Missing Junction boxes on modules[RE-wrenches]

Jay Peltz, Peltz Power jay at asis.com
Mon Aug 20 07:47:35 PDT 2007 

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Hi Ray,

If the units you have are Tyco, they will give you a letter letting  
you cut the ends off and install either MC2/4.

ON the note about lack of junction bxs.

I love not having junction box's and I think we are not going to see  
them again.

jay

peltz power
On Aug 20, 2007, at 7:28 AM, Ray Walters wrote:

>
>
> I'll just throw my vote for J boxes in too. We've been going  
> through the Solar world thing ourselves, I hope they are listening  
> to the list, because having tens of thousands of dollars of modules  
> sitting in my limited storage area that we couldn't install this  
> summer because we didn't have connectors.... they owe us big time.  
> I have to say too that my current installations look like crap  
> compared to what I did last year with J-boxed modules. We do mostly  
> pole mounts, and we actually spent more time than before trying to  
> secure the cables. The double insulated cables don't work with the  
> clips we got from AEE either. Too thick....
>
> Ray
>
>
> On Aug 18, 2007, at 2:50 AM, Warren Lauzon wrote:
>
>>
>> And just to add insult to injury, now we have THREE types of  
>> cables/connectors to deal with - the Solarline1, the Solarline2,  
>> and now Tyco (and some modules, like SolarWorld, come with all 3 -  
>> imagine your joy when you get a stack in with mixed cables...).  
>> And for all the hype, the cost of the MC type cables is adding  
>> anywhere from $25 to $40 per module install costs, and it is not  
>> reducing much - if any - the install time, since we now have to  
>> spend a lot of time securing the cables.
>>
>> I don't see this as progress, and not sure who's bright idea this  
>> was. Not that MC type cables are bad in themselves, it is the lack  
>> of flexibility now with the way modules are configured.
>>
>> Just to keep the range of cables, connectors, adaptors, and all  
>> the rest to fit everything together is running our install parts  
>> inventory we need to keep up to new highs.
>>
>> ..................................................................... 
>> .............................
>> Northern Arizona Wind & Sun - Electricity From The Sun
>> ..................................................................... 
>> .............................
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "William Miller"  
>> <wrmiller at charter.net>
>> To: <RE-wrenches at topica.com>
>> Sent: Friday, August 17, 2007 8:56 PM
>> Subject: Re: Missing Junction boxes on modules[RE-wrenches]
>>
>>
>>>
>>> Yes, Jeff, we are having this problem.  We knew it was coming,  
>>> however, and you must have missed me bitching about it on this  
>>> forum.  Hopefully this means I have not been overbearing on the  
>>> subject.
>>>
>>> Shell and then Solarworld had been offering the large frame  
>>> modules with the pigtails, but they were removable.  We removed  
>>> hundreds of them and threw them in a big old rusty battery box  
>>> out back.  We substituted NMLT conduit for a much more reliable  
>>> installation.  Using NMLT conduit is not expensive or time  
>>> consuming:  connectors are about a buck each (less than a the  
>>> cost of an MC "gen 2" connector) and we developed a technique for  
>>> installing NMLT connectors with a cordless drill.  Time to  
>>> install one connector:  3 seconds.
>>>
>>> Just last week we received our first order of Solarworld SW175s  
>>> with the loose wires that can not be removed or conduit  
>>> installed .  They are for a ground mount, so we are particularly  
>>> concerned about having loose wires underneath the modules (the  
>>> ties won't last).  The clients have grandchildren who will regard  
>>> the ground mount racks as a jungle gym.  We are working on a  
>>> system of wire tray that will encapsulate the leads in a manner  
>>> that will be "untouchable."  We hope to apply for a patent in the  
>>> near future so we will have a product available for the industry  
>>> before someone gets killed.    So what if the ends are touch  
>>> safe, rub one against an aluminum rail or rack frame or tile or  
>>> comp shingles a few dozens times and you'll see copper.
>>>
>>> It is my impression that most of the installers out there don't  
>>> give a crap if kids are swinging from 600 V wires, they just want  
>>> to get the job done faster for more profit.  This problem is  
>>> symptomatic of an industry wide trend.  The industry is changing,  
>>> and not for the better.  There are more large corporate style  
>>> vendors and installers out there who can afford to underbid us  
>>> locals.  I call it the Walmart-ization of the industry. The  
>>> turnover in their crews is constant.  The work is shoddy and the  
>>> sales practices are unethical.  We went to a competitor's sales  
>>> seminar and the lies and half truths told were disgusting.  Did  
>>> you know the California rebates are ending next week?  (They're  
>>> not.).  The local chapter of the Sierra Club stood up and  
>>> endorsed them!!!  This is way out of line for an environmental  
>>> group to favor one vendor over another (likely because the local  
>>> president got her installation done by them, maybe at a discount).
>>>
>>> Another thing:  to tool up for the inferior wiring system (MC)  
>>> will cost us $2,000 and the delivery date is more than a month  
>>> out.  So once we figure out how to protect our ground mount  
>>> wires, we get to wait for 30 to 60 days before we can hook them up.
>>>
>>> Anyway, back to the unprotected wiring:  I know many are  
>>> comfortable with the status quo and may not want to read this,  
>>> but I'd hoped that enough of us share this concern that we could  
>>> put maybe put together a petition and maybe an educational web  
>>> site and maybe speak out at a few meetings. Anyone else out there  
>>> worried about safety???
>>>
>>> William Miller
>>>
>>
>>
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>>
>>
>
> R. Walters
> Solarray.com
> NABCEP # 04170442	
>
>
>
>
> --
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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>
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> To send a message: RE-wrenches at topica.com
>
> Archive of previous messages: http://lists.topica.com/lists/RE- 
> wrenches/read
>
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> wrenches/etiquette.php
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>
> Moderator: michael.welch at homepower.com
>
>


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