potential fire, halted

i know i have way too many strips and my house wireing was rewired a few years ago, and again 2 years ago,. but then again how can you trust these guys??
one guys says this and then the other guys say that,.. how the heck do i know whats up,..

the light that burned has one bulb burned out a while ago and i removed it thinking i had another but it was the wrong size, and i left it out, perhaps this is the problem,, it has a cover over the bulbs, and a glass top on the tanks so nothing got in there,.. could this have screwed up the power?
 
Check the ballast on the light. Not having both lights in shouldnt affect it in that manner, it should be drawing less power because its not lighting the other bulb, I think. Anyways, check the ballast and see if it smells of burnt wires, or if theres any stuff oozing out of it. This may require taking the fixture apart.

Did you have any storms in your area recently?

Personally, since you dont know about this kind of stuff, perhaps take the fixture to someone who has a basic concept of how electricity works and how things are suppose to be wired and have them check it out..
 
CWO4GUNNER said:
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.
Click to expand...

i've already thrown the strip out it was one i got in an auction, not a new one,.. came from a lawnmower shop going out of business, we bought all the office stuff,.. and they were in the box,..
 
Blueiz said:
Check the ballast on the light. Not having both lights in shouldnt affect it in that manner, it should be drawing less power because its not lighting the other bulb, I think. Anyways, check the ballast and see if it smells of burnt wires, or if theres any stuff oozing out of it. This may require taking the fixture apart.

Did you have any storms in your area recently?

Personally, since you dont know about this kind of stuff, perhaps take the fixture to someone who has a basic concept of how electricity works and how things are suppose to be wired and have them check it out..
Click to expand...

no burn smell there can't really see good till morning,.. i have wired my porch lights and my ceiling lights,.. myself

but everything was there for it,..
i don't know what load or volts it takes and the other stuff needed to know if i have the right stuff i can rebuild most things,... just don't know size and amounts of wattage and crap,..
 
dixienut said:
no burn smell there can't really see good till morning,.. i have wired my porch lights and my ceiling lights,.. myself

but everything was there for it,..
i don't know what load or volts it takes and the other stuff needed to know if i have the right stuff i can rebuild most things,... just don't know size and amounts of wattage and crap,..
Click to expand...

Thenyou shold be ok to check your light out. Heres what I would do. Take the light apart so you can see the wiring, look at each wire and the harnesses/connectors and make sure they all look like they should, no burned spots, hard-cracked wires, etc. If all looks good, put it back together, change the plug end (a simple drop cord end will work fine, just tell the person in the dept you want a 3 prong drop cord end), and see what happens. You are plugging this into plugging this into a 120 volt receptacle, usually around 15 amps. The prongs on a plug are different for the higher volts and amps..
 
My Opinion:

DONT fix thet faulty plug, and plug it back in.
It got hot and burned for a reason. And before you fix the plug, you need to determing what is wron that is making that fixture pull enough current to melt the plug. Something is wrong with that fixture, and if you fix the plug, you arent fixing ther problem, but simply putting a pand aid on a broken arm.

I would inspect the ballasts, and see if any are defective.
are any of the bulbs not lighting up, are they dim or flickering?

To replace that plug is not preventing a fire, just postponing it.


And about the Ground...

Any time an electronic device is used around water, the ground is essential for safety reasons, not so much for the operation of the light, but the correct operation of the breakers, and to prevent electric shock. Any device that has a GFCI (ground fault Circuit Interrupter) MUST be grounded for that GFCI to function in a fault situation.

Do yourself a favor, and dont take a chance with this. If you arent sure how to determine what is wrong with it, and make the appropriate repairs, then take it to someone that can.
 
I'm not certain if it was the light or the power strip? but the other 4 plugs were fine and not burned as stated before it wasn't a new power strip,.. also perhaps there might have been a chance that some water go on it?
i changed the salt water tanks water yesterday,.. maybe there was a splash? i have to adjust some rocks that fell over,... could that have made it get hot? as the strip is between 2 tanks,..

I'm always checking the strips and all plugs just to be cautious, i hate surprises,.. I'm a worrier,..
no flickering or nothing other than the smell from the strip that is where the burn was in the holes of where the prongs go the strip got the worst of it,.
 
You are so lucky you were home and smelled the burning before it caused any major damage.

First, I'd replace your tank outlets with GFCIs. It's really easy, I've put in several of them, just make sure you cut the power first!

Second, call Coralife and ask about the warranty. Their number is 800-255-4527. They might work with you, especially since their product almost burned your house down.
 
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