New wiki article on adding sockets

[John Rumm]

yup, feel free.

Could mention the "right" way as you go along. That way they have the choice.

[zymurgy]

Hell, it's been years since I did my electrical installation course (pts 1 & 2) and I dimly remember making up pyro terminations, and the potting compound, and not introducing air bubbles !

Never used it since, mind .. ;)

Paul.

[george (dicegeorge)]

green blue red

(ps im back from my hols)

[george (dicegeorge)]

whoops - the red is brown something with my screen colour settings or my wonky eyes ssorry

[Dave Plowman (News)]

That's difficult as there were all sorts of different tools available over the years - and I dunno what's available now.

[Frank Erskine]

On Fri, 04 Sep 2009 23:21:59 +0100, John Rumm had this to say:

"Pyrotenax". Somewhere I have an early booklet published by Pyrotenax all about terminating the stuff, but practices have changed - at one time the neoprene tails were anchored by inserting porcelain beads into the end to stop them pulling through the fibre/plastic bit; latterly the plastic bit had sort of spouts to push the neoprene on to.

It's fascinating how the cable's actually made - a giant diameter of stuff is drawn down to the desired size, the silica insulation just following the flow of the copper wires and the sheath...

The original "Pyro" didn't have any plastic coating - orange and then black (and possibly others) came along later.

[John Rumm]

To be fair its not helped by the scaled version of the picture looking a bit rough. I have uploaded another one where I have made the wires thicker, and made the brown a bit lighter.

[Tim S]

Dave Plowman (News) coughed up some electrons that declared:

Recognise any of these?

[ARWadsworth]

Hell, it's been years since I did my electrical installation course (pts 1 & 2) and I dimly remember making up pyro terminations, and the potting compound, and not introducing air bubbles !

Never used it since, mind .. ;)

Paul.

I'll bet that was the last time you made steel conduit up as well:-)

Adam

[Andy Burns]

Unless you work in schools - they still seem to prefer it, even in new builds ...

[ARWadsworth]

Not in my experience. The LA did specify LSF cable in the last school I worked in (refurb not a new build) along with the usual "must use MK sockets and switches"

Adam

[Dave Plowman (News)]

using tools most would already have - a pro willing to pay for the tools will already know how to do it. And I'm really just giving the method - which doesn't alter with any of the tools.

My favourite tool is no longer made, I think. You inserted a gland 'top' up minus the olive into the tool and clamped it with a thumb screw. The cutter blade adjusted to what you needed for different sizes - and pressed on the top of the gland, overlapping the hole by the width of the cut needed. It then peeled off the outer easily. You stopped it where required with pliers etc on the cable and it then gave a clean square cut.

In the middle of the tool was a thread to take the gland. You assembled the gland complete with olive on the cable, inserted the pot, then clamped the lot in this thread. You then screwed the pot in place.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

That's surely not a problem unless you're mean with the compound? These days terminations come in a kit including compound and there's more than enough supplied. And you can re-use any excess oozed out when you force the seal in place.

[PeterC]

In the diagram there are crimps shown; may a 30A junction box, screwed to a joist and the cables clipped to the joist, be used instead?

[John Rumm]

Yup, so long as you can get to it in future...

The main attraction of the method described here is that it can be done with very little disruption - no extra boxes etc, its all self contained in one socket enclosure.

[PeterC]

Thanks John. The JB is under a screwed-down floorboard, so easily accessible. I considered crimps but the existing socket is only 25mm and has mini-trunking up to it - not room for more cables.

I used to have some crimps that would take 2x2.5 straight through, so each conductor was fastened twice - I do the same with connector block if possible.

[zymurgy]

Au contraire, I've been plumbing in air compressor systems, that are using thick-walled galvanised pipe. The screw cutting I learned doing conduit was useful for turning the BSP connections !

Cheers,

Paul.