# "fish room" wiring



## Newobsession (Nov 17, 2010)

Ok, so this isn't a whoop dee doo fireworks kinda deal, but it's been a whille since I posted build-its so I thought I'd share. 

It's not really a fish room, just the basement where I had a tank, then I built an 8 ft table to hold a couple of them and store fish stuff underneath..then I built a rack to hold a couple more. I'm in the process of moving my son's 55 to the basement becasue he's had enough of it in his room. I also have a 65 in the garage I'm going to take down. 

I figured before I built more racks I'd take advantage of the space and tackled the project of doubling up the joists under the living room. Then I realized that ALL the tanks down there were running off of one receptacle and a collection of power bars, so now was the time to add a few more. This is the result. Not only did I run more along the wall, but I added some higher up so I could reach tehm over the tanks once they were in place, and added squares of plywood so I could mount the power bars etc..

Excuse the mess.. it's a couple weeks of building stuff and pulling thing out and apart to get to different spots etc


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## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

I run a computer business in my basement and when I moved in, there were only 2 outlets in the main room. I ended up taking down all the drywall because it was damaged, took down all the strapping and re studded the whole main room. Then I added 3 more breakers to my box and added about 2 dozen outlets. I can now plug in a computer or aquarium anywhere basically. My 90 gallon uses 5 plug ins in total, 2 lights, heater, filter, circulation pump and the 25 uses, 4 plugs.

Its amazing how easy basic electrical stuff is.


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## bob123 (Dec 31, 2009)

As a point of interest I would make sure that the outlets that you are installing have a ground fault in the circut for your safety, because water and electricity don't mix well. Good luck.


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## Newobsession (Nov 17, 2010)

pyrrolin said:


> I run a computer business in my basement and when I moved in, there were only 2 outlets in the main room. I ended up taking down all the drywall because it was damaged, took down all the strapping and re studded the whole main room. Then I added 3 more breakers to my box and added about 2 dozen outlets. I can now plug in a computer or aquarium anywhere basically. My 90 gallon uses 5 plug ins in total, 2 lights, heater, filter, circulation pump and the 25 uses, 4 plugs.
> 
> Its amazing how easy basic electrical stuff is.


i had thought about finishing the wall since i was going this far, but then decided that it would be a couple years until i finish the basement anyways and i wasn't going to go through the added expense of studding, insulation, drywall etc


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## Newobsession (Nov 17, 2010)

bob123 said:


> As a point of interest I would make sure that the outlets that you are installing have a ground fault in the circut for your safety, because water and electricity don't mix well. Good luck.


that's covered. each "block" of plugs is on a seperate breaker, and the first outlet in each series is a gfi receptacle and cover the rest in the line of them. I even filled the wire grommets on top of the lower plugs with silicone so i don't fun the risk of water running down into the boxes if it spills or splashes


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## bob123 (Dec 31, 2009)

Very good I know some people don't use gfi's they don't feel a need for the expense.


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## chinamon (Jun 16, 2012)

bob123 said:


> Very good I know some people don't use gfi's they don't feel a need for the expense.


time for me to bust out my ontario electrical code book...

26-700(11)
receptacles having CSA configuration 5-15R or 5-20R installed within 1.5m of sinks (wash basins complete with drainpipe), bathtubs, or shower stalls shall be protected by a ground fault circuit interrupter of the Class A type, except where the receptacle is
(a) intended for a stationary appliance designated for the location; and
(b) located behind the stationary appliance such that it is inaccessible for use with general-purpose portable appliances.

in my opinion, this should apply for anything that is a source of water/liquid. i think the code should be updated to include that.

also an fyi,

12-510(1)
where the cable is run between boxes and fittings, it shall be supported by straps or other devices located
(a) within 300mm of every box or fitting; and
(b) at intervals of not more than 1.5m throughout the run.

also, if you look at the panels of older homes you may see they put two romex cables in one box connector (when the wires enter your panel). that is no longer allowed. my boss also told me that some inspectors will not allow you to use metal connectors now and must use the plastic "3030" (we call them 3030 but i dont know what the official name is on the package). connectors by Scotch.


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## Newobsession (Nov 17, 2010)

chinamon said:


> time for me to bust out my ontario electrical code book...
> 
> 26-700(11)
> receptacles having CSA configuration 5-15R or 5-20R installed within 1.5m of sinks (wash basins complete with drainpipe), bathtubs, or shower stalls shall be protected by a ground fault circuit interrupter of the Class A type, except where the receptacle is
> ...


Sweet! I even meet code! Ok, all except the 2 cables going through 1 box connector into the panel, that I just copied from the other cables running into it.
Man it's amazing what you can learn from watching enough Mike Holmes...


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## madme (Nov 9, 2012)

chinamon said:


> time for me to bust out my ontario electrical code book...
> 
> 26-700(11)
> receptacles having CSA configuration 5-15R or 5-20R installed within 1.5m of sinks (wash basins complete with drainpipe), bathtubs, or shower stalls shall be protected by a ground fault circuit interrupter of the Class A type, except where the receptacle is
> ...


interesting information


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## Fishfur (Mar 4, 2012)

Those 3030 things are called, according to one site I peeked at, strain relief connectors. No doubt the inspectors prefer plastic because it's non conductive. So if the cable is somehow damaged, less chance of a short using plastic instead of metal, I would guess. But only a guess, I am not an electrician.

But boy, Mike Holmes is an educational gem for sure. Who'd have thought I would find watching a show about a building contractor so addictive. Scares me though, all that stuff he finds wrong with all those houses.. assuming I could ever afford a house, I'd be afraid to buy the darn thing.


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## Newobsession (Nov 17, 2010)

for no reason other than taking a break and I'm bored, thought I'd post the latest picture of the progress for the new tank rack in the basement


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## Newobsession (Nov 17, 2010)

no messing around when it comes to level lol


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## Dis (Apr 16, 2010)

looks good. my basement floor was so warped I have everything on shims. goodluck with the rest of your construction.


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## Newobsession (Nov 17, 2010)

thanks. and the finished result, although i still have to staple down the runner on the bottom


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## Dis (Apr 16, 2010)

Nice. Good idea with the carpet. How many tanks are you setting up?


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## dpickleboy (Feb 28, 2011)

What DIS said, good idea with carpets and how many tanks?


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## Newobsession (Nov 17, 2010)

Thanks. The carpet I find not only gives it a finished look, but stops the tanks from sliding, not that tanks normally move on their own and it's great until you WANT to move a tank and slide it over lol. Actually, the nice part about it is that I use the "carpet runner" i think they call it. 28" wide and you buy it by the foot for hallways etc. It has the rubber backing on it so it doesn't slip which means any spills or slops that do occur don't soak through to the wood.

As for tanks: the one currently on it is a 75 ( or maybe 65, I should check the dimensions) that will be teh new home for the 55 gallon tank of Cichlids I moved out of my sons room. It was originally going to go on the bottom shelf as is was literally just a holding tank for them, but then as I started planning more elaborate scapes for it I decided it would be a shame not to see, even if it is just in the basement. That now leaves the bottom shelf open but for exactly what I don't know. I have a variety of 40 gallon breeders, 33 gallon, 20 gallon and some 10 gallon tanks that I want to set up as breeding tanks but haven't really nailed down the configuration or where each will go. the top shelf is only 12" clearance ( if I had to do again I would have started right at the floor and put less clearance between the shelves to allow a bigger top shelf) that will either be used for storage, or I have a couple of customer built desktop tanks that I built that are 24" long but only 9" tall that might work up there for fry.


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## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

My wife is going to freak when I do something similar. A local store would be wiling to buy certain types of fish if I was to breed them and I want to play around with breeding soon.


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## Newobsession (Nov 17, 2010)

pyrrolin said:


> My wife is going to freak when I do something similar. A local store would be wiling to buy certain types of fish if I was to breed them and I want to play around with breeding soon.


I keep telling myself that.. and i keep buying groups of fishes that i want to breed (congos..cpds..endlers..rainbows..)... i just need to get my act together and actually set up the tanks.

the rack actually serves a dual purpose. I needed something to put the 75 on.. but i also want to build a bigger tank for the living room and people kept telling me that i should put posts int the basement to support it.. the thought if which didn't appeal to me at all. However, I realized that where i was putting this rack is directly under the tank in the living room so in addition to doubling up every other joist in the basement, I also ran the posts for the rack all the way to the ceiling and they are wedged under the double 2x4 running across the joists under the tank, plus i am getting a piece of 3x3 angle iron this week to go alkng the support because i wasn't convinced the 2x4 wouldn't sag even though they're laminated together with construction adhesive and screwed together.


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