock" of all things... I'm sure the Alberta code requirement is similar.

"just run a new dedicated 20A 12gauge line to the tank."... 20A circuits require special receptacles (T-Slot) and you're still working with only one circuit. If the breaker goes, everything is down. While a normal plug will fit into a T-Slot receptacle, you may be better off running a single 3 wire cable which will allow you to run two separate 15 amp circuits for a total load of 30 amps, vice 20. This will provide redundancy and you'll be able to use 14 guage wire instead of 12.

While you're still safe with the total of 1300 watts on that circuit, I'll wager that some of the wiring on it will be pretty warm at times. Better safe than sorry. As heat increases in wiring, resistance increases, causing more heat, more resistance.... hopefully the circuit breaker will do its job, but no need to push your luck when it comes to electrons. If you're thinking of adding another tank with it's equipment to that room, I don't think you have any choice but to run another circuit or two.

[mark]

Originally Posted by mike31154

"you might have your fridge on the same cct as your tank"... not legal according to code in BC. A fridge has to be on it's own circuit and the only other load that may be plugged into that receptacle is a "clock" of all things... I'm sure the Alberta code requirement is similar.

okay maybe a bad example assuming wired to code, but point I was trying to get across is bet there's more on that breaker than just the receptacle the fish tank is plugged into.

If you don't know what else is on the cct you can't just say I've got a 200W pump, couple of 400W lights and 300w heater, I'm good to go.

[mike31154]

Originally Posted by mark

okay maybe a bad example assuming wired to code, but point I was trying to get across is bet there's more on that breaker than just the receptacle the fish tank is plugged into.

If you don't know what else is on the cct you can't just say I've got a 200W pump, couple of 400W lights and 300w heater, I'm good to go.

Yes, sorry and very good point. I kind of grabbed that quote out of context trying to encourage the poster to ensure that whatever he decides, that it's done correctly, which looks to be the case since he started the thread.

[MikeP]

Wow, lots of good info here guys. Yes everything is fine at the moment and I'm not having any problems but I got thinking about all that power needed from those two plugs and figured I'd educate myself. I looked at the circuit breaker panel last night and everything is labeled (by the home builder) but it's pretty vague. I will have to flip some breakers to figure out what's what. I'll start looking into a dedicated circuit and GFCI. Any electrician reefers in Calgary want to help out

[mike31154]

If the electrical contractor that wired your home was on the ball, he may have split some of your room receptacles between different circuit breakers. It's a good practice and many electricians will ensure it's done that way. You'll find out soon enough when you start tripping breakers.

Vague is usually the best you'll get wrt labeling on CB panels. There's not much room for writing on those tiny tags. But it should at least provide you with some idea of what room(s) you're dealing with. This always amazed me when compared to aircraft wiring, where each individual wire is labeled every few inches with a circuit designation. From that code you can decipher exactly which equipment the wire is associated with.

Anyhow, check the other receptacle in your room and if it happens to be on a different circuit breaker, there's really no need to run another circuit. Just install a GFCI receptacle in the box and you're good to go.

[slakker]

If you do other electrical work once in a while as well, it may be a good idea to invest in an amp meter. One of those clamp on types that doesn't need to be inline with the circuit. Then you will know exactly the draw you're pulling on the circuit.