Audio Systems: Electrical Tape, twisted strand, wire nuts

Question
I had asked a question not too long ago about connectors and splicing together two speaker wires.  I also asked about soldering.  What I didn't think about asking, and I wanted to see if you know if this is a good option, is to first strip the insulation from the ends of the two wires you want to connect, then twist the strands together, and then wrap electrical tape around the twisted strand to hold the wires together?  This seems like the easiest, cheapest, and fastest way to connect two wires together.  Is this just as good as soldering or using a crimp on connector?  Also, this seems to be the best way, other than soldering, to prevent the wires from corrosion.  Am I right?  Thanks again for your help.

Answer
Dear Dave,

I may have misunderstood one of your questions. I thought I understood that the in-wall wire you inherited were a hash of 12AWG and 14AWG *already* spliced together. Whether that's the case, or you're going add/replace splicing, this is what I recommend.

Strip about an inch of the insulation from each end of the two wires you want to splice together. Twist them together. Cap them with a wire nut. A wire nut is a small piece of conical plastic with either molded plastic or metal threading inside the cone. You twist this over the twisted together wires until the fit is snug--that is, it won't twist any further. It's important to remember that wire nuts all twist like any machined nut: clockwise or rotating left to right. Therefore, it's important that when you twist the wires together, you also twist them in a clockwise, left-to-right. If you don't, all the wire nut will do is unravel the twisted strands and make a mess.

Wire nuts come in a wide array of sizes. Go to the hardware store and get wire nuts specifically engineered for the gauge of your wire. Don't worry if they look too small--they always do. They'll work just fine. Molded plastic threads vs. metal threads is a matter of taste. I prefer the metal threads.

If you've never encountered them before, go to this page at the Home Depot site for several illustrations. If the URL doesn't work, go to homedepot.com and put "wire nut" into the search engine.

http://www.homedepot.com/prel80/HDUS/EN_US/diy_main/pg_diy.jsp?CNTTYPE=PROD_META...

Then, after the wire nut is in place, wrap the whole connection, wire nut and all, in electrical tape. Since your splicing is in-wall or hidden, you don't have to worry too much about neatness--you're not being tested on this--just that the connection is solid and completely wrapped.

I would NOT solder or use crimp connectors to splice wire. The connections are not strong enough for splicing. You may solder the twisted connection before applying the wire nut, but that's not necessary--maybe even a bit of overkill.

Kindest regards,

Kevin