#10 AWG Wago

Z

Zee

Senior Member
Location
CA

Wago now has 10AWG connectors AKA lever-nuts.
What do y'all think about using these in J-boxes on roofs vs wire nuts?

This would be a game changer as nearly all wire we run is #10 AWG.
 
All the comparison vids I've seen make it look like real, brand-name Wago levers are just as good as a properly pre-twisted wire nut. Knock-offs, though, are an entirely different story.
 
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ModbusMan said:
All the comparison vids I've seen make it look like real, brand-name Wago levers are just as good as a properly pre-twisted wire nut. Knock-offs, though, are an entirely different story.
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All the comparisons I've seen show that Wagos have slightly higher I2R losses than wire nuts, but that's when you're pumping like 50 amps through 14AWG. In practice, I wouldn't expect a discernable difference.
 
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I think the 10AWG 221's have been around for a few years. I looked into using them when they first came out, and if I remember right, the issue was that the insulation on a 10AWG PV wire is so thick, it wouldn't go into the connector throat. I have watched quite a few video of people measuring and comparing the resistance and heat rise of both wire nuts and Wago's, and the results are very consistent among them. The wire nuts are a little better when properly twisted, but the Wago's are good enough and much easier/quicker to install. I would have no hesitation using them on lighting circuits that are not very heavily loaded, but PV circuits that are in hot environments with high ampacities for many hours a day should, in my opinion, be installed with the most bullet proof hardware you can find. We use screw terminal connectors rated for up to 60A, and we have never once had a problem with them.
 
PWDickerson said:
... the issue was that the insulation on a 10AWG PV wire is so thick, it wouldn't go into the connector throat.
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Just out of curiosity, why's PV so thick compared to, say, THWN?

PWDickerson said:
The wire nuts are a little better when properly twisted
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And there's the rub... how many hacks out there don't bother to properly twist, or worse, make a mockery of solid+stranded connections?
 
The one sure advantage Wagos have is you can reuse the connection. No need to cut off the rat's nest of twisted wire and then re-twist to connect again, until you run out of slack. Make and break a Wago connection as often as you like.
 
PWDickerson said:
I think the 10AWG 221's have been around for a few years. I looked into using them when they first came out, and if I remember right, the issue was that the insulation on a 10AWG PV wire is so thick, it wouldn't go into the connector throat. I have watched quite a few video of people measuring and comparing the resistance and heat rise of both wire nuts and Wago's, and the results are very consistent among them. The wire nuts are a little better when properly twisted, but the Wago's are good enough and much easier/quicker to install. I would have no hesitation using them on lighting circuits that are not very heavily loaded, but PV circuits that are in hot environments with high ampacities for many hours a day should, in my opinion, be installed with the most bullet proof hardware you can find. We use screw terminal connectors rated for up to 60A, and we have never once had a problem with them.
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I used to use split bolts exclusively. Then rubber tape, PVC tape....a chore.

Then Polaris.

However, of the arc faults/ground faults I have found, Polaris was quite a few of them!
Also they are $$.
We had thought Polaris were way superior to a wire nut.
(pretty sure the blackbox/ hidden nature of the inside of them led to user error, namely wires not inserted properly)

So now I have regressed (advanced?) to wire nuts.

If we compare wire nuts to Wagos, any reason to believe one is better than the other for PV specifically?
Say a 16A /20A continuous rated Enphase circuit in a rooftop J box?

(I barely use PV wire. No more solaredge for me, so no PV wire, no insertion problem)
 
gadfly56 said:
The one sure advantage Wagos have is you can reuse the connection. No need to cut off the rat's nest of twisted wire and then re-twist to connect again, until you run out of slack. Make and break a Wago connection as often as you like.
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Yep easy to re-use.

Wago also saved my sanity when there was a wire cut way too short in a J box.
 
I use the wagos, as PWDickerson said, the PV wire insulation is too thick to fit into the shroud, so I strip back another 3/8 to 1/2 inch and place and shrink some heat shrink around it, which barely fits into the shroud.
 
I'll admit to using wagos on wires....in my stock trailer. But not in my house. With that being said, the 221's are indeed pretty neat and have made some large strides since the wago inception. Maybe some day I'll stop acting like a crusty old man and try something new.
 
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