[RE-wrenches] Enphase J-box brackets

Sun Dec 18 20:29:30 PST 2011

Consider having the bracket fabricated with only the holes that you need, assuming you will use the same weatherproof box and rails on each job. Having the extra slots and clearance holes punched will increase the cost. And I would make the material a bit thicker, theirs is kinda flimsy.
Besides Enphase might get testy if you start copying their bracket. 
my 2¢

Jim Duncan
North Texas Renewable Energy
817.917.0527
ntrei at 1scom.net
TECL 27398
NABCEP Solar PV
Certified 031310-57
www.ntrei.com

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  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: William Miller 
  To: RE-wrenches 
  Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2011 1:42 PM
  Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] Enphase J-box brackets

  Maverick:

  I am intrigued with the possibility of having them machined.  Do you mind getting a quote?  I would be purchasing somewhere between 25 and 50.

  Thanks,

  William

  At 11:00 AM 12/18/2011, you wrote:

    ï»¿ 
    William,

    I have two or three spares. One of which I can take to my machine shop and ask them for a quote. How many do you want?

    Thanks

    Maverick

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    From: re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org [mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of William Miller
    Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2011 12:34 PM
    To: RE-wrenches
    Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] Enphase J-box brackets

    Jason:

    How do you use 3/8" hardware to attach a bell box to a module mounting rail?  Could you share a picture of your typical practice?

    The standard bell box has small, flimsy tabs to be installed on opposite corners of the box.  Only one of these tabs would line up with the slot in the rail and the tab is too small to drill a 3/8" diameter hole.  (We have drilled a hole in the back of these boxes and used hardware with neoprene washers, but this takes up valuable volume inside the box and is generally not a preferred method.  More importantly, this would not allow the box to be mounted across the end of the rail, a most advantageous position.)

    You may not be aware that the brackets depicted have holes to allow 8/32 machine screws in each of the 4 corners of the back of the bell box, making a very secure connection.  The bracket allows mounting a box across the end of the rail opens many possibilities for conduit routing.  A lot of thought went into the design of these brackets and it is too bad they are no longer made.  Do you have any spares you did not use?

    William Miller

    At 07:29 AM 12/18/2011, you wrote:

      Content-class: urn:content-classes:message
      Content-Type: multipart/alternative;
              boundary="----_=_NextPart_001_01CCBD99.DAC6A840"

      Why not just use 3/8ï¿½ hardware in the rail channel to attach the junction box? Especially if your AHJ allows you to bury the junction box under a module, this works and looks great. Otherwise, just extend the rail outside the last module and attach the box there. I never saw the point of the bracket.

      Jason Szumlanski
      Fafco Solar 

      From: re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org [mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of JRQ
      Sent: Saturday, December 17, 2011 1:21 PM
      To: RE-wrenches
      Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] Enphase J-box brackets

      William,

      I actually prefer to use Unirac L-brackets for mounting J-boxes. Sometimes I'll use the Enphase one because it comes with the Enphase whip (and therefore I save paying $2.75 on an extra L-bracket). However, I find the L-brackets to be sturdier and less visible.

      Jeffrey Quackenbush
      NABCEP-certified PV installer
      Ninja Solar

      From: William Miller <william at millersolar.com>
      To: RE-wrenches <re-wrenches at lists.re-wrenches.org> 
      Sent: Saturday, December 17, 2011 11:33 PM
      Subject: [RE-wrenches] Enphase J-box brackets

      Friends:

      Enphase has changed the design of the brackets they provide to support a j-box.  This is a problem because the new ones are inferior for these reasons:
      1. They do not have a hole adjacent to the back of a mounted box (to the best of our knowledge).  This hole allows for the use of the back hub in a standard "bell" box.
      2. They can not be mounted offset (to see the benefits and application browse to:
      http://millersolar.com/MillerSolar/practices/Technical_Procedures/micro-inverter_wiring/_micro-inverter-wiring.html
      3. They do not accommodate one and two gang bell boxes.

      I'd like to buy a quantity of these brackets.  A jpg depiction is attached.  Does anyone have surplus?

      Does anyone else miss these enough to write Enphase and ask that they be reinstated into the catalog?

      Thanks in advance.

      William Miller

      Miller Solar
      Voice :805-438-5600
      email: william at millersolar.com
      http://millersolar.com
      License No. C-10-773985

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  email: william at millersolar.com
  http://millersolar.com
  License No. C-10-773985

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