potential fire, halted

dixienut

dixienut

AC Members
Jun 15, 2006
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Hookstown/Georgetown area pennsylvania
hey there, was just trolling around the forum and noticed a wire burning smell and hunted around and checking all my power strips,..
and smelled each one nothing and then saw the one way,.. back where i couldn't smell without digging it out and said well better anyway and pulled it out and that was the one it was a power strip that i have 3 tanks lights plugged into a timer and 2 light were no name ones and was worried,.. all lights were lit still and pulled out one by one and there it was the name brand one unplugged it and it was burned black,..
a coralife for a 20gal long,.. fw, now was it the light or the power strip only 1 outlet was burned,..
i put them in an extension cord for now, but it is too much for the extension cord,. they kept sparking if i tried to plug them all,.. so i left only the salt tank,.. the coralife seems like the plastic is burned in the middle if the 3 prongs,.. is it toast?? or what should i do,.. i really can't afford another light,..
does coralife warranty lights after a year? can the plug be fixed it doesn't seem bad but wont be able to see whats what till morning as its too dark with the house light to see anything for sure,..

all light seemed fine by themselves plugged in but won't let me plug all at the same time,.. till i get another power strip tomorrow, Which i can't afford either,. but hey what a person to do,...

any electricians here?????
 
Sorry i didnt pay more attetion in electronics class :(
 
The cord and plug can be fixed. I would look it up on a DIY site. I have fixed 2 prong plugs but never a 3 prong.
 
jackiomy said:
The cord and plug can be fixed. I would look it up on a DIY site. I have fixed 2 prong plugs but never a 3 prong.
Click to expand...

oin 90% of 3 prong plugs... the third prong is not even necessary
 
The third prong is very necessary, it is your ground and you are working with equipment that is around water, and that definately needs a ground. Its not necessary for the light to function, but it is necessary to prevent electrocution.

It is very simple to replace the three prob plugs, any home improvement store should carry them, (drop cord plug ends for making your own drop cords work great). The bigger question is what caused it to get so hot. For this I would look at the light fixture to see why it is pulling so much electricity. If the fixture is still under warranty Id go ahead and have it replaced. You could have a short in it. The reason why they wont all work plugged in together is because the one is pulling a lot more power than is needed, therefore overloading the circuit. And really, the breaker for that outlet should have tripped, you may wanna have that checked out as well.
 
Your best bet if all else is well is to replace the whole cord. You can buy appliance cords with a 3 prong plug molded into the end for next to nothing compared to a new light fixture. Make sure the one that you get is rated for the load that you will be using it on.
 
well that is where its beyound my abilities,..lol its a fat cord and big plug,.. it a double t5 has a 6700k and a 10,000k bulb in it,.
 
Sounds like a bad Christmas tree light senerio, You may be overloading the circuit,the power strip or the wiring of the lights could be bad in the light/cord. Post some pics of the plug and how things were wired. If something can not be found a definite source then i would play it safe and get the light and your home wiring professionally checked. My friend had 3 room house fire due to a aquarium light plugged in to lightstrip, when something went wrong. It almost totalled the house.
 
dixienut said:
well that is where its beyound my abilities,..lol its a fat cord and big plug,.. it a double t5 has a 6700k and a 10,000k bulb in it,.
Click to expand...

Its really simple to change it, however, before you do so, check to be sure its not under warranty because if you attempt to change it and that doesnt solve the problem, cutting the cord may voic the warranty.

To change the plug end, simply cut off the old plug, cut the plastic away expsing the inner wires on the cord about an inch down (not the coating itself on the inner wires yet), look at the old plug and see which color wire went to the ground, the other two dont really matter which prong they go to. Strip the wires about --- that much, insert into the proper place on the new plug. The new plug you should just screw down a little screw to hold the wires in place.

So, if the above confused you, take the strip and all to the parts store, any person that can tell you what plug to put on it should be able to show you how to change it, any good store should be willing to help you change it right there. :)
 
Yes as an electrician I can tell you that your breaker, fuse or GFI (ground fault interrupter) should have tripped off to protect your homes internal wiring from burning. Make sure that your homes circuit breakers or fuses are functioning properly by asking the power company to do a check sometimes free and if you don't have one install a GFI. Many a home have burn down from ignoring a bigger problem when power strips and extension cords start burning. As far as the power strip goes, throw it out and buy a new power strip as there could be a short anywhere in a defective device, a few dollars on a new cord isn't worth the risk, no way.
 
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