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THE UV INSTALL
I've had three-4foot blacklight fixtures for a number of years now. The fixtures
used to be suspended from poles in the front yard, (to illuminate the graveyard scenery.) If you seen the first part of this
party blog, I HAD the lamp fixtures mounted virtically, along the walls, in some out-of-the-way locations.
Since then, I have changed my mind, and decided that these locations
were not prime spots. They got in the way of "normal" life around here. I could imagine what might happen when there's 20+
peaple milling about. I also discovered areas that were not covered with UV. So the locations of all the fixtures
were moved to the ceiling.
One location is next to the original flourecent fixture in the kitchen. There is an outlet
off to the left, in a sort of kitchen desk area. Which I use as storage. A six-foot grounded extention cord is connected to
a remote control unit. (See more about the remote controls below.)
Since the rafters of the ceiling didn't co-operate with the installation, I had to drill a
few 1/2 inch holes into the ceiling, and used the butterfly anchors that came with the plant/swag hooks, used to hang the
UV fixture.
I used a 1/2 section of conduit, (cut on an angle to slice through the wallboard.) I positioned
the conduit "hole-maker" on marks I plotted to locate the fixture, marking the hole placements with a pushpin or thumbtack.
A few good solid strikes with a hammer, on the back of the hole-maker, made a very
clean holes to install the hooks. Slip the butterfly anchor into the hole, (the "wings" fold up against the threads as
it is inserted into the hole,) then, springs back open behind the ceiling.
The second fixture is located over the half-wall bar. Directly over the place where people
will stand, talk, eat & drink. The butterfly anchors are very stong, this is why I chose to use them here.
The third fixture is installed near the window. There is
another, incandecent, (light bulb style) fixture here already, but as things have worked out, that incandecent fixture is
going to be moved over the TV and shine colored light onto the skeleton pirate.
The chain that came with the fixtures was pretty wimpy, (as I recall.) So I decided to use
two links from a swag chain. One link was bent closed and the other end of the link was left alone. This created a nice stong
hook to hang the fixtures by.
It also allows the fixtures to "swing" a little if they should be nudged by anyone or anything.
Allowing it to swing a little bit will help prevent the fixture from damage due to impact. (Like being hit by the grimm reapers
scathe/scicle.) Last thing I need is for the bulbs to be broken and glass dropping on the guests.
The neat thing is that the fixture seems to have been designed with the idea of using a swag
chain. The slot is where the chain is inserted, and the hole is where the end of the link "hook" protrudes through. Since
this "slot & hole" configuration were already there, I didn't have to butcher the fixture housing to get this to work.
The remote controls are another bit of equipment that I perchased some time ago. This little
remote control, controls two outlet units. These are grounded AND weatherproof. So these CAN be used outside.
Both units have the "Right-Angle" plug, that holds the unit flat against the surface of the
outlet. Nothing obtrudes away from the wall, so there's less of a chance of it getting snagged and pulled out of the outlet.
Both units are eequipped with an LED Power lamp, which is used to tell you that there IS power
to the unit. This is a cool feature. Because sometimes if the remote doesn't work, you don't know if the power is even present,
OR if the batteries have died in the hand-held remot control. This eliminates the guessing.
The remote is barely an inch wide. This is a great feature, as you can actually keep this
remote in a pocket, and operate it secretively. You can always blame the "Ghosts" in your area for playing "tricks" with your
lighting.
Ground wires ARE a very important safeguard in electrical wiring. Especially if you're working
in damp/moist locations. If you're plugged into a GFI Outlet, the GFI NEEDS that ground to operate properly.
A special note about grounds. Don't snip off the ground prong from the plug-end of an
extention cord! No matter how tempted you may be to neuter the ground, DON'T YOU DARE!
The ground is your last chance to keep yourself from being electrocuted. It acts as a bleed
off route back to the electical service panel, and allowing the circuit breaker or fuse, to pop, and kill the power.
By having your grounded cords "snipped", the ground will be rendered useless in all future
applications. If you have to plug the cord into a Non-Grounded Outlet, use a ground adapter.
To properly use a ground adapter, you HAVE to remove the single screw that holds the faceplate
to the wall outlet. You also have to use the top outlet, to position the connection over the screw of the faceplate.
Put that faceplate screw through the green metal loop of the ground outlet adapter, and run
the screw BACK into the faceplate and into the hole ON the outlet, and tighten enough so that you don't crush/crack the faceplate.
Some adapters have a wire, simply loosen the screw enough to slip the forked connection behind
the screwhead. Tighten snug, but not tight enough to crack the faceplate. That should establish a ground for that circuit.
If there is a question of if there is even a ground present in tour electrical system, the
best & cheapest way to find out is to remove the faceplate, and see if there IS a bare copper or aluminum wire IN the
outlet box.
You may need a flashlight to see inside the box. But a bare copper wire is hard to miss. All
other wires should have a colored plastic insulation that isolates the current carrying wires.
If you still cannot see a bare coper wire, it may have been painted. So also look to see if
there are any smaller wires, that may look like they have paint on them.
Still not so sure? Go to the home center and buy an outlet tester. This is simply a small
hand-held unit, with a few LEDs on one end, and a grounded plug on the other. (If you didn't know better, it may look like
a replacement plug for the end of an extention cord.)
When this tester is plugged into an outlet, the LEDs will light up, and according to the way
they are lit, can tell you if things aren't quite right, or if it's a grounded outlet and everything's OK.
DO NOT NEUTER YOUR EXTENTION CORDS!
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Please be sure to visit "How to Halloween" A new up and coming site on building your own Halloween decorations for next to
nil!
The Halloween-L is a great website & forum. You should go there NOW! Ok, after you view my website. But right after that,
go there! (If you know what's "Boo" for you!)
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