Panel design

ShawnK

Member
Join Date
Nov 2004
Location
Ontario, Canada
Posts
11
I took this from the thread with all the panel pics posted. I originally was thinking of collecting enough info to start some sort of standard we all could follow or at least a minimum to exceed.
I think this may also be a good time to post links to CAD resources anyone has stumbled across or sought out intentionaly.

This was posted by AKREEL in the other post:

1. Use wire duct.
2. Use cable ties.
3. Label EVERYTHING.
4. Invest in a good carpenter's square.
5. Field terminals go on the outside edge of the panel, with plenty of finger space (2" or more) "outside" them.
6. Do a panel layout in CAD, and generate a bill of materials BEFORE you start building.
(7. Hire a good panel shop to do the work.)

Did I miss anything, Mr. Jenkins?

AK
 
One trick that I do to make sure everything is level and square on the backplane: I take a t-square and make the backplane into 2"x2" graph paper essentially, I lightly use a pencil, and my backplane looks like a giant piece of graphpaper. This way when I lay things out I'm not always using a level, and this also allow for horizontal panel layout. Just something I do to help.

Greg
 
All my panels are one-of-a-kind.

I pre-place the components to get the layout.
Then I lay down masking tape, re-place the components, markup the panel and rock-and-roll with the center punch.

Then drill,tap and make it happen.

Rod (The CNC dude)
 
Don't mean to hijack the thread but I think it's appropriate here. Has anyone tried software from this outfit http://www.ecti.com
I'm getting ready to purchase software for schematic generation, panel layout, etc. and would appreciate any comments as well as hope to get other people's input on how to build better panels.

Thanks,
Jim
 
Why get software that runs on autocad?

Will this software make you do it their way?

Are the manufacturers blocks (dwg) better then the aadd on softwares?

do you need all the capabilities of the add on?

What is the price of the add on? justifiable?

I didn't like the wire tables, myself.

I am prejudiced, best to get other opinions.

regards.....casey
 
Jim,

I have used ECT Promis•e in the past and I didn't find it very friendly or productive. In fact after using it for several months I went back to using plain AutoCAD and my own "home made" blocks. Later on we purchased VIA WD, now AutoCAD Electrical and I have been using that ever since. Much better^10 in my opinoin. If you can afford it I would go with ACAD Electrical. I think they even offer a free 30 day demo. But as Casey said "I am prejudiced, best to get other opinions".
 
Just my tuppence worth to this thread would be...

Consider how much heat is going to be generated and how you are going to get rid of it (especially panels with a lot of inverters)

As well as the position of the equipment, think about cable routing through the trunking. Try and make sure that signal cables don't cross the power cables (as much as possible).

Lastly, consider making your panel scaleable. When initially purchasing the panel, try to account for a little extra room for expansion in the future. Just in case the customer needs to add an inverter or a different sized power supply etc..

(as I said, just my tuppence worth)..

:)
 
Hi guys,

Getting ready to build my first panel, I'm wondering if anyone has any preferences with regard to slotted wire duct sizes (Panduit, etc.) I never realized the range of sizes available!

The taller, narrower type uses less panel space, but it seems that it would make some of the "low-slung" terminals more difficult to access. The shorter, wider type improves accessability, but at the expense of panel space. And of course, the short narrow kind has limited capacity.

Any preference for the narrow slot spacing over the wider-spaced slots?

I purchased a length of the 1-3/4" x 3" Panduit today, but now that I look at it, it seems rather oversized for the application.

Any thoughts?

Paula
 
Wire way like conduit has a "Wire Fill Capacity" rating. So the size of the wire way you use should be determined by the number and size of wire you intend to fill it with. Also remember to separate dissimilar voltages in a different wire way or at least by using a divider. AD sells some nice wire way and it is down right cheap in comparison to Panduit. I have been using it for some time now and I really like it.

Wire Duct Specs

AD Wire Duct
 
Alan Case said:
You can never be oversized on duct size.

I agree. Wires just don't lie as flat as you'd like. So, fill tables are kind-of voodoo black magic.

One cool feature I've seen in wire duct was break-away "teeth." You could use a pliers (or your fingers if you're patient), rather than a saw to widen any of the gaps. And, the cuts were much cleaner. I think the brand was Iboco.

AK
 
I agree. Wires just don't lie as flat as you'd like. So, fill tables are kind-of voodoo black magic.

True and also as with conduit, I only use these tables as a starting point. I always try to go to the next size if panel space permits.
 

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