Do you have lots of electrical devices at home? Are they protected against damage? We are not talking about physical damage that is caused by dropping or breaking them accidentally but rather of electrical damage. When there are instances of electrical overload, power surges or even extreme weather conditions such as lightening, etc., your electrical devices will be at a risk of getting fried due to the excessive electricity passing through them.

This is why you should ground the electrical devices. Grounding provides a path for the excessive electricity to flow to the earth instead of you or any electrical device, thus preventing electricity shock or damage. Let us how it works.

How Does Grounding Work?

In any electric circuit, there is an active wire which supplies the power, a neutral wire which carries that current back and a ‘grounding wire’ which provides an additional path for electrical current to return safely to the ground without causing danger to anyone in the event of a short circuit. A copper conductor is connected from the metal rod of the wiring system to a set of terminals for ground connections in the service panel.

Christmas is upon us again and more than any other time of year, it’s the time of year where people put strain on their electrical system.  The lights on your house and the beautiful decorations you’ve been storing in your attic finally are brought out and plugged in for your friends and neighbors to view and appreciate.  And, of course, the vast majority of homes you visit have at least one Christmas tree.  Since most of these things are electrical, it’s probably not a surprise to you that, as a top Dallas electrician, I start getting a lot of calls this time of year.  Though it’s always nice to have the business with Christmas so close, I thought it’d be great to share with ways to avoid wiring problems with your Christmas decorations this year:

 In general, there are a few important tips that can help you avoid wiring problems.  If your lights look frayed or dangerous, they should always be replaced or repaired before using them, frayed wiring are hazardous.  You should take care that your electrical source is safe before you even begin the installation process.  To avoid the potential for overloads, you should have dedicated circuits installed for your holiday decorations.

Most importantly, you should never try to supply power for your lights without contacting a top Dallas electrician to help you install the necessary equipment and make the necessary safety precautions.  Short cuts are potentially dangerous. I can remember one example where a customer had supplied power to their lights by splicing an extension cord directly into their circuit breaker box!  Even worse, they’d shut the breaker box door, pinching the cabling!  Left unchecked, even if this hadn’t started a fire, damage from a power surge or overload could have easily destroyed their whole breaker, meaning they’d have to spend thousands to repair the damage at the absolute worst time of year!

RGB LED strip lights are a great way to add a pop of color to your above-ground pool. These low-voltage LED lights can be applied to the inside rim of your pool or around your pool deck. With RGB LED strip lights, you can choose from a ton of dynamic color-changing and single-color modes with adjustable brightness and speed control. They’re great for parties or late-night swims and can be easily installed. We’ve included installation instructions for our waterproof LED strip lights. Some cities require above-ground pool lighting to meet National Electrical Code (NEC) Article 680 standards, which would limit possible pool lighting installation locations. Before you purchase LED pool lights, check your city’s code requirements. We also recommend that you have a certified electrician install your lights.

1) Before ordering your LED strip lights, measure the diameter of your pool and multiply by 3.14 to find its circumference; this number indicates the total length of strip that you will need. The 21-foot pool used for these installation instructions has a circumference of 65.94 feet and requires 4 runs of 16-foot LED strips.

You will also need to measure the distance between where your power supply will be and both sides of your pool where the amplifiers will be installed (see the setup and wiring illustration below). These distances will tell you how much 18-gauge wire you’ll need for connecting the amplifiers to power. Make sure to account for the distance of any dips or turns that the wires may take along their paths.

Lastly, measure the approximate distance that will be between your controller and where your strip lights begin. This distance will tell you how much 22-gauge wire you’ll need for connecting the controller to your strips. You will also need two small sections of this wire for connecting your first and second strip lights to the amplifiers.

2) Before you’re ready to install your LED strip lights, be sure to drain your pool. Begin by creating or locating a dry area away from your pool for the power supply. The power supply should be contained in a weatherproof box. Power supplies should be installed between a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) protected circuit and the pool’s junction box. It’s crucial to use a GFCI protected circuit as it shuts off if current flows where it’s not supposed to.

Wire the included plug to the power supply, but do not connect to power until the installation is complete.

3) Connect your RGB LED controller to the power supply. Cut the barrel off of the controller wiring. Strip back the remaining wires, and connect its wires to the power supply.

4) Cut the LC2 connector off of the remaining end of the controller, and strip back the wires. Run 22-gauge four-conductor wire to connect the controller to your low-voltage pool lights; use dolphin connectors to join like-colored wires. Connect your first two LED strip lights to the controller by joining each set of like-colored wire with a dolphin connector. You should be connecting four wires of each color (red, blue, green, and black) together. For added protection, cover all wire connections in this installation with electrical tape.

5) You will apply strip 1 clockwise around your pool rim and strip 2 counterclockwise. If you have a flat surface, use mounting clips to secure the strips in place as you go. If you want to mount the strips under your pool rim, drill small holes in the trusses approximately every 2 feet. Use cable ties to anchor the strip to the truss. You can also use speed nuts or cotter pins for strip anchoring to avoid drilling holes.

Solder a small section of 22-gauge four-conductor wire onto the strip’s end terminals. To reseal the LED pool light strip, slide wires through the holes of a 10-mm end cap, fill the cap with silicone, and slide it into place on the end of the strip. Be sure to cover all of the exposed conductive traces to ensure water resistance. Allow a minimum of two to three hours for the sealant to cure.

7) Once the new end wires are attached to the strip, you will mount the amplifier. Use the double-sided 3M foam pad to mount the amplifier in the middle of strip 1 and strip 3. For best results and added security, apply 3M adhesion promoter to the amplifier and its installation location on the pool wall.

8) Using a dolphin connector, join each like-colored wire on strip 1 to the same color on one end of the amplifier. Do the same when connecting strip 3 to the other side of the amplifier. You should be connecting three wires in each color (red, blue, and green) together on each side of the amplifier. The black strip wire will be joined with white amplifier wire. Note that the separate group of just black and red wires are meant to be connected to the power supply. Follow the same instructions for connecting strips 2 and 4 to the amplifier on the other side of the pool.

9) Use 18-gauge wire and dolphin connectors to connect the amplifiers to your power supply.

10) Plug the power supply’s attached cord into an outlet, and enjoy your LED pool lighting system! Refill your pool with water, but make sure to leave space between the water line and the lights.

For more LED pool lighting options, see our entire selection of waterproof color-changing LED strip lights.

For technical questions, don’t hesitate to call us toll free at 866-590-3533. Our customer service and technical support teams are available from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. CDT Monday-Thursday and 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. CDT on Friday.