I bought a PowerCab yesterday to provide some power to my layout. Upon looking at the panel, it seems a bit delicate and I am thinking about trying to mount it in an electrical box, like you would a light switch. Has anybody done something similar to this? Is there an issue with overheating or ventilation that I would need to worry about? Every panel I have ever seen just hangs out the back of the fascia or benchwork. I feel the panel would be better protected and cleaner if installed inside a box. Thanks for the help, Doug.
Heat should not be an issue. Since the Power Cab itself is also the command station and booster, the Power Cab Panel is basically just a pass through for the power, generating virtually no heat.
----Just a thought for you box go get a cake pan that fits your needs 8x10 or whatever and put your pannel board on top and then the back side will be enclosed and protected, and use a universal step drill bit to drill holes in the right spots.
Thanks guys. I went to Home Depot today and none of the general electrical boxes have holes in the correct spots. I believe Radio Shack has plastic boxes that can be drilled to the correct locations and used with small nuts and bolts. A cake pan or similar is a great idea to build an enclosure. Doug
If your talking about the little black rectangle plug thing that screws onto the front of facsia board no you don't need a 'box'. Don't you think NCE and all other DCC engineers have this figured out after all these years? Make a cut out and screw it in. Finish your layout if you need to. That is time better spent. Don't make work for yourself that is not needed. Jim
As my friend has no permanent layout yet, I just made a cardboard cube from a cereal packet with holes in the front traced through the original metal faceplate and a big hole in the back for the cables.. makes handling the board easier without touching the electronics and it definitely hasn't burst into flames yet, so no heat issues :happy19pb:
Similarly mine is just screwed to the faceplate that NCE provides, and then inserted into the layout fascia in a slot I cut for the board. Face plate screwed down, and we're off to the races.
Absolutely no need for a box, in my opinion. As others have said, simply make a hole in your fascia where you want to mount the Power Panel, slide the Power Panel through the hole, secure with a screw in each corner. The hole in the fascia does not even need to be especially precise or neat because the Power Panel front plate will hide irregularities. Once installed in your fascia, the Power Panel looks like it belongs there. If my Power Panel were in a box, I don't know how I would mount it on the layout. It is meant to be mounted through the fascia. - Jeff
