Distribution block, what to get?

So I'm finishing my parts buying and ordering for my controller. I looked over Kal's site and didn't see a mention of the power distribution blocks that he uses (maybe they are called something else and I missed it?) I'm used to DC wiring in vehicles and always referred to them as distribution blocks.

Anyways, I'm wondering what to get, as I don't want a mess of wires in my box. This will be a 240v 30a setup. Thanks ahead of time!

I am looking myself. Here is one option I found.

http://www.elecdirect.com/catalog/8063c3d2-b684-4c58-b7f1-c885828651cc.aspx

I chose to use modular DIN rail mounted terminal blocks for my power distribution. They were cheaper than the big brick type distribution blocks and gave me the flexibility of adding more modules later if I need to.

My entire 50A distribution block (ground + two hots + neutral) cost me about $8 or so.

I put links to the pieces and parts I used, all from mouser.com, in this post

Ok, I guess I should have read "Control Panel (Part Two)". It mentions what I'm looking for. Looks like they are referred to as "terminal strips". A quick eBay search turned up some really cheap options, and exactly what I was looking for.

Hopefully that helps you out, that way I won't feel as stupid for starting a thread and answering my own question a half hour later!

I would get 30 Amp rated ones. Radio shack sells terminal strips that are supposedly 20 amps, but they look wimpy compared to the 30 amp strips I got from Home Depot.

lschiavo said:

I am looking myself. Here is one option I found.

http://www.elecdirect.com/catalog/8063c3d2-b684-4c58-b7f1-c885828651cc.aspx

Click to expand...

For my system I put together a set of DIN terminal blocks that I purchased from http://www.elecdirect.com. They should be arriving to my door today. Customer service at ElecDirect was great. You can buy them in different colors and amperage sizing to make wiring easier.

TheFlyingBeer said:

For my system I put together a set of DIN terminal blocks that I purchased from http://www.elecdirect.com. They should be arriving to my door today. Customer service at ElecDirect was great. You can buy them in different colors and amperage sizing to make wiring easier.

Click to expand...

I'm looking into this a little bit, although it seems a bit large for my control panel compared to the terminal strips. What are the advantages of these over the strips?

bbognerks said:

I would get 30 Amp rated ones. Radio shack sells terminal strips that are supposedly 20 amps, but they look wimpy compared to the 30 amp strips I got from Home Depot.

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I'd like to find them locally and noticed that Radio Shack has them. I think the website said they were 15 amps, probably not sufficient for my plans. I'll check my building supplies and see what I can come up with.

Thanks for the quick help guys, this forum is great and really helps motivate me to build!

rcm_rx7 said:

I'm looking into this a little bit, although it seems a bit large for my control panel compared to the terminal strips. What are the advantages of these over the strips?

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I like them for their modular design and that they snap on to a DIN rail. The majority of my other components are DIN mounted so that was a big plus. The terminals are also protected (AKA Finger Safe) which is a minor plus. Using internal jumper bars you can easily connect up to 10 of them on the same bus.

I opted to use a rotary switch to distribute my 240v power. This way both legs get shut off when I'm done brewing. The ground goes to the frame and the 120v power goes to the blocks above the relays.

Monster Mash said:

I opted to use a rotary switch to distribute my 240v power. This way both legs get shut off when I'm done brewing. The ground goes to the frame and the 120v power goes to the blocks above the relays.

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Looks nice. Any issues using the back plate as the heat sink for the ssr's?

lschiavo said:

I am looking myself. Here is one option I found.

http://www.elecdirect.com/catalog/8063c3d2-b684-4c58-b7f1-c885828651cc.aspx

Click to expand...

Nice find.

lschiavo said:

Looks nice. Any issues using the back plate as the heat sink for the ssr's?

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There is a heat sink behind the plate but the SSR's don't really get hot.

Walker said:

I chose to use modular DIN rail mounted terminal blocks for my power distribution. They were cheaper than the big brick type distribution blocks and gave me the flexibility of adding more modules later if I need to.

My entire 50A distribution block (ground + two hots + neutral) cost me about $8 or so.

I put links to the pieces and parts I used, all from mouser.com, in this post

Click to expand...

I used the same ones, but bought mine from factorymation... darn, wish I'd seen your post before I bought mine cuz factorymation only sells full boxes of terminal blocks. I can build about 3 more control panels with the supply I've got. I may sell some on here to recoup some of the cost.. I have a BCS controlling the whole thing, so I may end up building another panel for my serving and fermentation temps, nice to have extra on hand for that.

bbognerks said:

I would get 30 Amp rated ones. Radio shack sells terminal strips that are supposedly 20 amps, but they look wimpy compared to the 30 amp strips I got from Home Depot.

Click to expand...

If I were only those terminal strips for one phase of the 240v system would the amperage going through still be the total of what I'm using (~24a at %100). I would use two terminal strips, one for each phase, so does that effectively cut the amperage on each phase in half?

rcm_rx7 said:

If I were only those terminal strips for one phase of the 240v system would the amperage going through still be the total of what I'm using (~24a at %100). I would use two terminal strips, one for each phase, so does that effectively cut the amperage on each phase in half?

Click to expand...

No, the current going across each one is still 24a. Suppose you had a 5500W element - that would draw ~23A at 240v. That's being supplied by two phases of 120V. So each one would need to supply 2750W.

2750W/120v = ~23A

Ok, that makes sense. Thanks for clearing it up!