whenever i try to connect two electrical wires by twisting them together, i hold the two wires paralell to eachother, grab them with needle nose pliers and turn it. it never seems to work though! if anything, it just breaks the wire and i have to strip more insulation! what am i doing wrong? thx
You are doing it right but do not use needle nose pliers. Use ordinary pliers or linesman pliers are the best. Grab the two wires straight on - not sideways - with the pliers down at the insulation and move the pliers to the end of the wire as you twist it. If it is too long or uneven snip it off.
What gauge is the wire? Is it stranded or solid? Each type of wire has its own method. You can't really twist solid wires because as you have seen, they stress and break. If you do get them to connect they can loosen up create a bad connection. Electronic places have special connectors for these. Stranded wires are not usually a problems with twisting.
You may be squeezing too much of the wire with the pliers. You only need to squeeze the tips of the two wires and and twist there. Also it will help if you use something other than needle nose pliers. Try using regular square tip pliers.
Twisting Electrical Wires
The best answer before mine is to use a wire cap and someone gave it a thumbs down. Just twisting wires together is NOT acceptable to make a good connection. Someone mentions soldering, but depending on the size wire, the wire nut is the correct answer. It is not just for insulation, and do not compare it to tape. A wire nut provides the pressure needed between the conductors to make a good connection. Twisting the wires before putting on the wire nut is not necessary, but see the instructions for your wire nut. When the wire nut is put on it will twist the wires together and do a better job as such than any pliers can do.
