Thread: Yard light wiring suggestions

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Hello All!!!!


Soooo..... I bought 30 of the lights pictured below at a scavenger type junk store a few weeks ago, and I need some suggestions as to how I should go about wiring them up so I don't burn my house down.

The plan is to 'up light' some Halloween features in my yard, small trees, a few scarecrow type props, as well as the house it's self. I'm normally pretty good and wiring up one or two things, but this time I thought I should ask some people who have done something like this before.

I'm limited on exterior electrical outlets, so I was hoping to get at least two or three lights per power cord so I don't have to have power strips and extension cords running everywhere. The problem is, I don't want to cause an overload and risk the unimaginable.

If it helps, I can fully detail my layout plans/hopes as well as photos of the yard.

Anyway.... below are some photos of the lights I'm working with.

I have 15 of each of these lights. They came out of a Disney store from the mall. I realize they are indoor track lights, but for the price I paid, I'm willing to risk a little weather on them.



Seen here is the part of the light that slid on the original track unit that powered them. I was thinking about getting some flat style wire connectors and simply sliding them on to the copper tabs for power. This way I could utilize the built in power switches for each individual light.



But I'm worried about the ground wire. Do I need a ground wire? My regular house lamp doesn't have a ground wire. I was hoping I could get away without one here. I have a whole spool of lamp cord I could use.



Here is another shot of the internals. You can see the ground wire here. You can also see a black headed screw where the green wire terminates (sorry, I should have put an arrow on it). It doesn't go to the light. So do I really need it?


When I completely disassemble the light, this is what is left. It looks just like the business end of my house lamp, that uses no ground wire.






Is there a way to wire these up in groups, just like they were in groups on the track in the store.... but without a ground? If I must utilize a ground wire, a few words of advice as to how I should wire them up?

I can always provide more pics.

THANKS FOR ANY HELP!

First thing I'd do is check the insulation of the wire, meaning the type of insulation, there shuold be some type of letter designation on the wire itself. The type could have the letters such as THNN,TEW, SOJ, SOW etc. Then look up the type of wire it is and that should tell you the uses for it. You can use the NEC or any good wire supplier or an electrical supply house should be able to help. Looking at the pictures it looks like the wire is a high temp.wire. and there is nothing that would be any good for outdoor use. Also realize that along with proper fixtures for outdoor use ,you should use the lights that are rated for outdoor use, they are made to withstand the elements.

You need to know what the wattage of each fixture, that is what size bulb it has, Also make sure they are 120V .