Loudon County Emergency Management — ARES Standard DC Connector

In an effort to provide a standardized connector for all equipment powered by 12 VDC, Loudon County ARES has adopted the 30 amp Anderson PowerPole connector. All members are strongly encouraged to outfit the equipment and power supplies they could bring to an incident with these connectors.

In the event of equipment or power supply failures, instant interconnects will be available without being concerned about a mismatch of OEM connectors. Many other volunteer groups around the country, including Civil Air Patrol and Search and Rescue groups are adopting this same connector. Locally, Blount County ARES and the METERS organization have also chosen this connector as the standard.

The connectors are somewhat unique in that there is not a traditional male or female. Polarity is protected by the convention chosen to hook up the connectors. For a wiring diagram, see the Anderson Powerpole connector guide at PowerWerx.com (opens in new window).

Anderson Powerpole® connectors are available from the following suppliers:

PowerWerx.com

401 South Harbor Blvd. F320
La Habra, CA 90631
(714) 570-3303
PowerWerx.com (opens in new window)
info@powerwerx.com

Wes Allen, K7WWG

2870 S.W. 199th Place
Aloha, OR 97006
(503) 649-3295
dcpwr.com (opens in new window)
wesa@dnc.net

Richard Heryford, WD6ESZ

1175 Baker Street, Bldg. D-13, Apt #210
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
(714) 851-8176
wd6esz@quick.net

Cable X-Perts

416 Diens Drive
Wheeling, IL 60090
(800) 828-3340
CableXperts.com (opens in new window) (under DC Power)
cxp@ix.netcom.com

Allied Electronics

(parts #803-0100, 803-0108, 803-0125, 803-0164)

If you need a few extra sets of the Anderson Powerpole® connectors, Mike, KM4H, is maintaining a small supply. Contact him at 988-5307 or km4h@arrl.net for more information.