Does anyone still use connector block..?

[Dustydazzler]

I still have loads of 5a & 15a screw connector block strips , I use the odd bit occasionally

just wondered if anyone else still buys & uses connector block or is it all Wagos now ?

 

[Strima]

I like those choc blocks that have been exposed to direct sunlight and heat for a few years, very crumbly...

 

[telectrix]

Not specifically those, but some IP65 downlights I put in recently had a very similar thing in the driver. A bit tight for two sets of 1.5mm T&E as they daisy-chain, really better to use 1mm these days!

i've seen them in downlights. only drawback is 1 side is for solid cables only.

 

[Mike Johnson]

True, but they take two solid cable of 2.0mm on one side or 1.5mm and the other side its a cage push lever witch will take two 1.5mm solid or multi core, and obviously 1.0mm as well, IMO they can't be beaten.

 

[Andy78]

Check out the link above guys I have never seen anyone else use those particular Wago's.

That type of connector has been in light fittings I have used for at least the last 15 years, unless I'm missing something.

 

[freddo]

Still use connector blocks here.

 

[Mike Johnson]

That type of connector has been in light fittings I have used for at least the last 15 years, unless I'm missing something.

Push fitting one end for solid cables and a clamp fitting the other for stranded cable?

 

[Andy78]

Push fitting one end for solid cables and a clamp fitting the other for stranded cable?

Yes. Push the button down, insert conductor, release button to secure conductor.
Other side is push fit for the internal wiring of the fitting.

 

[Mike Johnson]

I bow to your superior knowledge, I have only seen the Wago's with the push button cage to secure multi strand and push in connections for solid core, most light fittings now days have multi strand and can't be used in a push fit connector, can you provide a link to these fifteen your old ones?

 

[Maji236]

Quite right Dustydazzler! I looked after ten American textile machines for fifteen years with all control wiring connected up with lots of wirenuts and not one of them ever failed or caused a problem, despite vibration! That said, I have never used Wirenuts myself. I still use screw connectors for temporary work, but Wagos are my first port of call for permanent ones.

I'm saying this before I read any further comments. Wirenuts are THE sh*t! those Ideals with the extra apron... don't get a better connection then that, when spun-on proper. I've used wagos in the early 2000s, & they were (IMHO) crap. The connection relies on a thin strip of metal to make a pressure connection which inevitably gives out & causes arcing which can cause fires or heat. Now, perhaps they've improved the manufacture of Wagos?
I've personally opened boxes of wirenut connections 100 years old that still worked well. Onthe off occasion, in a hot attic, the plastic showed some sign of deterioration, but still worked.
I maybe a Neanderthal for still using wire nuts almost exclusively, but I trust every connection I've made with them since my apprentice days.
You may pile on the insults now...LOL

PS.I have used connector block in certain situations, mostly for low voltage applications.

 

[acelectric103]

I still have loads of 5a & 15a screw connector block strips , I use the odd bit occasionally

just wondered if anyone else still buys & uses connector block or is it all Wagos now ?

I always try to keep some of that. That works like a lifesaver for temporary use.

 

[Mike Johnson]

The improvement in plastic composites probably make the modern Wago more durable than the old screw blocks, I recently replaced some downlighters which were connected with screw blocks and they fell apart when trying to unscrew them, they had become very brittle, I don't think anyone would contemplate using cross-ply tyres in these modern times of a radial equivalent.

 

[pc1966]

The connection relies on a thin strip of metal to make a pressure connection which inevitably gives out & causes arcing which can cause fires or heat. Now, perhaps they've improved the manufacture of Wagos?

Was that on copper or aluminum wire?

 

[Andy78]

I bow to your superior knowledge, I have only seen the Wago's with the push button cage to secure multi strand and push in connections for solid core, most light fittings now days have multi strand and can't be used in a push fit connector, can you provide a link to these fifteen your old ones?

I was thinking of most HF fluorescent fittings I've ever used, both linear and 2D type. Possibly not wago branded but certainly of that type.

 

[Lucien Nunes]

The connection relies on a thin strip of metal to make a pressure connection which inevitably gives out

I do not think that the clamping mechanism of a Wago connector 'invariably gives out.' They have been subject to strigent testing in the UK to qualify, when suitably enclosed and slightly de-rated, as maintenance-free under BS5733. I.e. a properly made Wago inline connection is expected to be so reliable that it can be embedded into the building fabric, never to be accessible again, without having a measurable impact on the reliability of the installation.

The point of any connection is to have low resistance throughout its life, while withstanding whatever influences it is intended to withstand (vibration, corrosion etc). The way in which a Wago achieves this is different to the way a wirenut achieves it. Significant understanding of connector technology (metallurgy, physics, chemistry) is needed to fully analyse how these differ and what their strengths and weaknesses are in different circumstances.

We are a bit phobic about wirenuts in the UK, without much good reason. We used them in the past, but went off them in the 1960s. I agree with you that a good electrician can make a sound connection between copper wires using a good and suitable wirenut, no problem. There are situations where I would prefer an alternative, which might be a Wago.

 

[telectrix]

still use connector blocks on downlights. got to get rid of my stock of red and black insulating tape in time for the change to brown and blue.