Extension cord to power bar

[iamchel]

I'm considering moving my small home lab to the basement but I only have one outlet down there. Is it a very bad idea to run an extension cord to a power bar to power everything? I have 4 computers, 3 monitors, 4 routers, and a switch. I'm assuming its way to much but I'm hoping I'm wrong. Also I'm not sure where else I could post this so I put it in here. If a mod can move it to an appropriate section I'd appreciate it.

Also I should mention that this is only a temporary setup. We will be finishing the basement in a few months.

 

[Anteaus]

There is no danger as long as you choose a suitable extension cord. Since you're going to be running so much over one cord, you'll want to get one that is appropriate for the circuit your hooking into in order to not create a fire hazard. A 20 amp circuit requires a 12-gauge or bigger and a 15 amp circuit requires a 14-gauge or bigger. It's unlikely you'd pull so many amps that it would be dangerous, but better safe than sorry.

I would just get a decent 12 gauge 20amp cord. There are plenty of uses for a cord like that if you ever need to use power tools or need longer runs.

 

[iamchel]

Great, thanks for the input.