extension cords

[devoidelk]

I was looking around the net for a spool of electric wire that i can make custom extension cords for my display but i cannot figure out what gauge i would need to use i would like it to be three prong wire to make sure its grounded safely... Any ideas of a good spot to get wire?

[rimist]

Wal-Mart sells 100 foot 16 gauge grounded extension cords for around $17. That makes the wire $0.17/ft. That gauge wire can handle 13 amps.

-Rimist

[chrisatpsu]

I get spt1 or spt2 wire at lowes. then add vampire plugs on the end. ends are about 40 cents each, and a spool of 250 ft is like $50-$70

[tbone321]

Three prong wire really doens't make much sense in this situation.  Unless the devices that you are plugging in actually uses that type of plug, you are kinda wasting both money and time going that route.  Not only is the wire more expensive, the plugs are also much more expensive and take longer to install.  There are also no taps for this type of wire to put connections along the length of the cable.   If you feel that this cable type is a must then good luck but with the exception of my main power cords, I haven't used a foot of it and I have been doing this for over 30 years with no issues.

[lineman]

I was looking around the net for a spool of electric wire that i can make custom extension cords for my display but i cannot figure out what gauge i would need to use i would like it to be three prong wire to make sure its grounded safely... Any ideas of a good spot to get wire?

You might want to check here I bought from him last yhttp://wlcventures.com/zencart/index.php?main_page=products_all&disp_order=1&page=4ear stand up guy

[chrisatpsu]

smart string hubs running off of a pc power supply use the third prong.

[jnealand]

I only run heavy duty, 12ga 3 wire cords to each of my controllers.  Running that kind of wire to lights from a controller seems to be overkill to me and not needed.  I use a lot of standard extension cords in 6, 9, 12, 15 and 20 ft lengths.  I also have make custom cords using spt2 wire when I need something longer than 20 ft, which is mostly up on my roof since I put all my controller near the lights that they are controlling and most lights are only using very simple 16ga two wire connections.

[tbone321]

Yes they do and in that case I would use three prong extension cords but even in my display, out of the over 100 connections, only 3 of them use that type of connection.  When I implement the smart strings next year it will go up to 6.  None o my light strings, wire frames, blowmolds, or inflatable's use that type of connector so running a three prong cord to them would just be wasting money for me.  If the devices you are plugging in require it then it makes sense to use them but if they don't, then there is no benefit in using them and you are just spending time and money for nothing.

[chrisatpsu]

to throw in a little humor...  we are Christmas lights enthusiasts!!!  we throw time and money away regularly!!!   : )

[devoidelk]

Ok i wont worry about it then i just wanted to make sure i didn't short anything out by using grounded wiring.... spt1 or spt2 it is then I want custom extension cords, can't waste a single foot of wire lol