Titan Wire & Cable

PV Connectors – Intermatability and is it UL recognized?

titan — Fri, 11 May 2012 16:02:22 +0000

The success of the PV market in the United States has caused overcrowding of solar connectors in the industry. There are well over 30 different manufactures on the market today. This email will feature the connectors that Titan currently stocks and the compatibility of those connectors.

Many of the connectors “claim to fame” is that they are compatible with the industry standard, Multi-Contact’s MC4 connector. Physically this might be true, but mating two different connector brands is not covered under the conditions of acceptability for recognition of the MC4 Connector. This certification document can be found here: Multi-Contact

Currently, no connector is listed or recognized by any listing agency for interconnection with any other brand of connectors. Many companies have used third party tests and field verifications to demonstrate their compatibility with Multi-Contact.

Amphenol produced 3 TUV test reports confirming intermatability with Multi-Contact. Amphenol states that they have 10 million field-connected connectors with Multi-Contact, which have no failures to date. *
*Module and inverter listings aren’t required in Europe for PV installations.

To ease this challenge and to allow our customers the option to continue to make recognized connections, Titan supplies several adapter cables to help installers use the connector they prefer while keeping the integrity of the connection.

Titan proudly stocks the following connectors:

Multi-Contact
Amphenol
Tyco
Weiland
Radox
SMK

Currently Titan is able to offer any combination of the above connectors for your custom cable adapter. Each adapter is 6 inches long with your requested connectors on both ends.

Example: MC4 to SMK with 6 inches of PV wire
We have found out that cost is what drives most installers in the direction of one connector over the other. But we suggest mating pairs from the same company to insure that the connector recognitions and module and inverter listings stay fully maintained. Here at Titan we want our customers to make informed decisions about what connectors to use. If you have any more questions regarding any of the above please contact your sales rep.

Amphenol Industrial Introduces HelioLug

titan — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 18:54:01 +0000

Amphenol Industrial introduces the HelioLug, the first grounding lug that meets the solar industry’s specific UL 2703 certification. The new lug is used by solar integrators, installers and EPC firms for grounding solar modules in residential, commercial and utility solar projects.

Made from durable tin-plated copper that prevents galvanic corrosion and protects the copper from oxidizing, the HelioLug provides low contact resistance and high conductivity to make it the most reliable way to ground solar panels. Its open-face design allows simple, quick lay-in without breaking or cutting the conductor. An included star washer penetrates aluminum annodization of the module frame and racks, which is necessary for establishing grounding contact. The HelioLug can accommodate 4 -12 AWG bare copper wire.

Press Release (.pdf)

Titan now Stocking SMK Solar Connectors

titan — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:04:31 +0000

We are pleased to announce that we are now stocking SMK Solar connectors; Along with crimping tools and custom 6 inch cable adapters with any combination you need.

Sharp panels are now being shipped over to the US with SMK solar connectors and we felt that in order to “Provide Solutions” for our customers we needed to start stocking these very impressive connectors.

From the SMK Press Release

This connector is designed to relay cables emerging from photovoltaic cell modules. Under such circumstances and with our eyes focused on the big potential for further expansion lying in this market, we developed the “photovoltaic cell module connector” excellent in contact performance, waterproofing property and workability, and recently earned UL recognition.

-Excellent contact performance is a reality with our proprietary multi-point contact system. (Patent pending)
- Easier and tool-free application of waterproofing property around cables is possible due to our exclusive waterproofing structure (top and bottom cover system) for excellence in waterproofing performance and workability. (Patent pending)
- A locking mechanism is featured. The locking section cannot be manually undone. (Patent pending)
- Capable of handling a large current.
-A copper alloy spring material is used for superb electrical conductivity.
- A plastic material with excellent weatherability and flame retardancy (UL94V-0) is used.
- UL recognized.

To order please call 1-888-356-1662 or vist our storefront

Welcome Jacob Kendrick to the Titan Team

titan — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 18:13:50 +0000

In 2006 Jacob graduated from Consumnes River College with an Associates degree in the sciences of Computer Engineering and Forensics Technology. After working in this field for more then 3 years, he pursued a career in warehouse logistics and inventory control, through Arrow Electronics Inc. He has 2.5 years experience in warehouse management systems procedures and policies, foreign affairs, import and export of consumer electronics goods and military based electronic equipment.

Titan to expand their Amphenol Solar line

titan — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 18:13:31 +0000

Amphenol Industrial is a global leader in the solar industry and Titan is proud to now stock their branch connectors. As Amphenol expands their line Titan plans on expanding with them.

H4 Branch Connectors

Amphenol’s unique H4 branch connectors ( H4YY or H4YX) are used for safe and simple parallels or series-parallel connections of PV-modules.

But don’t forget about Amphenol’s other great products.

H4 PV Cable connector

Amphenol Tools

For more information please download Amphenol’s Solar Catalog

The Snake Tray Advantage

titan — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 22:07:24 +0000

Titan is always in the market to find products that help speed up your Solar installations and lower your labor costs and with Snake Tray we have done just that.

Snake Tray holds over 20 patents on products found nowhere else. These products provide superior on-the-job performance, eliminate time-consuming labor like wire cutting, remove the need for additional mounting hardware, reduce shipping and handling costs, and dramatically reduce contractor installation time – by up to 50% per project.

Solar Snake Tray

Solar Snake Tray® is a hand bendable stainless steel cable conveyance that quickly and securely carries DC circuitry from solar panels to their terminations. This all weather cable conveyance changes directions easily by hand and installs quickly with its built-in mounting rings. Trays connect together with a single connector bolt.Snake tray is also manufactured using solar power . Snake Tray is the first carbon zero manufacturer in the electrical industry. Snake Tray expects to produce 100 percent of its load and 120 percent of its energy consumption annually.

Ballasted Roof Mount Anchor for Cable Trays and Conduit

Snake Feet ballasted roof mount anchor uses common cement block ballast and supports Solar Snake Tray® cable tray and conduit in carrying PV cables from solar arrays to the combiners boxes and inverters. Snake Feet is also available with a strut mount system as well as many custom brackets to attach to virtually any roof top ballasted component.

Solar Pole Mount System Mounting Accessories

Solar Snake Tray for Pole Mounts has a built-in mounting rail for attaching combiner boxes and is available with optional seismic dampeners. Solar Snake Tray nests together for eco friendly shipping and easy onsite material handling. This UL classified cable management system is capable of spanning distances in excess of 30 feet and is designed with integrated supports.

For more information on Snake tray please review their website

Introducing Titan’s new line of Cable Clips

titan — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 16:13:14 +0000

With the solar market becoming more competitive everyday Titan is excited to introduce a new line of cable clips that is more cost effective than the current products on the market.

The new cable clip line has three options to choose from Galvanized, Stainless Steel Large and Stainless Steel Small.

The Galvanized option can accommodate 1 to 2 conductors of PV wire or USE-2 and is the most cost effective solution.

The Stainless Steel Large option can accommodate 1 to 2 conductors of PV wire or USE-2 and are made with corrosion resistant stainless steel to protect it from weather.

The Stainless Steel Small option can accommodate 1 to 2 conductors of USE-2 and are made with corrosion resistant stainless steel to protect it from weather.

These clips were designed to help prevent damage to the cable insulation and to give your job a cleaner aesthetic look.

Titan’s Lay in lug approved by leading US solar panel manufacturer

titan — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 04:44:44 +0000

We are very pleased that a manufacturer of this caliber found that our research and development for this product to be superior in quality compared to others currently available on the market.
It is Titan’s mission to provide products that meet and exceed the industry standards at the most competitive prices possible. This partnership is one more step in the growth of our company and we look forward to more relationships with other manufacturers.
Titan’s lay in grounding lug meets all electrical requirements for PV panel grounding as recognized by UL 467.

Daetwyler and Titan Providing Solutions

titan — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 00:30:03 +0000

Daetwyler Cables, is a solid, reliable company about to celebrate its 90th year of operation as a company. With the backing of a financially powerful group, Daetwyler Cables, originally a purely Swiss cable manufacturer, now operates on the international stage as a successful supplier of total solutions for the electrical and communications infrastructure of buildings and FTTx networks.

Daetwyler Cables is a one-stop source of customized solutions for all your specific applications – with all the necessary test certificates, authorizations, certificates and long-term warranties as a matter of course.

With our dedication to service and Daetwyler’s dedication to quality you guaranteed to get exactly what you need to get your job done right.

For more information on Daetwyler

PNSAA Operations & Maintenance Conference

titan — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 00:55:28 +0000

Come visit Titan Wire and Cable at the 2011 Pacific Northwest Ski Areas Association Operations and Maintenance Conference in Bend, Oregon at The Riverhouse Convention Center on April 26-28,2011.

Come see why we are your best bet for wire and cable this maintenance season.