As the title puts it , why is stranded wire used for most light fixtures and dimmer switches. I have never dealt with stranded wire until recently doing a few upgrades in the house and i feel like stranded wire could increase the chance of a poor connection in wire nuts. Twisting the wire nut with the stranded wire without pretwisting worked best and I removed the nut just to check on each connection before putting it back on. But one time twisting it causes the stranded wire to break (twisted to hard I guess). I could see this happening to other people so that is what got me curious why manufacturers would even take this chance of electrical failure (arc from broken wire in nut, etc).
I assumed it might just be due to cost but Lutron dimmer switches are not cheap and more high end from what I read so maybe cost savings isn’t the reason?
Best Answer
That's only a problem if your wire-nut technique is bad.
Most people's technique is terrible when they start. Where people depart is that some refuse to learn, and do not test their work, or think, or refine their technique. They simply tape the wires onto the nuts to keep them from falling apart. This only hides the symptom; the root problem is a poor electrical connection, which results in overheating, arcing, and a meltdown or fire.
Just don't be that person and you'll be fine.