Ranco Wiring

[Dust]

Hello all,

Sorry if a thread like this has already been made but I couldn't find one that really fit my situation. Anyways, I bought a Ranco etc-111000 temp controller and I decided to wire it up myself. However, once I started tinkering around with it, I couldn't get it to work (I actually got it to turn on once and set it up but once I hung it up on the wall, it shut off, probably loose wires ).

Since then, I'm pretty damn sure I wired this thing up correctly and nice and tight but it just won't turn on! It's infuriating and I just wanted to know if there was any easy way to check if the actual thing is broken or not? Please help as this thing was not cheap!

 

[BargainFittings]

Take some clear pictures of how you have it wired and post back here.

 

[Dust]

Take some clear pictures of how you have it wired and post back here.

I'm at work right now but I will once I get home later tonight.

 

[day_trippr]

I've often wondered if folks are getting the way the wiring terminals inside the Ranco units actually work. There's definitely a right way and a wrong way to insert the wire ends...

Cheers!

 

[step]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/ranco-111000-wiring-124587/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/wiring-up-my-ranco-67493/index2.html

I would go crack mine open to see if this is the way I did it, but I'm pretty lazy and a little drunk... maybe tomorrow

 

[Dust]

Here are some pictures. I hope these are good enough to show basically how I wired it up.

 

[Junkster]

Hmmm.... No cable clamp or strain relief on the control and a lot of bare conductors showing at your terminals - a problem waiting to happen. I suggest that you attach a J-box with a short nipple (maybe mount the box and control on a small piece of board), run one conductor to each terminal on the control & wire nut things together as needed in the J-box.

 

[Dust]

Hmmm.... No cable clamp or strain relief on the control and a lot of bare conductors showing at your terminals - a problem waiting to happen. I suggest that you attach a J-box with a short nipple (maybe mount the box and control on a small piece of board), run one conductor to each terminal on the control & wire nut things together as needed in the J-box.

Thanks for the help! Ok well you can probably tell that I'm a rookie to all of this wiring stuff so I'm not following you 100% here. Is there a specific size or type of J-box that I should be getting and how exactly should I go about all of that? Haha sorry I just want to make sure I don't screw things up.:cross:

 

[Junkster]

Check out this thread, but I think he ended up with a larger, 2-gang box. At least there's a pic of what to look for. The single-gang box shown will probably work for you.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/wiring-tc-9102d-temp-controller-349990/

 

[day_trippr]

The connectivity appears correct, but that right there looks like a crude Circuit Breaker Tester.

You should trim the stripped ends so there's very little copper showing proud of the terminal...

Cheers!

 

[Dust]

The connectivity appears correct, but that right there looks like a crude Circuit Breaker Tester.

You should trim the stripped ends so there's very little copper showing proud of the terminal...

Cheers!

Got it. I'll try trimming them down! They're that long because it was so damn hard for me to fit them into the terminals lol. But I'll try!

 

[Darkness]

If you have a pice of wire extra just wire nut your commons with a small whip of wire hanging out then just put one wire in the terminal

 

[Darkness]

They way the pic looks you are getting cross feed on your wires

 

[Dust]

They way the pic looks you are getting cross feed on your wires

Hmm I think I understand what you're saying? But I'm not familiar with the term "cross feed". Can you explain what that is?

 

[Darkness]

If your power wire and common wires are bare and close enough the power wire will jump to the common and reverse feed. You want the wire at the terminal neat and only striped back enought to hook up. Electric curant can "jump" to any thing that curant can flow thought so bare wires, nicked wires are no good

 

[Darkness]

I like using Romex in side my ranco for conections it makes it clean and Romex goes in the terminals easy

 

[day_trippr]

Got it. I'll try trimming them down! They're that long because it was so damn hard for me to fit them into the terminals lol. But I'll try!

Trim them and then twist the ends tight so their diameters are as small as possible. That will make it easier to insert them into the terminals...

Cheers!

 

[Dust]

Thanks so much for the help all! Didn't get to do more work tonight because it was my girlfriends birthday but I will get on it tomorrow! Btw what is a Romex and how does it work? Haha I've heard that being used before but I have no idea.

 

[day_trippr]

Romex is just a brand name for sheathed multi-conductor solid house wire that looks like this...

Cheers!