# Anyone tried Wago lever nut connections?



## zannej (Mar 27, 2017)

I was browsing through youtube and came upon a [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31PZsse72zM"]video[/ame] showing how to make a vent/light have separate switches for the fan and light and the guy used these Wago lever nuts (not the push-connect type).
I completely suck at twisting wires together, so I'm wondering if these are any good. Supposedly they take up less space in the boxes.

Any thoughts?

I know people were doubtful of the reliability of the push-connect versions (I searched the threads and only found 2 mentions of Wago-- and one of them was about push-connects).

If they are good, I might get a few to use when I change out some light switches & install a new vent fan (with my certified electrician friend's assistance).

Edit: I was just trying to post the link to the video not the video itself. bah.


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## nealtw (Mar 27, 2017)

Haven't used them but they look like they would be easy.


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## Snoonyb (Mar 27, 2017)

While they may be of use to the casual homeowner, there is still a learning curve.

At about 4x the cost of wirenuts I doubt they are a viable commercial option.


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## afjes_2016 (Mar 27, 2017)

I had started using these push-in connectors because I am starting to feel the effects of arthritis in my fingers (among other places) and it is hard for me to twist more than two conductors together properly the first time like I used to be able to do. So with time loss it pays for me to spend a few extra cents and use the push-ins. I never used the lever ones though.


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## Kabris (Mar 27, 2017)

This is the first I've seen this lever type, but I use quick connects like this all the time when replacing ballasts in fluorescent fixtures. I just use wirenuts for everything else. Wouldn't have any use for them in a switchbox.


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## havasu (Mar 27, 2017)

I just cut off the silly confounded connectors and use wire nuts.


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## bud16415 (Mar 27, 2017)

afjes_2016 said:


> I had started using these push-in connectors because I am starting to feel the effects of arthritis in my fingers (among other places) and it is hard for me to twist more than two conductors together properly the first time like I used to be able to do. So with time loss it pays for me to spend a few extra cents and use the push-ins. I never used the lever ones though.



I was doing a bunch of wiring out in the garage this weekend. All #12. I like a good twist on them before the wire nut. I was remembering 20 years ago it seemed pretty easy to do and now the arthritis and hand strength are not what they used to be. 

If I have 3 or more to twist I take my vice grips and get all the cut ends even and clamp them straight on the ends of the wires and then take my flat duck bills and grab all the wires on the insulation and twist them all at once. It makes a beautiful tight twist that will hold itself together without a nut. I snip off the end and screw the nut on. I havent come up with anything easier on the hands but I have in my head a special tool I might make that would make it easier still. If I ever get around to making one I will post it.  

I dont know if I would trust those back stabs connectors.


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## nealtw (Mar 27, 2017)

bud16415 said:


> I was doing a bunch of wiring out in the garage this weekend. All #12. I like a good twist on them before the wire nut. I was remembering 20 years ago it seemed pretty easy to do and now the arthritis and hand strength are not what they used to be.
> 
> If I have 3 or more to twist I take my vice grips and get all the cut ends even and clamp them straight on the ends of the wires and then take my flat duck bills and grab all the wires on the insulation and twist them all at once. It makes a beautiful tight twist that will hold itself together without a nut. I snip off the end and screw the nut on. I havent come up with anything easier on the hands but I have in my head a special tool I might make that would make it easier still. If I ever get around to making one I will post it.
> 
> I dont know if I would trust those back stabs connectors.


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00R2CAK1I/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20


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## bud16415 (Mar 27, 2017)

This tool might be handy. Anyone use one?

http://www.whiztools.net/

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yM8I3Smu1xQ[/ame]

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrZPDLNZg5Y[/ame]


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## Snoonyb (Mar 27, 2017)

I found the drill motor, BESIDE all the other crap in the tool pouch too cumbersome.


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## afjes_2016 (Mar 28, 2017)

bud16415 said:


> This tool might be handy. Anyone use one?...



I absolutely never have any tools like this in my pouch or collection of tools. Meaning no tool where a portion (end) can fall off or get caught in a screw etc when pulling the driver away from the screw etc. It may sound a bid overboard for personal protection but using a tool such as a screw driver with removable screw heads is dangerous in my book. Holding a screw driver in my hand firmly knowing where my hand goes the screw driver goes gives it less chance of touching something hot and shorting out a circuit or even while working in a panel. Maybe it is just me but if I am for example putting in a new breaker and using a screw driver with removable/interchangeable tips and as I withdraw the tip from the screw on the breaker and it get stuck in the screw just a little and come apart from the driver there is a much better chance of that tip falling/bouncing around into the live hot panel and hitting something it should not possibly sparking out. If I use a solid screw driver I know that the tip will not fall off if it gets stuck in the screw just a little bit. I don't like metal parts falling when working with electrical. As I said it is just me but I find this is one more step to personal safety.


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## bud16415 (Mar 28, 2017)

afjes_2016 said:


> I absolutely never have any tools like this in my pouch or collection of tools. Meaning no tool where a portion (end) can fall off or get caught in a screw etc when pulling the driver away from the screw etc. It may sound a bid overboard for personal protection but using a tool such as a screw driver with removable screw heads is dangerous in my book. Holding a screw driver in my hand firmly knowing where my hand goes the screw driver goes gives it less chance of touching something hot and shorting out a circuit or even while working in a panel. Maybe it is just me but if I am for example putting in a new breaker and using a screw driver with removable/interchangeable tips and as I withdraw the tip from the screw on the breaker and it get stuck in the screw just a little and come apart from the driver there is a much better chance of that tip falling/bouncing around into the live hot panel and hitting something it should not possibly sparking out. If I use a solid screw driver I know that the tip will not fall off if it gets stuck in the screw just a little bit. I don't like metal parts falling when working with electrical. As I said it is just me but I find this is one more step to personal safety.



You bring up a good and valid point. I agree and when I first saw this tool I thought it would be great if they just sold the handle for twisting without the blade.

40 years ago when I was an apprentice I was working with an old electrician and he told me to wrap my screwdriver in black electrical tape like his. I did and to this day the screwdrivers I use in panels are wrapped. Over the years I used shrink tube on some also. Mine have about a quarter of an inch on the business end exposed. 

On the other hand working in outlet boxes and J boxes and even behind the panel I kill everything whenever possible before poking around.


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## slownsteady (Mar 28, 2017)

The lever nuts look pretty neat, and I have seen a variation on them in lower voltage situations like electronics. I suppose if they are built properly they would be good for household current also. But it would come down to cost. Twisting wires with a lineman's pliers isn't really that hard.


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## slownsteady (Mar 28, 2017)

Whiztwister looks pretty cute too. But besides Afjes' note about the tips, I would add that the shaft on that screwdriver seems a little fat for some applications. So it's not replacing any tool, just one more to carry.
But if they put that hollow handle on a regular screwdriver, I'm all for it.


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## zannej (Mar 30, 2017)

Speaking of the screwdrivers used for electrical work, I saw some that were wrapped in rubber specifically for use on wiring.

I would never ever ever do any work on electrical without making sure it was completely off. And I would never tackle something I wasn't absolutely sure about.

I was thinking that because I am a monkey and I have broken wires while trying to twist them because sometimes I have less coordination than a monkey with Parkinsons, the little boxes might be worth it (to me) if they work well.


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## slownsteady (Mar 30, 2017)

I guess you'll have to do some research on them. Read some reviews, maybe check a electrical pro forum......


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## tk3000 (Apr 24, 2017)

bud16415 said:


> This tool might be handy. Anyone use one?
> 
> http://www.whiztools.net/
> 
> ...



So true, one need to twist the wires together with lineman pliers before even put the wire nut in place and twist it into the wires.

I bought a bunch of lever nuts in the past and have used them ever since in any electrical work. The ones I bought off amazon and are made in Germany, and seem to be very reliable.


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