Din Rail Enclosure

[Silly Sausage]

It was the bit 'I'm going to glue a bit of plastic on' that did it for me!

uksparks, you're either a wind up merchant, or an out & out cowboy!

 

[uksparks]

I'm not a cowboy, please clearly state what is wrong with using this enclosure...? other than it physically having a different look to it, what is the problem?

 

[davesparks]

When you get to the point where you have to glue a bit of plastic left over from another job into a spare CU you have in the shed in order to actually make a job worthwhile then I think you need to take a serious look at your pricing structure.

If when I visit a property to do a quote for a job and they are genuinely hard-up but the work is necessary for safety or whatever then I will put materials in at cost and put the labour in at my 'regular customer' rate, But otherwise the price is what it is and if they don't like it they can go elsewhere.
9 times out of 10 when i've said no to reducing a price when they turn around and accept the original price anyway.
And then quite often they use the 'the other quote was £50 cheaper can you match that?' approach, I advise them to accept the 'other quote' and they turn around and accept my price anyway (Hint, often there isn't another quote).

It is easy to loose sight of the fact that a self employed person will always come in cheaper than a company quoting for the same job, they have much higher overheads to meet.

I'm running a business not a charity!

 

[Silly Sausage]

Because it will look like a hatchet job!!!

For the sake an extra Tenner, do it right.

 

[davesparks]

I'm not a cowboy, please clearly state what is wrong with using this enclosure...? other than it physically having a different look to it, what is the problem?

It was not designed for the purpose.

It has not been type tested or approved for the purpose.

The manufacturer did not intend for it to be used this way.

The perspex is unlikely to have undergone the necessary flamability tests to be used as an electrical enclosure

The glue may fail and the perspex fall out.

Adaptable boxes cost less than a tenner

Adapting an existing CU to become a joint box is sometimes necessary if it cant be removed for whatever reason (eg, flush mounted) but generally speaking you'd make up a complete new cover out of a metal sheet or suitable insulating sheet (eg, paxolin)
To be perfectly honest you'd probably come under less flak if you'd riveted a bit of plastic trunking lid inside the hole rather than the clear perspex.

 

[uksparks]

Ok ill use an adaptable box, you say you can get one big enough for under a tenner, prove it, show me where I can get one 300mm wide for £10 and ill buy it.

Enought said, ill get a box, but you CANNOT get one for £10 that big.

 

[Corbs]

bit of cream cleaner sorted (i think )

Junction Adaptable Box 300 x 220 x 120mm Outdoor Waterproof IP56 GEWISS GW 44209 | eBay

 

[James-]

I see where you are coming from saying that two of the same enclosures will look good next to each other to joe public compared to an adaptable box bu5 would be un easy with this. Only you can decide as only you know the quality of material used etc etc. I would push for the extra cash for a box to be happy.

 

[uksparks]

bit of cream cleaner sorted (i think )

Junction Adaptable Box 300 x 220 x 120mm Outdoor Waterproof IP56 GEWISS GW 44209 | eBay

Ive just looked at this and I wouldn't be able to mount a rail in the centre as the mounts are in the wrong place. Thanks anyway, I'll just buy a wago enclosure and have done with it.

 

[Corbs]

Ive just looked at this and I wouldn't be able to mount a rail in the centre as the mounts are in the wrong place. Thanks anyway, I'll just buy a wago enclosure and have done with it.

couldn't you mount them in the vertical rails/indents ?

 

[uksparks]

No as it will not fit that way, ideally needs to be mounted horizontally with rail in vertical center.

 

[uksparks]

Ive just sent him a new quote, see what he says.

 

[Silly Sausage]

We'll make a Professional out of you yet, uks.
Hang on in here! :smilielol5:

 

[Deleted member 72666]

No as it will not fit that way, ideally needs to be mounted horizontally with rail in vertical center.

Yes it will, It'll fit dead center horizontally, you've got 4 vertical rails to screw to using slotted din rail.

 

[uksparks]

That's true.

 

[uksparks]

We'll make a Professional out of you yet, uks.
Hang on in here! :smilielol5:

Thanks lol. Like I say I'm not a cowboy, but I think the issue is here, its not the normal approach, although it would work fine, to the trained eye it could be done differently.

 

[Deleted member 72666]

That's true.

Thanks for the thanks!

 

[davesparks]

Ok ill use an adaptable box, you say you can get one big enough for under a tenner, prove it, show me where I can get one 300mm wide for £10 and ill buy it.

Enought said, ill get a box, but you CANNOT get one for £10 that big.

Any local electrical wholesaler who you have built up a good working relationship with and have got reasonable discounts set up on your account.

I've had a look in my books and the last time I bought a bigger adaptable box it was a 12x9x3 BE for £9.60

 

[tazz]

We use adaptable boxes for interfaces, termination and din power supplies, and never worry about mounting fixtures.....Its a straight 4mm hole through the rear of the box and din rail, then a rivets. That din rails going nowhere, and is where we want it.

 

[Brightspark2]

This thread has made me laugh. What a mountain made from a mole hill. Aahh the worries of the domestic spark.

You keep thinking outside the box squire...

It was not designed for the purpose.

It has not been type tested or approved for the purpose.

The manufacturer did not intend for it to be used this way.

The manufacturer didn't design it to have a few screw terminals in?...oh really...it's not as if he's using it as a kettle...ha ha...

 

[dazza1981]

All this over an adaptable box......... just do the bleeding job and crack on !!!!

 

[davesparks]

The manufacturer didn't design it to have a few screw terminals in?...oh really...it's not as if he's using it as a kettle...ha ha...

Who said anything about screw terminals? Those din terminals appear to be sprung loaded type, no screws in sight.

And they certainly didn't design it to have a bit of perspex glued in to the front of it to turn it into a joint box. There is a pretty high chance that the glue used is not suitable for making a good permanent bond to either one or the other of the materials, the chances of the glue failing and the perspex falling out are pretty high.

 

[uksparks]

I'm not going to use it now anyway, there's not a chance it will come off as I stuck it with silicone that you build fish tanks with, sticks literally anything to anything.

 

[HappyHippyDad]

You do like to rock the boat dont you Tom :smile5:

I think I'd have to agree with Davesparks here though. I can see what your saying, you think you have done something a bit out of the mainstream that is ok, but like Dave said at some point the perspex will come out, even if its many years down the line it cannot be compared to an adaptable box that has been screwed together. If I'd done that It would always be in the back of mind that the perspex will fall out and some layman will put there hand in there.

I think you were right to change your mind and use the correct accessory.