Par Can Wiring - is there more than one way to skin a cat??

[Mayhem]

First of all, please excuse me if this has been answered somewhere already. I think I saw a reference to this before but cannot remember where or by whom.

Does anyone have any variations on the practice of wiring par cans? I must admit that I only ever thought there were two ways – right and wrong.

Right to me meant using a high temp silicon cable (1.5mm conductor diameter) which passes through the hat via a screw type cable gland (so you do not pinch the cable). The active and neutral terminate into a ceramic block, with high temp silicon cable completing the circuit to the ceramic lamp base (most of which come with pre fitted high temp tails).

The earth wire is bolted directly to both the hat and the body of the par can (removing any paint/coating and using wafer or spring washers), via a second lead. The hat should be secured to the body by a wire link of some description and this link should be shorter than the wires going from the hat to the body, thus ensuring that there is no strain placed on these by the weight of the hat.

Wrong meant any diversion from the aforementioned method.

I would be interested to hear what others think.

Cheers,
Mayhem.

[cruiser]

I agree, that is the way that I have aways been taught to wire up a parcan, although i do know of a few variations, mostly illegal lol