Tinned copper bars for DIY blocks

Ah. If your DIY'ing from scratch ... I have flattened 15mm copper plumbing pipe - gives about the same ampacity as 25mm cable. You can drill/tap it, however it is quite thin for a tap. Copper bar would be better.

Reason I use those boxes (which are available cheaper on aliexpress if you can wait) is that you get the holes done and covers / mounting holes done for you.
 
Copper strip is perfectly fine for making bus bars - unless it's in a really damp & warm environment, it won't deteriorate quickly enough to be an issue, and once you are happy with the setup you can coat it in corrosion guard if you are concerned. I made a few negative bus bars last year when changing out some battery switches which are in a (dry) engine bay. But despite the sea air flow that runs through there they still look fine a year on. I oversized mine with 25mmx4mm copper strip so they will handle way more load than the cables or connections. I'll give them a clean and spray with corrosion guard this winter for good measure.

As others have said, for low current connections on smaller cable sizes the Wago (or equivalent) connectors are rapidly becoming the go-to for inside the boat wiring. They are cheap, effective and neat.

I advise against flattened copper tube unless for low current connectors as the tube will not give good current carrying capacity. For low current applications see above...
 
DownWest said:
Tinning them is easy enough with liquid flux and solder, plus small blow torch.
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Exactly what I was about to write but you beat me to it. Killed spirits is great for this, add zinc to conc hydrochloric acid until no more will react. Dip the copper in it or paint it on, heat and rub on solder. It will spread like wildfire!
 
Daydream believer said:
I note that you seem to have taken the -VE in to one end of the chock blocks.-----Stop reading at this point if I have got that wrong & ignore me please. :rolleyes:
I took it into both ends of the blocks as any break in a single link messes up the whole remaining block. - I make the comment, because if one link goes the current can still work to all the other items by running along from the other end. When the power goes down it only affects the one bit where the connection failed & you can find it quicker. Of course it may never fail . It is just a precaution
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Correct, Just at one end. Had not thought of failure of the links. They were really fiddly to put in but each one was stress tested as I made it. I might run another wire to the other end using a 3 way Wago (how did we ever mange without them!
 
Tranona said:
If it helps, this is the back of my new distribution panel. Initially I was going to use Blue Sea blocks as I had a supply of jumpers but still high cost for the 16 ways I have. You can see hiw I have used Wagis in the mini distribution board for the nav gear just below the chart plotter. Have a similar board where I linked all the existing interior lighting circuits into one feed from the panel.
View attachment 136942
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looks nice and neat. How did you mount the wagos?
 
gregcope said:
looks nice and neat. How did you mount the wagos?
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Super glue from Toolstation. About £6 for enough to last a lifetime - if it does not go off! Blob on the back of each one and press it on the board for 20 seconds. Just made another board for inside to connect up the mast cables where they come through a swan neck. All in a neat labeled row and board screwed to the bulkhead inside the loo compartment.. The swan neck was around the same price as 3 deck glands and much neater.
 
A point worth noting is that there's different purities of copper around. An electrical conductor should be as pure as possible - even small impurities will reduce the conductivity markedly. Copper for pipework etc. may well be less pure, and could have small additives to give it other desirable properties. I'm sure @vyv_cox could give chapter and verse!
 
Tranona said:
Correct, Just at one end. Had not thought of failure of the links. They were really fiddly to put in but each one was stress tested as I made it. I might run another wire to the other end using a 3 way Wago (how did we ever mange without them!
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I hate Wagos. Never found them sucessful. They might be Ok for house wiring but not on a boat.
 
Difficult to see how they cannot be "successful". Cut the end to the correct length, push it into the hole and shut the lever. What is there to go wrong? Why are they not suitable for a boat? but suitable for house wiring?
 
I love 221 Wagos!
  • Can handle a wide range of cable sizes from 0.14mm2 to 6mm2 and types (eg. fine strand)
  • Spring sets correct torque without tools
  • Spring loaded so no screw to ever come lose
  • Easy to connect up three, four or five cables (with three or five port version)
  • Test port
  • Mostly plastic with copper internals
  • Usable without tools, quicker than a screw block
  • Easy to waterproof with Gel boxes
  • Can handle upto 32A
  • Lloyds Register, ABS and other "ship" approvals
  • They are cute little things!!!
 
gregcope said:
what is your concern?
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Varied - as mentioned, the grade is often low. As it is formed as a tube, when flattened it can fatigue crack along the edge. As it is essentially two pieces clamped together, the current carrying capacity is equal to the thickness of the wall thickness, not the overall thickness as it is with solid bar. because it is two seperate pieces with a void in between, it provides another place for corrosion to develop that cannot be easily seen.

As mentioned, fine for low current connections or if used in a pinch to 'get you home', but with the cost of copper or brass strip so low it doesn't make sense as a permanent solution and is to be avoided on safety grounds for high current applications.

For credibility, I am an ABYC approved marine electrician, a qualified marine engineer and time-served in both.
 
Scratching my head and wondering what Wagos are?? Looked closer and realise we have them here (in fact just used a bunch for lighting a gallery) but they are push only, so no good for multi-filament wire.
 
Copper is already available in bar form on eBay which will be cheaper and less effort than flattening retail bought pipe, and the OP has probably already sourced his copper. The question is about tinning the bar. I (re-)watched this recently about how one YouTube electronics guy makes his PCBs, and thought it might offer a solution.

Mr Carlson's Lab PCB tinning.

Then I looking the stuff up on eBay... f@ck me, it's expensive! Short of an induction bath full of solder, I don't know what else to suggest. Research home electro-plating?
 
Moodysailor said:
Varied - as mentioned, the grade is often low. As it is formed as a tube, when flattened it can fatigue crack along the edge. As it is essentially two pieces clamped together, the current carrying capacity is equal to the thickness of the wall thickness, not the overall thickness as it is with solid bar. because it is two seperate pieces with a void in between, it provides another place for corrosion to develop that cannot be easily seen.

As mentioned, fine for low current connections or if used in a pinch to 'get you home', but with the cost of copper or brass strip so low it doesn't make sense as a permanent solution and is to be avoided on safety grounds for high current applications.

For credibility, I am an ABYC approved marine electrician, a qualified marine engineer and time-served in both.
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Makes sense, thank you.
 
DownWest said:
Scratching my head and wondering what Wagos are?? Looked closer and realise we have them here (in fact just used a bunch for lighting a gallery) but they are push only, so no good for multi-filament wire.
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Look for Wago 221's. These have a spring and can take (very) fine wire. Mine presently join my tiny NMEA cables (why are those so tiny?!?!?).
 
HissyFit said:
OP has probably already sourced his copper
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Not yet. Its a winter job. I will buy proper blocks if I won't find sensible solution. As mentioned already, I just dont like paying crazy money for something simple. Its like buying 316 screw in chandlery - 10x than proper supplier.
 
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