Wago 222 Wire Connectors vs Other Unbranded Type 

I wouldn't trust Chinese knock offs for mains voltages in places that sit covered in a jbox for years. Thats how you burn down your house mysteriously while you sleep.

Big Clive, you moved up my list of favourite Clives this week after the sad passing of Clive Swift.

@@hgbugalou And just to save a few cents.

Wago connectors I expect are also made in the East, but under stricter liscense. I’ve watched a few tests in the off brand vs originals - virtually exact. When tested with high currents (to 80amps), as well as resistance (0.001 if I recall the difference).

Good point

@Fracture

I’ve seen a guy do a video with high amps through both the original and off brand… reacted exactly the same. Basically, ur wire will fail before a wire nuts fail.

Overall this isn't even really true anymore it was pretty much American manufacturers that were instructing the Chinese to do that because they're scum

Since the Chinese were preparing in real time to go to naval war with America they've gotten rid of that idea. Unlike in America where we coddle our criminals they execute theirs for fraud

CambridgeMart in the regs, all terminations should be accessible, yeah did my 17th awhile ago, I trust no type of termination, none, I trust a ( basec, cec or independent labs certification) cable, in a run, correctly chosen method reference, if you think about it, its a must for test and inspect or maintenance engineers, techs or electricians, dont do a job, which you would not be happy with someone you know, finding after, when there is a problem with it in the future, in Europe we have under cut our value, both by the government and also ourselves, meaning we work for less per job or hour, meaning we need to squeeze more in, leading to some corners being cut, thats why the government has subverted unions for technical staff, if there was unity, we would be well paid like the accountants and lawyers, as we made the civilisation and keep it running,

Try a heat gun or blow lamp

A guy on RU-vid did flame test, as well as high amp test (80 amp) on both original and knockoff. Exactly the same result.

1bigsyd that’s like the customer paying for wire nuts

Well the burn test proved them to be very similar, it's just a different tooling and they left out the markings.

Norman Boyes if you look carefully you can see that the tooling is obviously different. Not only are the ejector marks different the overall geometry is far from identical. To the injection molding layman I can see how you think they look similar but to someone who has designed this type of tooling they're obviously different.

I purchased several sizes off Ebay last summer and find the cheap ones work great for every job I have used them, in fact I love them for a terminal on my home built power supply, a bit of epoxy on one side and slap her against the cleaned side of the case, instant quick detach for power and ground!

Even to someone who hasn't, the differences are (should be..) clear. For a start, they don't have the same markings on the outside - well, they're part of the mold, so bang goes that theory. Then we've got different dimensions internally and much lazier tool paths, all of which are pretty obvious the moment you look beyond "oh, it's the same shape and colour!".

Monkeh I am surprised you have the time to comment when you have all of those friends to engage with.😳

Chinese manufacturers used to sell the copies of the clear 221 model but now they have reverted back to selling the opaque 222 model (shown in the video). It may be due to Wago having an exclusive legal right to the 221 but no longer have rights on the 222. So it may be that Wago did in fact put a stop to Chinese manufacturers and sellers selling the 221 no-name knockoffs. But I can't say for sure.

Jako1987 Careful with that, as internationally, "sugar cube" refers to the square relays that have the common contact between the two coil contacts, thus less insulation between the outside wires.

Problem is that if Wago don't come down hard on these then others will copy them and there'll be a race to the bottom on quality.

Graham Langley Well these clones have been around for at least a couple years now, no clue if the quality has changed, I've just never bought any but considering that, I don't see Wago bothering them and if they were going to race to the bottom it seems like they would have done that by now, so yeah unless these things suddenly become super popular I don't see things changing much anytime soon.

@@Graham_Langley Chinese manufacturers used to sell the copies of the clear 221 model but now they have reverted back to selling the opaque 222 model (shown in the video). It may be due to Wago having an exclusive legal right to the 221 but no longer have rights on the 222. So it may be that Wago did in fact put a stop to Chinese manufacturers and sellers selling the 221 no-name knockoffs. But I can't say for sure.

Proof, or id didn't happen.

That's what I thought but apparently no. Toolstation and Wickes are owned by Travis Perkins BTW.

I tried it (video on my channel) and double the rated current will not suffice. Screw connectors still have the edge at extreme overloads, but these are good enough at any sensible load.

stefantrethan He was asking for fake vs. WAGO, not screw versus WAGO.

Andrei M no you

I second this

The feeling that "everything from China is crap" is very outdated. You can (if you look closely) get some great products and components from China at a much reduced cost.

Kyle Bishop ah yes, and cheap is the operative word! So far I've nothing but tat from them, so I'm trying some shoes! 😂 Let's see how that goes hah.

I have bought and used these from bangood in China, I have also used genuine wago ones but there is no difference apart from the branding as you proved. The only thing that concerns me is the lack of any electrical standards approval on them, which according to BS7671 is a No No.. If using in electrical installations in UK. I have used them without issue however, but now use Wago as they cost a bit more, but meet standards required and have been approved. Peace of mind and cover your ass... Great for projects though 😎

Patents have time limits on them (20 years maximum in the UK except, I think, in the pharmaceutical industries where longer is allowed to recover costs). Copyright lasts longer (which can cover detailed design, but not function). Trademarks is about the only one that last for ever.

I'm very surprised they didn't register the design, which would have given them 25 years protection.

Maybe they did. How long has this form of Wago 220 series connection been around? The position is perhaps comparable to Lego. They have tried to protect their brick format using trademarking rules, but it's been deemed (at least in the EU) that the brick format is dictated by function, not trademark rules and they've lost the ability to protect the basic brick format.

Wago have a UL document for the 222 series dated 31 March 2003, which is a lot earlier than I expected. I can't see how they'd run up against the Lego problem with a reg. design on something like this as the function doesn't dictate the design. What does surprise me is Wago doesn't seem to be doing anything to warn about the copies and when I conctacted them I had to point them at this video so they knew what I was on about.

Graham Langley They should have gotten trademark protection on the color combination, as that isn't dictated by function. Legal copies would have to use different colors for body and/or levers. But at least they have protection for the actual WAGO name stamped on one side.

The genuine Wago ones are rated 24 amps with solid core wire or 32 amps with stranded wires. Certainly not limited to lighting circuits.

I've never used them but can see the convenience and ease they would afford. I guess my lower current caution comes from 'old sparks' syndrome (I still call micc 'pyro') :o)

the wago police

I have a few of the Wago knockoffs (both the opaque ones in this video (222) and the clear ones (221)) and both show rating of 32A. But the 222 show a 250V rating where as the clear 221 shows 150V rating. Both types bought off Banggood March 2018.

lepompier132 where do you see the half?

Repeat after me: Spring steel is not meant to be used as an electrical conductor.

Approvals - unknown. Also not known is who actually manufactures these things, a search for PCT-215 or PCT-213 provides many places selling them, mainly in China, Taiwan and the same on ebay, amazon and the rest. None of them appeared to be the actual manufacturer, and no real info on the things other than useless statements like 'complies with all EU regulations'. Toolstation have these as 'spring lever connectors', with prices in the same area as the proper Wago ones.

So, in other words, are they BS or not? ;)

They are BS for sure, just which kind of BS is uncertain ;-)

It seems unlikely that a major company like Toolstation would sell unapproved electrical items. An eBay seller, maybe, but Toolstation is owned by Travis Perkins PLC.

Toolstation prices on them are actually higher than buying genuine Wago connectors from CPC - unless you need them same day, what's the point? Go somewhere proper (or even just CPC, I really do hesitate to call them a proper anything) and you can get the full range, their boxes, etc.

So glad he flicked that disgusting 'soader' away

The hole in the centre above the orange levers is designed so that a test probe can be inserted to check for voltage.

Probably more like "they can't be used because they are not wirenuts". Americans seem to be obsessed with wirenuts for all wiring.

apparently they are ok because they are not expressly forbidden, but the guys are just not used to them so they are not yet as available. When doing projects and planning for Jamaica I often need to look at Canadian and UK and US store websites to order gear from while watching the prices from China as well. Because of building construction style in Jamaica, wiring can be a challenge. Which was why I had the question the other day over suitability, before I try to buy a few thousand of each for my next trip home..lol Thanks!

Both of them are.

For the Wago ones, maximum wire sizes are 2.5mm² solid and 4mm² stranded. Current 24A with 2.5mm², 32A with 4mm²

I have a few of the Wago knockoffs (both the opaque ones in this video (222) and the clear ones (221)) and both show rating of 32A. But the 222 show a 250V rating where as the clear 221 shows 150V rating. Both types bought off Banggood March 2018.

Yes and at least they are seperate.

In almost all situations the wago connectors beat screw terminals hands down. And the situations where screw terminals beat them are mostly when doing things that shouldn't be done!

Rosscoff2000 Screw terminals are the norm in most if not all electrical control panels.

But the're usually not for stranded wire afair...

BitBastelei Exactly.!

Problem is going to be when someone else realises they are no longer protected and does a cheaper version, followed by someone else...

Or 30 amps with a pigtail, and only run one air conditioner!

I don't see why not. Cars use 12V. I'm using them with 240V with no problem ... yet. Waterproofing might be an issue, though.

No, they aren't. I'm an auto mechanic as well as a building maintenance guy here in the US. Automotive wiring and building wiring exist in totally different environments. Automotive wiring has to withstand a lot more vibration and mechanical stress, and in the case of connections outside of the passenger compartment, connections need to be waterproof. Also, automotive wiring is always stranded, where building wiring (in the US) is usually solid. For automotive wiring, connections should either be soldered or you can use crimp on terminals. On thicker wiring, such as battery cables, screw connectors can also be used. And for connections that need to be weatherproof, use adhesive lined heat shrink tubing to insulate the connection. I can't tell you how many times I've seen people use wire nuts (I'm in the US, after all- wire nuts are the norm for building wiring here, though the wago type connectors are starting to be used more and more) where the connection either corrodes or falls apart. Keep products intended for building wiring out of your car, and keep products intended for automotive wiring out of your house. They're totally different environments.

I guess where I have used them, they have worked fine, I use them in my RV to add electrical devices, such as adding a CB radio to the 12V wire that I have directly attached to the battery (through a fuse of course) for my Ham set. While both receive at the same time, I never key them both up at the same time which is what takes the power. This is under the dash of course, never under the hood where the heat and moisture could get at them. I also used a set to hook up my Co2 detector in our bedroom, this is more like construction since it is inside the wall of the RV, but they all work great just keep the limitations in mind.

Space for end screen elements.

I see.

Jim Oakes Are you thinking of their 221-series?

John Francis Doe sorry for lengthy time reply yes it is the 221 series

Banggod used to sell the clear 221 knockoffs but only sell the opaque 222 knockoffs as shown in the video. They tool the sales pages for the 222 down completely. I am thinking this is due to a legal issue from Wago. I have not check other Chinese sites so I don't know. But Wago may have legal rights over the 221, but not the 222?

LOL.

It's not just Wish. There are hundreds of Chinese retailers/marketplaces these days selling utter junk. AliExpress, Banggod, Gearbest, Fasttech, DX, and the list goes on. Most have small USA warehouses where they ship limited popular items from so that Americans can get their cheap junk quicker lol.

That's just a lack of imagination on your part.

Yea well what I reckon is............um

Their purpose is to connect multiple wires together. If each wire hole was electrically separate, they really would be useless.

John Ward You said seconds into the video what they were used for. Even with the aid of a DaveCAD drawing, you couldn't have made it clearer. Some people just can't be taught!

Mentorcase they are fantastic for wiring constant voltage LED tape which has to be in parallel. Two three way wagos work perfectly for this.

As opposed to screw terminals which you are supposed to re-tighten every few years? I was also resisting them for the longest time, but after doing some actual testing I determined they are good for anything but the most extreme overload that would melt the wire insulation anyway.

That's was my initial reaction when I first saw these years ago., but I tried them and was instantly converted! I've used loads over the years and I would say they achieve more consistent reliable results than screw connectors. They also don't require access to be maintained for inspection and checking which is required for screw connectors. They are especially useful in restricted space and where wiring is likely to need modification in the future.

They are not, we use them here for round about 30 years. Never had any problems with them...

I don't get why using these connectors either, sure for something temporary are great, but for fixed installations, i don't know, you don't start disconnecting wires every day. A screw seems to me more solid and robust, these seems to me very simple to accidentally release, imagine when you are working in a junction box full of these, and moving wires around you accidentally release one of them, not so great, you can also accidentally disconnect a live wire and touch it. Imagine also if some non electrician puts their hands in the junction box, sure it shouldn't happen, but it happens, people like to take off covers and look inside them even if they shouldn't do it. Also screw terminals are smaller, and make more nice work for me, especially when you have to join together more than two or three wires, maybe not a common situation in the UK because you have ring circuits, but common in most Europe where it's common to have star circuits, where the wires from the plugs and lights come to a couple of big derivation boxes in the house where they are joint, and you need to join 10 or more wires sometimes. Then screw terminal that needs to be retightened, never heard of these problems, needs to be accessible, well it's not a good idea to have non accessible connections anyway, every connection should be done in a derivation box anyway, if not good luck with maintenance and with future upgrades.

A1eR a screw might seem to you more solid and robust, but the operative word there is seem. Screws loosen up over time.