I am upgrading the old wires to some of my more power hungry receptacles, but I am going to wire them a bit differently than how they are now. Currently, the receptacles are 'daisy chained', so that the each run of wire to the next receptacle usually connects from the last receptacle, however, I don't think I can fit two separate new cables through the floor joints, so I what I am planning is to branch the wiring from a single box.
The problem is that I will have to connect about 4-5 12AWG wires together, and I don't think that my regular method of using a wire nut will be sufficient, as that is just too much wire for any single nut to take at once. Is there a better method of connecting that many wires together at once? I have searched for alternate ways of connecting wires together, and so far the best I've found is using three separate bus bars (one each for hot, ground, and neutral), which seems like overkill to me.

 

Wago makes a push-in connector that takes up to 6 #12 conductors, Ideal also makes push-ins. Red or Blue Ideal wing nuts and wing twists take 5 #12 conductors as will the B2 red B-caps from Buchanen. You can also make two wirenutted groups of three with a jumper between.

Make sure to use a large enough junction box at the center point of your star.

 

That's what I was going to say, if you want to use hardware you already have around.

 

Very true. With only "code-sized" boxes, you're often better off using two with a jumper because the sheer volume of the blue wirenut with five 12AWG conductors is going to require some manhandling.

 

I would never use them, and I do not trust that little flimsy spring connection in backstab. I think solder and tape connections are still legal, and that is what I would use, but I have alot of patience. And time.

 

Soldering is legal, but only as a secondary method to a mechanical fastener. [110.14(B)] You would need to mechanically and electrically secure the wires together first with a method such as a copper barrel crimp, then you could fill it with solder it if you wanted to. You also need to cover the soldered joint with an insulation "equivalent to the conductor", so something better than tape is required perhaps like 600V shrink tube.

 

That sounds better.

 

How secure is the connection made by the push connectors? An electrician once told me that push in receptacles that have problems with the wires slipping out over time due to the small expansions and contractions that the wires made during power cycles. That was with a house that had aluminium wiring, which my house does not have, but I have still generally avoided them, simply out of habit, as the ones with the screws are what I am used to. Also, as working with the larger wire nuts has taught me, it can also be dangerous if the connection is not strong enough to prevent the wires from coming loose as you are pushing the them back into the box.

 

I can easily twist them out. That is why I hate them. If they would put in a screw to hold the wire in, as we3ll as as the push mecanism, I would have used hundreds of them.

 

Yeah but it depending on the size of the junction box and how it mounted it will be easier to split in two but for new construction naw I go one shot and be done with it.
For 5X12 awg conductor red will get it but pretty tight so next size larger is grey wirenut { that is half way to monster bleu wirenut }

Merci.
Marc

 

They seem to be pretty good.

The push-ins on receptacles (quickwire) are less reliable than screws, although it is not clear whether the push-in mechanism itself is to blame or the flexing from the repeated stress of plugging and unplugging cords over time. Aluminum wire has problems with most any connection type.

If you get the wirenut on properly and use a large enough cubic inch box the connection will not come loose.

 

If the connection comes loose by being pushed into the box it was not made properly.