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Electrical Help!

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Well, the 2009 season is upon us. It's usually around July that I start thinking about the big day, and this year is no different.

This is a problem, though, that has been plaguing me since H'ween 2008. Last year was our first year in the current house, and we ran into a problem. I'm hoping that someone here will have a relatively simple fix to the challenge at hand.

It seems that all of our outdoor outlets (the garage, the front porch, and the deck in the back yard) are all on the same circuit. Where it gets interesting is if you go to the basement and check out the breaker box - the circuit comes off the box and goes directly into a GCFI, then splits off to the various external outlets.

The result? You guessed it. I can run 4 flood lights and a fogger before tripping the GCFI, and leaving the entire haunt in the dark. This year I've got three 400W foggers, and I have decided that I definitely need more lighting - preferably more task oriented fixtures to focus on individual props.

Does anyone have any creative ideas on how to remedy my dilemma? I don't particularly want to bring an electrician in to wire a dedicated Halloween circuit, but I'm a visual geek and I need my lighting!

Thanks!
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Diabolik

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#11 ·
If you are not looking to bring in a professional, and you are not up to changing around any of your home's current wiring or breakers, then using an extension cord from another circuit sounds like it might be your best bet. My only suggestion is to spend the money up front and buy the longest, heaviest gauge cord you can find. There are contractor grade cords that are made with 14 or even 12 gauge wire. The 12 gauge will safely handle your needs over the distance of the cord. Pulling a 15-20 amp load through 50 or 100 feet of cable will cause your extension to heat up quite a bit if it is undersized. :)
 
Diabolik

· Keeper of Spider Hill
Joined
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1,788 Posts
#15 ·
BallstonManor said:
It's funny - two years ago I would've said "Okay, we need a dedicated circuit". But my wife was pregnant last H'ween, and we've got the baby this year, so while I may HAVE the money to do stuff like that, it isn't necessarily the best USE of it! LOL

I may look at the LED option a little bit. A lot of you seem to have reported success with them, so I'll do some more reading.

Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Last Christmas at Walgreens, they had colored CFL spots. They were not very expensive either. I wanted to snag a couple to test them out, but I never got back there to get any of them...:mad:
 
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Coffinsmith
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