250 watt HQI ballast.

[powerboy]

looks like it isnt my last post

and im not at all upset, just feels like my point isnt being conveyed.

Is 220V inherently safer than 110V? If we're going to introduce variables such as "shoddy wiring" then it seems to me that 220V is potentially "twice as dangerous" as 110V. Convenience be one thing, efficiency be other thing, and safety be yet another thing.

for a second, try to forget voltage.. its just another way to deliver the current.. the amps are what is important. this all depends on whats going on with the main panel in your house, the age of the hardware, etc.

if you have a 100 amp main service, and your house isnt drawing tons of power, then keep it with what you have.. the reason to go with 220v is when amps are at a premium, and/or safety.

if you look at whats in your main panel, you will see lots of single pole 120v breakers with 14gauge(min code) wire going from them to wherever it leads.. now, each break in the line adds to resistance. resistance equals heat. heat makes the breaker trip (as well as amps) if its wired correctly, all is well and life goes on.

now each 400 watt ballast puts out about 5 some odd amps at startup and settles down to about 4ish i believe (120v)

put two on there and you now have pretty much maxed the circut.. not to mention the other breaks in the line ie other recepticles etc.. then you have to look for other sources of power, so what do we do? we run extention cords.. which are not at all designed to carry power for a long time.. they are for instant power then to be put away.. this is why the wire is stranded.. not very efficient.. all of this creates a network of heat from multiple places with potential for multiple problems.

now i realize its not practical in most cases to just run another line and tear up walls etc. we are far to use to just "plugging it in and hope for the best" so to speak

electricity is quite dangerous, and we as the consumer are not educated enough on the topic. its a harmonious balance to keep electricity in check.. just "plugging it in and trusting existing wiring" is certainly not for me.

in an ideal world we would all run 220v sub panels to our tanks and have one source of power to draw from. this is the way to do it, but as we all know not feasable in most cases.

i guess the nuts and bolts comes down to.. does using a dedicated line make sense to the average hobbiest who is drawing only 10 amps, certainly not.

does it make sense to the person who is drawing 30amps @120 volts? it does indeed..

3 400w ballasts, a few pumps and a heater or two and your there. (i didnt even mention people with chillers)

its not hard to add up the amps with todays toys

always air on the side of caution when dealing with electricity..

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