simploerob Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 is there a problem wiring up 2 parcans 1k lamps to 1 16 amp plug ? I know this is not the idea and would be better to use splitter cables but no budget to buy cable or the number of plugs and sockets I would need to do this. have checked that the dimmer is capable of doing what we want. thanks simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 In terms of power capability, there isn't a snag - the snag is really a practical one. Many PAR can tails are made with decent sized conductors, and getting two into one terminal designed for 2.5mm2 cable may, or may not work depending on the connector design. The other problems is cable clamping - some designs may be able to safely clamp two cables, but some again will physically unable to do this (and haven't been designed for this). The seal is also a problem - depending on the design again, two cables simply may not fit - and even if they do. you are creating a figure 8 shape so the ingress of water is a serious problem if used outside - if this is a possibility. If you do it, it may well work - but is a real bodge based around your inability to find the paltry amount to buy 16A splitters - which are not really that expensive. Depending on the way you work, you could also find some PAT testers treating your modification to the design philosophy of the connector a compromised usage, and declare the two PARs connected this way as a fail! This frequently happens when people make up home made 1 plug to 2 socket cables - the squeezed connectors being the potentially dangerous part - being used in a way not intended by the manufacturer. I wouldn't do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDP Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 Parcan cables are usually very short.... Wiring them together will be very hard to focus! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james.sealey Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 A fairly cheap solution is: http://cpc.farnell.com/pro-elec/is1055/16a...e-bb45-00001001 There may be cheaper suppliers, but you get the idea. As for capacity, assuming a supply voltage of 230V you can (in theory) pull 3680W of a 16A supply, although this maximum should only be attempted if you are 100% sure all your cabling and connections are of a high enough capacity to actually deal with 16A... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LampTramp Posted March 19, 2009 Share Posted March 19, 2009 Buy a trelco!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genus Posted March 19, 2009 Share Posted March 19, 2009 Buy a trelco!!! Or even a Grelco (what with only two lamps). Or if it's all 16amp stuff, use the funky 16a rayguns that james.sealey linked to. I'd rather find the money to do it properly than start messing around with the wiring unnecessarily, especially considering how inexpensive the proper solution would be. If it's a long term thing, find the money and install it properly. If it's a short term (one time) thing, hire the adaptor and maybe a bit of cable for pretty much tuppence. It worries me when people want to botch something that already has cheap products designed, tested and manufactured specifically for the purpose. Genus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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