A Mating Call

Okay.  We need to talk about mating and the National Electrical Code.  We are most likely talking about mating on the rooftop of a building near you.

Maybe your neighbor’s house.

That’s correct, we need to have a discussion about Code Section 690.33 Mating.

We have a problem.  Our solar PV cables are not mating properly.  Specifically, we need to address the somewhat delicate matter of “intermatablity.”

In simple terms, we have boy parts that are not fitting together properly with associated girl parts on some cable connectors used to connect the wires between the PV modules on arrays.

Cable mating.

These are current-carrying electrical connections.  Additionally, they are in outdoor locations—subjecting them to radical temperature changes and varying levels of moisture.  Poor connections have led to arcing and, ultimately, fires.  The problem arises when, say, a female end from one manufacturer is coupled with what is supposed to be a matching male connector from another manufacturer.

The idea here is to get manufacturers to standardize a bit better so these connections between different manufacturers will successfully mate together.  Intermatability in Code-speak.

Section 690.33 in the 2020 version of the National Electrical Code is the standard to initiate manufacturers to focus on intermatability.

A mating call, if you will.

—Mitchell Hegman

Note: the spelling “intermatability,” as found in the National Electrical Code, may be found as “intermateablity” elsewhere.