Vent: Heard a homeowner in line at the hardware store say they just twist wire nuts until they 'feel tight'

I was at the Ace on 5th yesterday grabbing some 12/2 and the guy in front of me was telling his buddy he never uses a torque screwdriver for terminals and just cranks wire nuts by hand until they stop turning. He said he's been doing his own work for 20 years. That's a house fire waiting to happen from a loose connection or a cracked insulator. How do you guys make sure apprentices get the feel for proper torque without a tool, or do you just make them use one?

4 comments

4 Comments

quinna8922d ago

That "feel tight" method is how you get a cold solder joint that starts a fire.

kimr7422d ago

Been there, it's the worst.

elliot_gibson271d ago

Actually, a cold solder joint is from bad soldering, not from a loose wire nut. The heat issue quinna89 mentioned is right, but it's a high-resistance connection, not a cold joint. Both can overheat, but they're different faults.

william_garcia22d ago

My buddy's garage almost burned down from a loose wire nut, exactly like @quinna89 said. The "feel tight" method left a bad connection that got hot and melted the insulation. Now he uses a torque driver and checks everything twice.