Bugs or Nuts in 1900 box?

1

1.21 Gigawatts

Member
Location
Norwalk, CT
Occupation
Journeyman Electrician
Had a dead end I wanted to find. Found it in this splice box in the ceiling. Basically 10/3 or 8/3 coming from a sub panel then out to a dryer and to the dead end.

I eliminated the dead end one.

Would you guys reuse the old bugs with tape on them or just use big wire nuts?

SBfdsrih.jpg


IPtyeENh.jpg
 
Depends on how dried out and fragile the existing insulation is at this point. Using a wire nut might twist the wire enough an inch or two down that the insulation starts to crack or otherwise degrade. When I run into those with #10 or larger using a split bolt isn't a bad idea since it really doesn't stress the rest of the wire while you tighten it down.
 
I always felt having bolts in a splice box was more anhazard because there is nothing between that and the metal box except a layer of tape.

Then again wire nuts can melt too
 
1.21 Gigawatts said:
Had a dead end I wanted to find. Found it in this splice box in the ceiling. Basically 10/3 or 8/3 coming from a sub panel then out to a dryer and to the dead end.

I eliminated the dead end one.

Would you guys reuse the old bugs with tape on them or just use big wire nuts?

SBfdsrih.jpg


IPtyeENh.jpg
Click to expand...
Me? I'd use Buchanan crimps, but that's just me. I hate wire nuts, but then I am almost totally industrial. I'd probably starve to death doing residential.
 
TwoBlocked said:
Before the rubber tape, sticky fiberglass tape with the sticky side OUT.
Click to expand...
I had a big condensate return pipe like 4 inches spring a major leak and shut down a 2,000 hp boiler house. It was like 1AM. At some point it must have had a small leak and someone pit a piece of rubber on it with hose clamps. Now it had a big hole in it and was dumping hot water all over the controls for the deaerator tank.

I didn't have much to work with. My helper found a big band clamp that looked like it was for a pneumatic material transfer line. It was a bit loose but it was like 18 inches long and it was enough to cover the hole/holes. I wrapped that pipe with about 10 rolls of rubber tape and band clamped it. When I ran the bolts down, the rubber tape was kind of squishing out the ends. It ran like that for about a week until the steamfitters got to replacing the pipe. One of them asked me what kind of rubber I used to seal it. The damn stuff fused into a solid mass and was bonded to the pipe.

I've fought to get that stuff off of bugged connections lots of times, but I never saw anything like how it bonded to that condensate pipe
 
electrofelon said:
There is a movement to make us just installers, not electricians.


I like split bolts. Some people think they are so passe.
Click to expand...
I needed to temp in another feeder to. A genset a while back I didn’t have any split bolts but thankfully I had a servit post and a band saw;)
 
electrofelon said:
There is a movement to make us just installers, not electricians.


I like split bolts. Some people think they are so passe.
Click to expand...

Yeah, soon even 10,000 KVa transformers will come with polarized plugs and be sealed so you can't change the connections. Some desk jockey in administration will have to approve your voltage request. And the plug and cord feeding your plant will have a serial number. If the corporate desk jockey deems it to be unfit for continued service he won't send the encrypted code to the transformer to turn it on
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top