The best way of connecting an earth wire to a earthing clamp is to use a lug that can be crimped onto the wire. Ideally professional ratchet crimping pliers should be used but it's unlikely that anyone doing DIY will own a pair so for this tutorial normal crimping pliers have been used
| Before working on any electrical circuit you must ensure that it is isolated correctly and cannot accidentally be switched back on. Please read the article on safe isolation procedures before doing any electrical work. If you are not 100% certain what you are doing call a qualified electrician. Building regulations are changing all the time and modifying your home electrics could be against new rules and could invalidate your home insurance, if in doubt check first! |
You will need to get the correct size lug for the wire that you are using and will need a suitable crimping tool, your local electrical stockist will advise you.Strip enough of the insulation from the wire so that the conducting wire fits the the top of the lug, but do not strip off too much insulation or you will see a gap between the lug and the insulation material, which will make it look amateurish.
Push the wire all the way into the lug.
Place the lug in to the correct crimping location in the pliers and then squeeze the handles together as hard as possible.
The lug should now be firmly connected to the wire. Hold the wire firmly and try and pull the lug off, if you succeed in removing the lug then it was not crimped sufficiently. Obtain a new lug and try again until you cannot pull the lug off!
Now remove the screw from the earthing terminal and the washer.
Align the hole in the lug with the hole in the earthing terminal and replace the screw and the washer
Tighten the earthing terminal screw with a good fitting screw driver.
The finished job should look like this!
When you are bonding pipes together, for example beneath a boiler or in a airing cupboard, or bathroom it makes sense to plan a route where a single wire can be used. This single wire will connect to the furthest pipe by using a lug and then to each other earth clamp by simply removing a small piece of insulation as described below.
Mark both sides of the earthing terminal on the insulation of the wire using a sharp knife (wearing cut resistant gloves)
Carefully cut around the insulation with a sharp knife, making sure that you do not press on too hard. It is advisable to wear cut resistant gloves when doing this!
Now slice down the wire so that the two marks you have made are joined together
Remove the piece of insulation, exposing the bare conductor
Separate the strands of copper by using a small screwdriver
Push the screw from the earthing terminal through the hole that you have made in the copper conductor
Using a good fitting screw driver tighten the screw to the earthing terminal, tightly. Repeat this as many times as necessary.
