Fire Safety: How do you prevent a disaster?

[bluter]

Holy crap they still make these! The house has old glass ones in the basement.

same idea but the tech is a bit newer. i'm glad this was brought up. i need to get on this

1) fans - they just stop working wear out

i've never actually had one cause a problem, but i've got a giant old snail fan, and i bet it won't be the best day when it inevitably gives out. every other fan i've had would either announce it's way out with noise or simply quit causing no drama or issues.

2) Timers - gotta get a heavy duty one specially if its turning on plus 600w lamps

really good point. also don't use digital timers on hid lighting ballasts.
always use heavy timers on hid.

digital timers are fine on led. i use them on all my led fixtures.

3) 120v power receptacles.

super good point.

also it's a good idea to check your wiring. it's advisable to upgrade your outlets if you have aluminum wiring, and cannot upgrade the wiring itself. the outlets themselves need to be upgraded using the correct connectors and new receptacles.

it is advisable wherever possible to run your space on a dedicated circuit.
i run my flower room on it's own circuit.

i'd add it's advisable to run 600w and above hid lighting on it's own dedicated circuit, separate from the rest of the grow space

if you can't get a dedicted circuit, run led, and get a good gfci power bar to use as a centralized distro . if the bar pulls above 15a it'll snap down. never run hid lighting off a shared power bar.

gfci power bars are often used in construction, or to protect computer equipment. the construction models are the ones you want, they are beefier, built from better components, and safer. get a good brand, there are cheap non gfci look-a-likes you want to avoid.

When lights come on there's a big momentary inrush of current. This is what fries power supplies, timers and power strips.

led avoids this. led drivers are a different animal. the firing surge is minuscule in comparison to hid. it's why digital timing and pwm control is possible under led.

they still should be run on gfci bars or a dedicated circuit though.

If you have a power strip that tripped, the more times it trips the more likely it will fail.

yes

Replace them with heavy duty outlets/power strips.

check your wiring first. lotsa wiring fires occur because homeowners try putting a heavier receptacle on a circuit not built to handle it.

i've had to wire in welders and air compressors and get power sorted for music production.

if stuff is constantly tripping it means you are over limit period, and need to solve for that. stuffing a hd receptacle in would be similar to hucking a penny under an old fuse. make sure your circuit is up to it.

 

[013]

While we are on safety use 2 ratchet straps at every attachment point. What happens when one ratchet craps out?

Sure it takes a second longer to adjust 2 straps on each end of a fixture but leave the second one with a few inches of slack to pick up the weight load should the primary hanger fail. This is supposed to be an industry standard for overhead equipment in venues like coliseums

 

[bluter]

While we are on safety use 2 ratchet straps at every attachment point. What happens when one ratchet craps out?

i like fixtures with four attachment points over two. grow industry standard is two, and i don't like it.

Sure it takes a second longer to adjust 2 straps on each end of a fixture but leave the second one with a few inches of slack to pick up the weight load should the primary hanger fail

four or more attachment points every x meter are required by law when flying a rig.
i'd have to look it up. you use your lift points then just safety strap or chain the rest in.

This is supposed to be an industry standard for overhead equipment in venues like coliseums

it still is. outdoor is even more stringent. at least in canada. if you've ever been on site for a rig collapse you'd know why.

 

[Morda Grown]

This is all good info and could save lives.

It should be a sticky!

 

[013]

There you go - thanks Bluter!!

 

[copperrein]

@013 wish you were closer, I would hire you for help here.

@bluter rig as in crane?

 

[bluter]

This is all good info and could save lives.

It should be a sticky!

agree.

while on a rant i want to also state my utter abhorrent hate for panda film. i truly believe the stuff should never be any where near an indoor grow.

every one i knew who burned had hid and panda. or a track with hid and panda. take one of those three away and it comes way down.

usually the light or track starts it, tracks used to be notorious. i've walked in to my own rooms to see one showering sparks, but it's always the panda that really gets it going to disaster if it catches.

i now run none of them. you can't pay me to run any of them, and we now have better tech available for all three

@bluter rig as in crane?

lol no. in this case lighting production for shows.

in the entertainment industry everything is a rig. the lighting rig. the audio rig. foh rig. production rig. the flying rigging, which is put up by certified riggers.

you even arrive in big trucks they call rigs lol ..

 

[013]

Thanks Copper, I’ve seen your grows so we could work it out in trade! I’m realiably informed a cola a day keeps the doctor away

Bluter by track - do you mean light mover?

 

[bluter]

Bluter by track - do you mean light mover?

no that would be a grip (local day roadie) ...

in this context yes, they are marketed as light movers.

the cords fray and wiring gets brittle over time. they are known to short in the cord internally, or against the track itself, which is usually aluminum, and presents it's own hazards, when in heat and electrical contact.

 

[013]

so a light mover that doesn’t require liquid lunch or ciggie break!

that’s good info on the triple threat of having light mover, HID and panda film.

I had a near miss with a oil filled heater, fortunately the arcing happened on concrete slab in flower room this would have turned out way different if it was inside my tent.

F5F793F9-4D62-4094-8239-4647C1A9DD41.jpeg

• 013
• Apr 2, 2021

 

[bluter]

so a light mover that doesn’t require liquid lunch or ciggie break!

yes. and as one i demand my lunch, but i don't smoke anything without a point to it.
nor does anyone on the crew

the guys i worked with are kind of known for that, while being very professional and delivering fantastic production.
we're known to be relaxed and professional, maybe a bit fun overall as well. i miss it, i've gotten too old to do the rigging, but i still get to run the board or pit sometimes. you'd be amazed how blue collar and gritty it really is.

 

[Bill284]

so a light mover that doesn’t require liquid lunch or ciggie break!

that’s good info on the triple threat of having light mover, HID and panda film.

I had a near miss with a oil filled heater, fortunately the arcing happened on concrete slab in flower room this would have turned out way different if it was inside my tent.

F5F793F9-4D62-4094-8239-4647C1A9DD41.jpeg

• 013
• Apr 2, 2021

Hey @013 I'm glad that wasn't in a tent.
Is that electric tape on the cord of that rad?
Bill

 

[Morda Grown]

so a light mover that doesn’t require liquid lunch or ciggie break!

that’s good info on the triple threat of having light mover, HID and panda film.

I had a near miss with a oil filled heater, fortunately the arcing happened on concrete slab in flower room this would have turned out way different if it was inside my tent.

F5F793F9-4D62-4094-8239-4647C1A9DD41.jpeg

• 013
• Apr 2, 2021

I had one of those and it did the same thing, it went in the trash. Electric space heaters are dangerous, have yet to have one that did not short out and/or melt the cord!

 

[bluter]

I had one of those and it did the same thing, it went in the trash. Electric space heaters are dangerous, have yet to have one that did not short out and/or melt the cord!

i run electric heat in my veg room. it's not dependent on it though, and i run a 750w/1500w on the lower setting.
i run it through a gfci board, so if it pulls anything more than 15a with the entire room combined it all snaps out.


if the cord or heater gets hot you have excess resistance, and can be an indicator of issues elsewhere as well.


i don't have a dedicated circuit on that room and my neighbours blow it at the box, but i never have. we metered all the draws when putting the space together.

using a kill-a-watt meter or knowing how to use a proper amp meter helps. it's not hard to learn

 

[Finnicki]

I moved the girls to the basement tent from our kitchen. The yellow metal strip is plugged into an outlet above tent. The plug is mildly warm, not hot as before. That’s guud news. Tent light has a timer so it will shut off on its’ own. I wonder if plug is cooler because I tested the plugs reset and off buttons a few times, or because it is plugged into a non gfci outlet, as it was in the kitchen? Now I just need to keep the humidity up in the tent!

 

[bluter]

The yellow metal strip is plugged into an outlet above tent. The plug is mildly warm, not hot as before. That’s guud news. I wonder if plug is cooler because I tested the plugs reset and off buttons a few times, or because it is plugged into a non gfci outlet, as it was in the kitchen?

a gfci outlet will have a reset on it. has nothing to do with being in the kitchen.
it's cooler because it is on a different circuit now and is making less resistance on it. also you might be using cords with a better gauge now.

 

[013]

Hey @013 I'm glad that wasn't in a tent.
Is that electric tape on the cord of that rad?
Bill

Hey Bill - yes it was spliced and taped with electrical tape, old heater for the goat delivery room and even tho it was metal tie wired and holey plumbing strapped to the cinderblock wall of course she chewed it to smithereens. We had a bunch of those things so that one got tossed

 

[bluter]

Hey Bill - yes it was spliced and taped with electrical tape, old heater for the goat delivery room and even tho it was metal tie wired and holey plumbing strapped to the cinderblock wall of course she chewed it to smithereens. We had a bunch of those things so that one got tossed

way off topic but i have to respect anyone with a goat delivery room


deliver that uber eats

 

[013]

a country man can survive….. keep ‘em warm, garbage in - garbage out works about the same for toddlers, gardens or goats

 

[bobrown14]

Goats wood eat my cannabis plants after they ate all our apples they could reach.