hot clamp?

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zappy

zappy

Senior Member
Location
CA.
i heard there is a product that taps on a insulated wire by piercing the the insulation.this would be for 4/0 conductor.anyone heard/seen this product before?thank you.
 
mdshunk

mdshunk

Senior Member
Location
Right here.
Yeah, Blackburn makes one I've used before. I don't trust them for other than temporary rigs. Genericly, they're called "insulation piercing connectors". They have a row of teeth on each half, and a couple of bolts to draw the halves together. Some brands have duplex bolt heads that snap off a the right torque.

Insulated_Piercing_Connector.jpg
 
stickboy1375

stickboy1375

Senior Member
Location
Litchfield, CT
mdshunk said:
Yeah, Blackburn makes one I've used before. I don't trust them for other than temporary rigs. Genericly, they're called "insulation piercing connectors". They have a row of teeth on each half, and a couple of bolts to draw the halves together. Some brands have duplex bolt heads that snap off a the right torque.

Insulated_Piercing_Connector.jpg
Click to expand...

I remember using those for service upgrades, they are pure garbage.
 
mdshunk

mdshunk

Senior Member
Location
Right here.
stickboy1375 said:
I remember using those for service upgrades, they are pure garbage.
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I agree. I've found them in gutters as a permanent tap. I found one set used on a rooftop coming out of an AC disco, with triplex laying across the roof going to a dry cooler (yikes). I've never found any burned up (yet), but I am suspicious of them. I've used them as a temporary repair method in the tighter hot gutters until more permanent work could be performed during a shutdown. My personal feeling on them is that they can be useful to get you out of a jam here and there, but they're hardly a fitting I'd be comfortable leaving for any great period of time.
 
stickboy1375

stickboy1375

Senior Member
Location
Litchfield, CT
mdshunk said:
I agree. I've found them in gutters as a permanent tap. I found one set used on a rooftop coming out of an AC disco, with triplex laying across the roof going to a dry cooler (yikes). I've never found any burned up (yet), but I am suspicious of them. I've used them as a temporary repair method in the tighter hot gutters until more permanent work could be performed during a shutdown. My personal feeling on them is that they can be useful to get you out of a jam here and there, but they're hardly a fitting I'd be comfortable leaving for any great period of time.
Click to expand...


I believe our POCO required them, but the problem was they never came back and changed them out... talk about yikes!
 
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zappy

zappy

Senior Member
Location
CA.
thank you everyone for sharing your knowledge!

thank you everyone for sharing your knowledge!

iv'e never seen that before.this site rules!
 
brian john

brian john

Senior Member
Location
Leesburg, VA
I have used these extensively FOR TEMPORARY ONLY..I have seen them on permanent installations and seemed to be no issues (we IR'd them) but for my money and on my jobs for temporary ONLY
 
iwire

iwire

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Massachusetts
I used a set to splice some 4/0 CU to 4/0 and I was not impressed.

To tap runs in a trough say from 4/0 CU run to 10 AWG taps for disconnects then they where a help. The factory I am spending much of my time uses a lot of these for this purpose.
 
iwire

iwire

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Massachusetts
mdshunk said:
and every pack of cigarettes has a surgeon general's warning on it.
Click to expand...

?

Anyway, simple question, are the insulation piercing connectors intended to be installed hot?

No

Can they be?

Sure, so can a split bolt, but they are not intended for that.

Now what Zappy chooses to do is of course up to him, but now he has more info to make his own choice then before. :)

Is that a bad thing?
 
mdshunk

mdshunk

Senior Member
Location
Right here.
iwire said:
Is that a bad thing?
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Nope, but I think you and I both know how 90% of these insulation piercing connectors are being used, and why people buy these expensive buggers in the first place. If you ask me, it was a product developed purposely for this use, and they put the "oh, by the way, these aren't for hot work" disclaimer on them.

Just keeping it real.
 
infinity

infinity

Moderator
Staff member
Location
New Jersey
Occupation
Journeyman Electrician
iwire said:
Zappy,

You do realize these are not made to be installed live right?
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I agree with Marc, this is simply a disclaimer to limit the manufacturers' liability. Most guys I know would only use them because of their working live potential.
 
EBFD6

EBFD6

Senior Member
Location
MA
mdshunk said:
Nope, but I think you and I both know how 90% of these insulation piercing connectors are being used, and why people buy these expensive buggers in the first place. If you ask me, it was a product developed purposely for this use, and they put the "oh, by the way, these aren't for hot work" disclaimer on them.

Just keeping it real.
Click to expand...

exactly, just like linesman pliers, strippers and pretty much every other tool we use everyday have "not for use on live circuits" engraved on them. Then why insulate the handles? Ummmmmm..............yeah, that's what I thought!:wink:
 
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