new wire for array wiring? [RE-wrenches]

[Jeffery Wolfe, Global Resource Options]

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William,

While I understand and respect your opinion, no way am I going to push
to go back to wiring each panel with wire and conduit. Lots of problems
in that set up to after 20 years on a roof. Too many places for water to
get into. Give me a potted JB any day, and proper installation
techniques. I agree, 20 feet unprotected across a roof is not good. We
bring the USE-2 right to the edge of the array, tie-wrapping it as we
go, and into a single PVC JB at the array edge. At that point we
transition cleanly to whatever we want, typically THHN in PVC conduit.
(Yes, the THHN is cross-labeled as THWN-2, at least last time I looked.
But try asking for THWN-2 and everyone looks at you cross-eyed around
here.)

And for those really weird set ups that everyone who does real wrenching
runs into every once I a while, we've found that a pair of snips takes
the MC's off the ends of the cable real fast, allowing us to wire
straight into a field supplied junction box when required. Not often,
but occasionally when tapping into an old off-grid array.

Jeff Wolfe
Global Resource Options
800-374-4494

Gotta put some wood on the fire and get to bed...

-----Original Message-----
From: William Miller [mailto:wrmiller at slonet.org] 
Sent: Wednesday, December 08, 2004 12:59 AM
To: RE-wrenches at topica.com
Cc: RE-wrenches at topica.com
Subject: RE: new wire for array wiring? [RE-wrenches]

Colleagues:

I disagree with the use of modules that do not have junction boxes.
While I am opposed to un-conduited PV wiring on roof-top installations,
I am REALLY opposed to un-conduited PV wiring on ground-mount
installations.  Ground mount racks, as seen through the eyes of a child,
are known as jungle gyms.

Without junction boxes, the installer has no option of removing the
unprotected wires and installing conduit.  Regardless if you like tray
cable installations or not, can we agree that some installations and
some installers need the option of attaching conduit to junction boxes?

Furthermore, after you finishing connecting all of your modules in
strings, you need to get the source circuit wire into the structure.
Without junction boxes, you need to transition somehow to conduit, and
with a junction box, this can be done easily.

I'd like to see installers, as a united group, lobby the industry to
require junction boxes.

William Miller

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