On 11/16/2010 11:29 PM, Ricky wrote:
I saw these things at Home Depot, which look easier to use than wire
nuts, because each wire is inserted separately into its own cavity,
and four wires should be no harder than 2. Do you know of any problem
with them? Their first use may be to carry 200 or 400 watts to
floodlights (or even 800, I have to go check again. That would be 8
separate floodlights**). They're UL approved, but they are so little
(flimsy?) I can't help but wonder. And they don't use a screw to hold
the wires, just a spring, something like back-stab switches and
receptacles.

**He has 8 floodlights installed now and working fine, for more than
10 years. Right now wire-nuts are used. He needs to tap into the
system, and if there were no reason not to, it could end up that two
of these little connectors each ended up carrying 800 watts.


Assorted means either 2 wires, 3, or 4 connected together. Here is a
picture of for 4.

http://www.homedepot.ca/webapp/wcs/s...P_PartNu mber
The picture is 2 or 3 times life-size. The enlarged picture is at
least 3 times.

They're re-usable, and you can get the old wire out by twisting and
pulling, it says, iirc.

This assortment is $4.48, and in good Home Depot fashion, the webpage
doesn't say what is assorted about it, or how many items are included,
or of what size. And doesn't indicate what gauge wire they work with.
The assortment in the store was $1.86 or 1.69, was labeled and
actually contained 4 for 4 wires, 4 for 3 wires, and 2 for 2 wires,
and it was labeled 18-12. It didn't say that was 18 to 12 *gauge*,
but I thought so when I bought them. Nowhere do I see an amp or
wattage rating, only wire size, if that's what 18 - 12 is.

Home Depot continues to be tied for first with Lowes for the worst web
site of a major retailer. (and maybe of any retailer.)


This is about 133 other things made by Ideal that HD sells, mostly
electrician tools;
http://www.homedepot.ca/webapp/wcs/s...challpar tial


---
Ideal push-in wire connectors, 30-291 10-pack assorted.
774A, 18-12 250D

When those connectors first came out, the owner or inventor or someone
from the company posted here about them... almost ten years ago. Most
people gave him a hard time comparing them to regular backstab type
connectors. He said they were much better than the old backstab and
they had a "UL" or some type of listing. He even sent me a few to test
but I'll be damned if I know what happened to them.