1. Home
  2. cables
  3. 1142336114

Soldering cable ends for AC terminations

Is it a good idea to cover the stranded cable ends with solder when assembling DIY AC cables or when sticking them in breakers in the AC panel? Some say it's not a good idea for high load connections as they may heat up and melt the solder. Is this true?
muratc
eldartford
4,262 posts
 
If the connection gets hot enough to melt solder you have made a really lousy connection!
muratc OP
58 posts
 
You're right. Maybe I should also ask if soldering the wire ends has any benefits or should I just stick the bare copper after treating them with something like Walker SST?
eldartford
4,262 posts
 
I always use solder.
1...It keeps loose strands of copper from shorting out.
2...It provides a "soft" metal to clamp down on, which I think improves the connection.
mapleleafs3
190 posts
 
Solder adds impurities, No solder is best.
inpepinnovations1e75
395 posts
 
mapleleafs3, and where do those impurities go? And aren't they 'flushed out' by the current after some time?
At any rate, I don't see where it makes a difference if the solder is just at the protuding end of the connection where there is no current.
Bob P.
More to discover