Featured Terms
Electrical Slang
What do a "bug" and a "cherry" have in common?
They are both electrical slang terms!
Curious about what these and other slang terms mean?
Scroll through our collection of slang terminology used in the electrical industry!
Whether you are an electrician, contractor, or just someone trying to understand what your local electrician is jabbering about, use the glossary to learn trade slang and electrical jargon.
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10/28/2020
This is a safety and securing device used in cable pulling applications. The figure-eight design opens sideways and once connected to the pulling equipment, it won't open because it snaps shut. NOTE: The sister hook is made from malleable iron and will be the weakest link if used with steel devices. They are sold in sizes by the eye opening and each size has a different safe pulling load before it will shatter. They are available in 9/16" (430lbs) through 1 1/16" (2065lbs).
10/28/2020
This electrical box is usually called a 1900 Box because that was the original part number from Bossert almost a hundred years ago. It is the most common box used when a simple SwitchBox is not large enough. The part number shown below is only one of many configurations and you need to ask for the size of the knockout (determined by the conduit size) and if the user wants a small (1-1/4"), a standard (1-1/2") or a deep (2 1/8") box. The user also has to specify how it will be mounted: stud ears, etc.
"Put a 1900 Box at the end of the run and install a duplex RS cover."
10/28/2020
Cover to adapt 4" or 5" boxes to accept a wiring device. Wall plate added later, (see also 'Square Device Box'; 'Combination Box Cover').
10/28/2020
Nylon rope blown, shot, or snaked into conduit to pull wire or a bigger pull line.
10/28/2020
The term Quadplex and Triplex comes from the Murray (ITE) product and in general refers to a breaker that offers the benefits of 4 poles in two breaker positions with the benefit that if one phase trips on the 240v configuration, the other phase trips internally instead of relying on the pole handles to be physically tied. A QUAD breaker is when the two outside two poles are tied together and the inside two poles tied together providing two 2-pole 240vac breakers. A Triplex breaker is when either A) the two outside poles are tied together for a 2-pole 240v breaker and the two inside poles operating independently as two 1-pole 120v breakers or B) the same as A but switching inside and outside poles. The alternative to using a QUAD or TRIPLEX breaker is to take two twin breakers and physically tie the two inside and/or two outside poles together. The downside is that this method relies on the physical connection of the pole handles for the other breaker to trip instead of the internal trip mechanism.
10/28/2020
This tool looks like a screwdriver but is used on hex head nuts. There is a different tool for each nut size. Although the part number shown below is for fractional sizes, it is also available for metric.
