I have the budget friendly 6 spotlight kit. I have 14 gauge wire running from the transformer to the hub. Then 3 of the spotlights connected to the hub (each with 18 gauge 25 ' lead wire). I have two trees that are pretty deep into the front yard that I would like to add a spotlight to each. The trees are not within 25' of the existing hub. Can I run a 14 gauge wire from the hub that would span 40' and connect directly to the spotlight at 1st tree. Then run another 14 gauge wire from there that would span 35' to the spotlight at 2nd tree? If that is not an option, I could run the 14 gauge wire directly from the transformer to the 1st tree.
Hi, Tom. I'm having a hard time visualizing the scenario you're describing. What is the distance of the fixture furthest from either the hub or the transformer. Wiring plans are not my strong suit, unfortunately but from what I've been told previously, it's generally not a good idea to mix wire gauges (because of potential voltage drop issues). But it's possible that this could work, depending on the distance involved and the total number of fixtures you're powering. Someone else here may have more meaningful feedback. To insure that you don't do anything that might void your warranty, you may want to contact customer service directly and describe the problem you want to solve to them. HTH
Tom: The issue is voltage drop along a long run of wire, with thicker gauge wire showing less drop. On the Volt website, you can download the installation guide for any of the transformers. In there is a chart showing what gauge wire is needed for the length of the longest run from the transformer. Curiously, the chart shows a minimum 12 gauge wire for the shorter runs of less that 100 feet, but all of the Volt kits come with a 100 foot spool of 14 gauge wire. My guess is you can use the supplied 14 gauge wire if the length of the run from the transformer to the furthest tree is less than 100 feet. If you plan to add more lights in the future or the longest run is more that 100 feet, a 12 gauge mainline would probably be more appropriate. If you want to be more exacting in your calculations, the downloadable installation guide for the Multi-Tap transformers has an equation you can use to calculate actual voltage drop for your installation. I don’t know what the actual limits are, but somewhere around a drop to less than 10 volts will cause lighting issues with the LED bulbs, necessitating going to large gauge wire for your runs. Hope this helps. Bob
Tom: It just occurred to me - if your kit came with a 150Volt Slimline transformer, just use the 15V taps for you runs. Voltage drop becomes irrelevant for your installation, provided you don't exceed 300 feet for your longest run. Bob
Bob, I believe he has this kit here. If I understand the product description, the 100W transformer included in the kit has either both 12V and 15V taps or only 15V taps. The kit comes with two hubs. If we're talking about 150 feet or less total, I'm pretty sure the 14 gauge should work. 12 gauge should absolutely work, if my math is any good at all.
Much appreciated everyone! I have the 100 watt transformer with only 15V tap. I have one hub about 25' feet from the transformer with 3 of the spotlights connected. The other hub is about 30' from the transfer with the other 3 spotlights connected. The two additional lights I want to add to the trees would be add-ons that I still need to purchase. Sorry I should have included the full setup from the beginning. My concern was the way I intended to use one of the hubs to extend the run to reach those two trees. In addition to the hub containing both 18 gauge lead wires from the spotlights and 14 gauge wire to extend the run to those trees. However, the kit is designed to run a 14 gauge wire from the transformer to the hubs (as long as they are within 50' of the transformer). The spotlights have to be within 25' of each hub and they come with 25' of 18 gauge of lead wire attached already. I think I have it now. It was the design of the kit and how the hubs worked that confused me a bit when attempting to add on spotlights.
