Is it standard that an electrician would silcon the gaps at the end of a job

[bankruatsteve]

There are 2 main issues with solder that I have seen over the years, usually by someone unskilled at soldering:

 

1.  Solder becomes the conductor if the mechanical joint not solid.

2.  Solder peaks can (almost always will) lead to arcing.

 

If the mechanical joint is solid there is not reason to solder.  Different story for DC and flex cables.

[sometimewoodworker]

1 hour ago, tifino said:

he could have at least been 'less' than a cheapskate, and dabbed this all over the final job...

 

 or another generic example  

 

does a better longer term temporsary cover than does PlastiDip 

 

This stuff is something everyone could consider getting - not really limited just to Electrical;

as I recently repaired Age Fatigue Splits in my Mazdas Air Intake duct under the bonnet 

 

At ฿790 that is really expensive, is there a less expensive version?

[tifino]

2 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

At ฿790 that is really expensive, is there a less expensive version?

try Google? for local :" liquid electrical tape"   

 

the one one Right is the cheaper of these two at least... 

 In Aust I recently grabbed the 'Brush On Electrical Tape' on the Right

- for the equivalent of 320 Baht (eBay) 

[sometimewoodworker]

3 minutes ago, tifino said:

2 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

At ฿790 that is really expensive, is there a less expensive version?

try Google? for local :" liquid electrical tape"   

 

the one one Right is the cheaper of these two at least... 

 In Aust I recently grabbed the 'Brush On Electrical Tape' on the Right

- for the equivalent of 320 Baht (eBay) 

Outside Thailand I’m sure you can get it, but here?

[tifino]

3 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Outside Thailand I’m sure you can get it, but here?

there are choices, on Google "liquid electrical tape'

 

the 4oz sized Starbrite @thb550

the 4oz sized GardnerBender @thb339 

 

... where from was the thb790 product??

[sometimewoodworker]

10 minutes ago, tifino said:

there are choices, on Google "liquid electrical tape'

 

the 4oz sized Starbrite @thb550

the 4oz sized GardnerBender @thb339 

 

... where from was the thb790 product??

Lazada,

 

Where is the second one available?

 

[RocketDog]

8 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

There I completely disagree.

There there are reason why you will never normally find soldered joints in power circuits. 

 

One failure problem with that method will permit the joint to separate and potentially allow a loose connection if the cable is passing enough current to over heat, another is that the joint is mechanically weak so the cables have to be fixed in place so they don’t flex, a third is that the copper is made brittle so breaking at the point the solder finishes is common, a 4th is that with thermoplastic insulation the amount of heat needed will cause shrinking of the insulation. Then there is the skill required to form a good joint.
 

none of these are a problem on PCBs and low current low power applications 

Good mechanical connectors are far better

Point taken, but that method has got to be superior to simply twisting and taping as you originally advocated so strongly. 

No? 

I still maintain that TWISTING TIGHTLY and soldering would be an improvement. 

In any case, soldering is time consuming and unnecessary for common house wiring needs. If the wire gets hot enough to melt solder or insulation the way it is joined is moot : an ignition event is looming. 

 

Another method used commonly is simply a spring jaw clamp device such as used in non-screw outlet boxes.

 

As other posters have pointed out, there are several joining methods that are approved worldwide, but twisting and taping are simply not among them.

 

Thailand had no monopoly on this method. It's embraced by uninformed backyard electricians worldwide, but popularity doesn't make it adequate. 

 

That brings us full circle to good quality wire nuts or screw terminal unions embedded in nylon insulators as the most widely used, approved, easily applied, and readily available. 

 

I think we have collectively exhausted this topic so I'm bowing out now. 

Thanks to all for sharing their experiences and suggestions. 

[Max Brok]

On 2/28/2020 at 11:18 AM, RocketDog said:

Although wire nuts are readily available here I've never seen any wiring done that used them.

 

Twisting wires together and covering with black tape creates a high resistance union that dissipates power and heats up under heavy current. The heat causes oxidation of the joint, further increasing the resistance and heat dissipation,etc. Wire nuts were not invented to sell plastic. 

 

They also bury wiring underground or in a concrete slab, with or without conduit. If they use conduit they don't glue the joints so water leakage is inevitable. 

 

Earthing, if done at all, consisted of running ground wire that are never actually connected to a ground rod. If it is, it's a short piece of iron rebar buried in the concrete foundation. 

 

For most of the trade work done here there simply are no standards. 

. 

I ordered also a grounded system in my new house. When they arrived they showed me very proud the ground bar, a copper rod of 10 mm and 1 mtr long. I rejected this and send them to Global house to buy the ground bar ( 1/2" x 8' ) recommended by the Thai PEA. I gave him the PEA documents in Thai language. This Thai sparky, which have a certificate for  construction of household electric systems, never see this recommendations.

 

But I disagree about the Thai standards, there are standards

58ddd93267998_GroundwireMk2book-Manual.pdf MateriaalkeuzenThais_www.aoonjai.com_%E0%B8%A3%E0.pdf

[RocketDog]

4 minutes ago, Max Brok said:

I ordered also a grounded system in my new house. When they arrived they showed me very proud the ground bar, a copper rod of 10 mm and 1 mtr long. I rejected this and send them to Global house to buy the ground bar ( 1/2" x 8' ) recommended by the Thai PEA. I gave him the PEA documents in Thai language. This Thai sparky, which have a certificate for  construction of household electric systems, never see this recommendations.

 

But I disagree about the Thai standards, there are standards

58ddd93267998_GroundwireMk2book-Manual.pdf 803.56 kB · 0 downloads MateriaalkeuzenThais_www.aoonjai.com_%E0%B8%A3%E0.pdf 869.91 kB · 0 downloads

Good job on demanding a proper ground rod. 

I understand that Thailand has standards. I won't and did not argue that. 

Many farang will however agree that such standards are very commonly, if not universally ignored, as with other areas of Thai life such as driving practice, plumbing, roofing, concrete construction, etc ad nauseum. That was my original stance. 

Thanks for the links but I'm all but sure that they are simply copies of standards developed decades ago by western countries; no clever new concepts there I suspect. 

[Max Brok]

23 hours ago, RocketDog said:

Good job on demanding a proper ground rod. 

I understand that Thailand has standards. I won't and did not argue that. 

Many farang will however agree that such standards are very commonly, if not universally ignored, as with other areas of Thai life such as driving practice, plumbing, roofing, concrete construction, etc ad nauseum. That was my original stance. 

Thanks for the links but I'm all but sure that they are simply copies of standards developed decades ago by western countries; no clever new concepts there I suspect. 

Thanks for the links but I'm all but sure that they are simply copies of standards developed decades ago by western countries; no clever new concepts there I suspect. 

You underestimate the Thai bureaucrats, If you can translate you can see they point to real domestic Thai products and quality differences. But is universally ignored, most times to make everything as cheap as possible. Prescriptions for mixing plaster , paint, concrete etc. are thrown away and it seems they like to work as much as possible in the heat of the sun when they pour concrete or plastering and painting.