Light Pole

hj said:

quote; cord is supposed to be weather resistant says the guy at homedepot.

Now that's a recommendation that should relieve your mind of any possible worries.

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Most of the people at HD have to pass a test don't they ?

I would be concerned about rodents chewing on the wire under the Brush and leaves.

DonL said:

Most of the people at HD have to pass a test don't they ?

I would be concerned about rodents chewing on the wire under the Brush and leaves.

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Yes, that is a concern with most wire.

Cameron Fields said:

the cord actually runs ground level with leafs on top running through the bush. and the cord is supposed to be weather resistant

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You are asking for trouble and maybe even a fire. This is a very bad idea.

There is no such thing as a weather proof cord. There are weather resistant cords but after time these will fail. There is no cord that is approved to be buried under plants or the leaves of plants. This will cause the cord to deteriorate at a rapid speed.

The NEC is a bare minimum safety guide line. To do anything less than the requirements of the NEC will constitute an unsafe installation.

Cords are not to be used in place of a permanent wiring method. These lights are installed by your own statements a foot below grade which is a permanent installation even though they can be easily moved.

Any cord end cap that is exposed to the elements must be plugged into a receptacle that is weather proof with or without the end cap plugged in. Any circuit installed on the outside for an end cap must be protected by a GFCI device.

In post #9 you made the comment that the lights were 40 volts. Just how are you getting this voltage? If the transformer is installed in the fixture itself it must be rated for the installation and I don’t know of a 3 to 1 weather proof transformer that can be obtained for any reasonable price. Then there must be an enclosure for this step down transformer as well as for the terminations at the lamp holder.

There is a very high amount of liability that comes with this type of installation. It doesn’t matter how much pull you have with the mayor or any other law enforcement official. Once you have built and installed these fixtures any damage done due to the lack of listing and labeling of these fixtures will fall squarely on you.

DonL said:

Or the FAA if it is a Chinese lantern.

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you pot stirrer, You!

DonL said:

1 foot ?

Wait for a good rain, then you can gather them up.

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I thought it was glennsparky that was throwing a wet blanket on this
How'd I miss this thread?

BobL43 said:

I thought it was glennsparky that was throwing a wet blanket on this
How'd I miss this thread?

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You've been down on the muffin ? lol

That seems to make men miss everything, except the job in hand.


Maybe he would have been better off using UV protected Electrical Conduit.


How goes it Bob ? What would you have done ?

DonL said:

You've been down on the muffin ? lol

That seems to make men miss everything, except the job in hand.


Maybe he would have been better off using UV protected Electrical Conduit.


How goes it Bob ? What would you have done ?

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You got me pegged Don, but you make it sound like
my favorite group is Mary Fist and the five fingers.

Electrical PVC Conduit is grey and is bell and spigot joint, but just as plain jane, even when painted. The main point everybody is trying to make here is that even if it looks nice, you cannot make up your own lamps, although on HGTV they do. JW is right, especially if what you make is going on somebody else's property and makes you lible for everything mentioned by him and everybody else here. Things I may have done temporarily on my own property, I would never do on somebody else's.

It is amazing, though, what has been tested by UL and other labs like ETL and approved, fail anyway. Years ago I had a ceiling fan/lamp installed with 60 watt bulbs in 60 watt rated ceramic bulb sockets overheat the "hi temp" wiring attached to those sockets and char so badly that the insulation broke off and the conductors "almost" touched the metal brackets, but did not. Its not like where a speedometer that goes up to 120, but you should never drive that fast. I feel if a socket is rated for 60 watts, its not OK to install a larger wattage, but 60 should be fine. Anyway, I contacted UL those (probably at least 10 years ago) and sent them photos, but they said they would forward the photos and info to somebody and get back to me; they never did.

The sockets were made in China, but UL listed, so it was legal to use them. Sad, but funny. could have caused a fire maybe, or a heart attack.

I have been busy with spring yard cleanup work. 50 bags of leaves out of my back yard, and I have not even one tree in my back yard, just surrounded by 5 neighbors who have trees hanging over into my yard.

.
I do what I want on my own property.

I use uncommon sense and do my electrical better than the NEC minimum requirement.

A insurance company will find something wrong when you go to make a claim.


It was funny when I had my house inspected by the insurance company, when she seen my inside doorbell, she said so you have a security system, You get a 20% discount. I almost started laughing.

I did have a security and fire warning system so I did not say anything about her looking at the doorbell. I got my 20% discount.


Bob, You should not look a gift horse in the mouth.

Leaves make for great compost, and you can use them in your garden. I have my plants planted already.

Sounds like you have plenty of sunlight, If you have no trees. Your garden must do great.


Watch out for falling Light Poles.


73

DonL said:

.
I do what I want on my own property.

I use uncommon sense and do my electrical better than the NEC minimum requirement.

A insurance company will find something wrong when you go to make a claim.


It was funny when I had my house inspected by the insurance company, when she seen my inside doorbell, she said so you have a security system, You get a 20% discount. I almost started laughing.

I did have a security and fire warning system so I did not say anything about her looking at the doorbell. I got my 20% discount.


Bob, You should not look a gift horse in the mouth.

Leaves make for great compost, and you can use them in your garden. I have my plants planted already.

Sounds like you have plenty of sunlight, If you have no trees. Your garden must do great.


Watch out for falling Light Poles.


73

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Don, the only light pole I have in my yard is a 20 footer of 4 inch galvanized pipe 3 feet or more into a concrete foundation I put in myself 40 years ago. It has not fallen down yet, and only shows a little rust up top where the PVC cap screws on to the top. I have a 10/2 plus ground UF cable feeding it. Back then I did not know about codes, so I just went and did what I thought was proper or overkill.

I have an electric leaf shredder, which to me is useless, but my wife bought it for me 12 years ago. I will now donate it to Habitat ReStore. It works fine, but wastes too much time and produces way too much brown dust requiring a heavy duty dust mask and clothing change. Shredding 5 bags worth of leaves into one bag makes one HEAVY bag for me to get from my back yard 200 feet to the curb. We don't like leaf mulch anyway. My wife is the gardener; I'm just the laborer and at 70, I'm getting tired of it. What a guy won't do though for a happy ending.


My town has a huge composting facilty, so they take my leaves at the curb, grind it all up, compost it, and allow us residents, if we want to, to pick up unlimited amounts for free for our own use. They'll even deliver a whole truckload to my hoouse if I want for 45 bucks. What I do not like with that stuff, is it is always LOADED with little flies and other bugs.

BobL43 said:

Don, the only light pole I have in my yard is a 20 footer of 4 inch galvanized pipe 3 feet or more into a concrete foundation I put in myself 40 years ago. It has not fallen down yet, and only shows a little rust up top where the PVC cap screws on to the top. I have a 10/2 plus ground UF cable feeding it. Back then I did not know about codes, so I just went and did what I thought was proper or overkill.

I have an electric leaf shredder, which to me is useless, but my wife bought it for me 12 years ago. I will now donate it to Habitat ReStore. It works fine, but wastes too much time and produces way too much brown dust requiring a heavy duty dust mask and clothing change. Shredding 5 bags worth of leaves into one bag makes one HEAVY bag for me to get from my back yard 200 feet to the curb. We don't like leaf mulch anyway. My wife is the gardener; I'm just the laborer and at 70, I'm getting tired of it. What a guy won't do though for a happy ending.


My town has a huge composting facilty, so they take my leaves at the curb, grind it all up, compost it, and allow us residents, if we want to, to pick up unlimited amounts for free for our own use. They'll even deliver a whole truckload to my hoouse if I want for 45 bucks. What I do not like with that stuff, is it is always LOADED with little flies and other bugs.

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Wow and there you go that's how it done. Sounds like when I made my second flag pole.

Cameron Fields said:

Wow and there you go that's how it done. Sounds like when I made my second flag pole.

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And it is very pretty if you just close your eyes and imagine.

B.S. No testing lab is going to lick 'em and stick 'em.

Bobelectric said:

B.S. No testing lab is going to lick 'em and stick 'em.

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If you are referring to my post number 48, here are some photos

I promise you that the bulbs in there were 60 watt incandescant mini reflectors that were shown on their boxes for ceiling fan use. Being that all ceiling fans typically have their light fixtures with bulbs base up, a lot of the heat goes into the socket. So even if UL tested these units in prototype samples or whatever, these, all 4, failed.
The fan as you can see was from Home Depot. You can see some of the insulation marked 105o C insulation I believe.

BS you say? not from me.

That rating must be with the Fan on High to cool them off.

That is kind of crazy looking.


UL, meant Un-Listed on that part.

DonL said:

That rating must be with the Fan on High to cool them off.

That is kind of crazy looking.


UL, meant Un-Listed on that part.

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maybe yah fei means yuk-yuk?

but it was built to code and had the max lamp wattage that they indicated was safe to use. If it killed me somehow, everybody else's ass would be covered cause it met code. Who would my wife sue? the bulb mfg maybe, because a lab test showed the bulb drew actually 63 watts at 117 volts?

BobL43 said:

maybe yah fei means yuk-yuk?

but it was built to code and had the max lamp wattage that they indicated was safe to use. If it killed me somehow, everybody else's ass would be covered cause it met code. Who would my wife sue? the bulb mfg maybe, because a lab test showed the bulb drew actually 63 watts at 117 volts?

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Yep the Bulb Manufacture like to lie about their bulb rating.

I recently just tested some New LED lights from different makers.

Many of them test at a higher Wattage on their input rating.

The wattage should be the same, with a small variation in current, depending on the voltage.

They must want people to think they are getting something for nothing.


People do like Big numbers, Unless the big numbers are in the price.

I am with you screw the NEC my light poles have been there almost a year and are still standing! even after this mild storm and smelting heat!

DonL said:

.
I do what I want on my own property.

I use uncommon sense and do my electrical better than the NEC minimum requirement.

A insurance company will find something wrong when you go to make a claim.


It was funny when I had my house inspected by the insurance company, when she seen my inside doorbell, she said so you have a security system, You get a 20% discount. I almost started laughing.

I did have a security and fire warning system so I did not say anything about her looking at the doorbell. I got my 20% discount.


Bob, You should not look a gift horse in the mouth.

Leaves make for great compost, and you can use them in your garden. I have my plants planted already.

Sounds like you have plenty of sunlight, If you have no trees. Your garden must do great.


Watch out for falling Light Poles.


73

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I am with you screw the NEC my light poles have been there almost a year and are still standing! even after this mild storm and smelting heat!

DonL said:

.
I do what I want on my own property.

I use uncommon sense and do my electrical better than the NEC minimum requirement.

A insurance company will find something wrong when you go to make a claim.


It was funny when I had my house inspected by the insurance company, when she seen my inside doorbell, she said so you have a security system, You get a 20% discount. I almost started laughing.

I did have a security and fire warning system so I did not say anything about her looking at the doorbell. I got my 20% discount.


Bob, You should not look a gift horse in the mouth.

Leaves make for great compost, and you can use them in your garden. I have my plants planted already.

Sounds like you have plenty of sunlight, If you have no trees. Your garden must do great.


Watch out for falling Light Poles.


73

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Ok I am posting back because IK some of you agreed to what I had done while some of you believed it would fall apart. While I made an aberration to a traditional light pole. I would like to state those PVC poles are still standing. Thank you; to those whom believed.