Anderson Connectors - seem to be having issues?

[OllieChristopher]

So far my small connectors are holding up pretty well to the three trips on really rough two track. I'm wondering how long the contacts are going to last with all the vibration. I was looking for an alternative solution to my 30 amp standard 12 volt cig socket.

Thanks for bringing this up Martin. It's something to think about for sure. So far my Powerwerx Anderson socket (in my truck bed) is being used to power up my portable cooler when traveling and parked during daylight hours when my 100 watt solar panel is deployed. I found that the standard cig plug vibrates out when going off road.

I'm still of the opinion these are the best solution for connectors that are simple and configurable a few different ways do prevent "cross plugging" . One thing I did notice is when using the 45 amp tips the 10 gauge wire has to be stripped just right. I had a few wire plastic sleeve making contact with back of plastic connector shell and pulling the contacts out when testing in the garage. That's why I'm big on the heat shrink.

On a positive note, I was able to cut my Viair 400P compressor cable near the 12 volt battery clamps and install Anderson plugs. I have aired up a bunch of times and the Anderson plugs work flawlessly with no overheating. I now have the option to clamp compressor on my battery or plug into my Anderson socket in the back of my truck.

 

[67cj5]

So far my small connectors are holding up pretty well to the three trips on really rough two track. I'm wondering how long the contacts are going to last with all the vibration. I was looking for an alternative solution to my 30 amp standard 12 volt cig socket.

Thanks for bringing this up Martin. It's something to think about for sure. So far my Powerwerx Anderson socket (in my truck bed) is being used to power up my portable cooler when traveling and parked during daylight hours when my 100 watt solar panel is deployed. I found that the standard cig plug vibrates out when going off road.

I'm still of the opinion these are the best solution for connectors that are simple and configurable a few different ways do prevent "cross plugging" . One thing I did notice is when using the 45 amp tips the 10 gauge wire has to be stripped just right. I had a few wire plastic sleeve making contact with back of plastic connector shell and pulling the contacts out when testing in the garage. That's why I'm big on the heat shrink.

On a positive note, I was able to cut my Viair 400P compressor cable near the 12 volt battery clamps and install Anderson plugs. I have aired up a bunch of times and the Anderson plugs work flawlessly with no overheating. I now have the option to clamp compressor on my battery or plug into my Anderson socket in the back of my truck.

You should see the size of the 175A/600v versions, They are MaaaaHoooSive ? ???

 

[DaveInDenver]

One thing I did notice is when using the 45 amp tips the 10 gauge wire has to be stripped just right.

Fitting the connector housing is to some extent the quality of the cable itself. Some manufacturers will use very thick insulation to give the cable a substantial feeling or, worse, not actually be 10AWG conductors and use extra thick insulation to make it seem like a heavier cable that it is. Anderson does suggest a maximum insulation diameter of 0.175" for the PP15/45 housing in any case.

 

[Martinjmpr]

My biggest concern at this point is of a failure "in the field" when I don't have the ability to repair it, and that I don't notice until it's too late.

That in turn could lead to discharging the battery low enough to damage it permanently, and/or causing the fridge to shut off and spoiling our food.

What I'll likely do, as a backup, is to make up a harness that is long enough to run straight from the DC/DC converter to the battery pack (about 36" max) that has ring terminals on the end. That way if I have issues I can just swap out that harness and leave it in place.

As I work more and more with electrical stuff I'm starting to realize that every place you cut the wire is a potential failure point. The fewer switches or connectors I have in-line, the better.

 

[OllieChristopher]

Fitting the connector housing is to some extent the quality of the cable itself. Some manufacturers will use very thick insulation to give the cable a substantial feeling or, worse, not actually be 10AWG conductors and use extra thick insulation to make it seem like a heavier cable that it is. Anderson does suggest a maximum insulation diameter of 0.175" for the PP15/45 housing in any case.

My 10awg TEMco is rated USE-2 per UL 854 and RHH/RHW-2 per UL473. The cable housing is .075" and made of XLP (cross linked Polyethylene). In a nutshell you can submerge this cable and the strength of the compressed strands is amazing. It's also extremely resistant to high vibration environments and UV rays.

TEMco is pretty much the only brand of wire I will buy. There are better choices but it is made in the US and the company has been around for close to 54 years. I have never once had a TEMco wire fail.

Even at .075" housing thickness the 10 gauge still has to be stripped precisely. The total diameter of cable and housing will not slip into the back of the Anderson connector housing. I cut and strip the wire in such a way that the cable housing is butted up against the connector housing. I then heat shrink the wires together then another layer over the plugs and wire and melt the heat shrink glue until it drips out.

 

[DaveInDenver]

My 10awg TEMco is rated USE-2 per UL 854 and RHH/RHW-2 per UL473. The cable housing is .075" and made of XLP (cross linked Polyethylene). In a nutshell you can submerge this cable and the strength of the compressed strands is amazing. It's also extremely resistant to high vibration environments and UV rays.

TEMco is pretty much the only brand of wire I will buy. There are better choices but it is made in the US and the company has been around for close to 54 years. I have never once had a TEMco wire fail.

Even at .075" housing thickness the 10 gauge still has to be stripped precisely. The total diameter of cable and housing will not slip into the back of the Anderson connector housing. I cut and strip the wire in such a way that the cable housing is butted up against the connector housing. I then heat shrink the wires together then another layer over the plugs and wire and melt the heat shrink glue until it drips out.

Exactly. You'll find that 10 AWG will be 0.1019" diameter minimum. Then when I said "Anderson suggest a maximum of 0.175" max diameter" and you do the tolerance stack up you'll find that quality wire (such as you use) will at meet or slightly exceed that min spec diameter and with your selected insulation you are at least +0.002" over Anderson's max. And that assumes the insulation is of minimum spec, which may not be the case, and you don't actually mean 0.075" wall as in 0.15" total. The overall diameter of the wire is conductor diameter plus two wall thickness.

Using XLPE is fine, in fact you might select an SAE J1128 XLPE wire such as SXL/GXL/TXL which in 10 AWG will have a wall thickness spanning approximately 0.022" to 0.033", which with GXL (average) or TXL (super thin) should put your overall diameter well under 0.175" and maybe as small as 0.159". SXL, being super thick (relatively) has a specified max overall diameter of 0.18" so will be on the high side of 0.033" (e.g. 0.066" total diameter plus 0.1019" = 0.1679") wall apparently. You probably don't need the 600V insulating you get with UL854 and instead the 50V you get with the thinner J1128 is sufficient here I'm guessing.

SAE J1128 is deemed sufficient for OEM users such as Ford and FCA, if memory serves. But it's 19 strand so not super fine and flexible. As they say, overkill never fails!

 

[OllieChristopher]

When it comes to wiring and connectors I do go overboard. I'm so used to the mysterious GM wiring, charging and alternator issues over the years that I decided to solve it myself. Instead of the "big three" I did more like the big 5 or 6!!

 

[OllieChristopher]

Either the crimp between a terminal and wire has failed, or the "wiper" portion of the terminal is out of position and not making contact with the opposing wiper on the other side.

I had a strange issue yesterday when my solar panel was not connecting to charge controller. And that was exactly the issue. I pushed the wire and "wiper" until it snapped into place.

I purchased and have been using the Powerwerx brand of connectors. They are a local company close to me. Not sure where they get the connectors but they all seem to be consistent in quality. I really like the little roll pins that are included that make locking them together a breeze.

These connectors are still proving to be a learning curve for me. Time will tell if I decide to go with another style.

 

[john61ct]

The Anderson supplies sold by PowerWerx are indeed great quality.

But nothing special relative to the world of genuine Anderson products sold by trusted vendors,

just as things should be.

Then proper implementation is required.

Improper usage, or buying cheap knockoffs, ir worst of all both

are what causes problems.

 

[OllieChristopher]

John you forgot to mention user error as in the case of myself!! Thanks for the heads up on the quality. I honestly only went with PowerWerx because of being local the convenience of easy website navigation.

I'm learning a whole bunch of good info in regards to good connectors that differ from the standard cig plug.

 

[john61ct]

John you forgot to mention user error

I sure didn't, I just used gentle wording:

> Proper implementation is required.

> Improper usage causes problems.

 

[OllieChristopher]

I sure didn't, I just used gentle wording:

> Proper implementation is required.

> Improper usage causes problems.

LOL, You know how it is. I'm starting to like your style!!

 

[Martinjmpr]

Update: Just got back from a 4 day trip. I made sure to check the volt meter on the battery box every time the engine was running. It constantly showed 14.4v when running, so it seems like my earlier problems must have been from a connector that was not fully "seated."

In any case, as usual, the problem was "operator error." So everything seems to be working as it should be and the battery box remained fully charged all weekend.

 

[Herbie]

Glad to hear it, Martin.

 

[mechengrsteve]

Back a couple of months ago I tried to set my Indel-B fridge up with the small Anderson connectors rather than using the cig lighter connection or what I have currently which is a pair of ring connectors that go straight to the terminal posts on my battery pack. Could never get the Andersons to stay connected so I went back to the ring connectors. They take a few minutes to connect/disconnect but I never have to worry about whether the power is getting through or not.

Now I seem to be having a similar issue with my much larger Anderson connector between the DC-DC charger and the battery pack.

This is the connector I'm using to connect the DC-DC charger output to the 12v battery:


I noticed the problem this past weekend when we were camping at a site in the National Forest. My power box has a volt meter display and while it started full (12.9v) through the weekend of powering the fridge it steadily declined. This bothered me because we were taking frequent drives - and when the engine and ignition are on, the DC-DC charger is powered and SHOULD be pushing 20A of DC power straight into the battery. IOW, a 2 hour drive should be more than enough to offset a day's worth of fridge use (40AH into the 90AH battery.)

And yet...by the time the weekend was over, the battery pack was showing 12.1v.

So, when I got home, I got out the multi meter. First thing I wanted to check, of course, was whether I was getting power at the "output" side of the DC-DC charger. Checked it with the multi meter and yup, 13.5 - 14v going to the "output" side of the Hyclat connector.

But when I put the multimeter onto the battery it still showed the same 12.1v, so clearly the power was not getting to the battery.

And I don't get it - I installed the connectors according to the instructions but it seems like maybe the internal metal parts are not making contact or something. I had thought these Anderson connectors were easy to use but at this point I'm tempted to scrap them entirely and just put ring connectors on the end of the wires coming out of the DC-DC charger and connect them directly to the battery.

1) Genuine Anderson contacts are silver plated (dull silver). Most knockoffs are nickel plated (shiny silver) . The relative conductivity of the nickel is about half that of silver. This makes the connection hot and causes a voltage drop across the connector.
2) Ensure you buy the right size contact socket for the wire you are using. If the wire is too loose in an under crimped socket, it will heat and cause voltage drip. If your socket is larger than the wire, you need to use a 'sizing ferrule' (sold by Anderson) to enable using smaller wire on a larger barrel.
3) The crimper Anderson specifies is a 4 point indent crimper that prevents bending of the barrel. Hexagonal crimpers are also OK. Crimpers that crush both sides or put a big dent in one side are not ok. Here is a $25 hex crimper that works well.
4) To enable a simpler connection, DC connectors that can also be used are a type called 'SAE 2 pin plug' are polarized and available as a pigtail. I believe the plug contacts are are rated to 30A but cannot find a spec on them. In 10AWG, they can be connected using 'yellow' vinyl insulated (10-12awg) sized butt connectors with your standard crimper (not sure what your ampacity needs are).
5) lastly and MOST IMPORTANTLY, insure you have not placed stainless steel washer between your ring terminals. Stainless has 8% of the conductivity of copper and , when placed in the circuit path, act as a major resistance, dropping about a 1/2 volt across the connetions. They also get VERY hot.