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A Filmmaker’s Guide to Power Distro Box & Electrical Rentals

October 18, 2023

A Filmmaker’s Guide to Inspecting Power Distro Box and Electrical Rentals

In this lesson, Director of Photography Shane Hurlbut, ASC demonstrates how to check in distro equipment.

You’re going to learn how to:

Inspect Distro Boxes
Inspect Snake Bites
Inspect Gang Boxes
Inspect Bates Cables
Inspect Soft Threefers
Inspect Cables

DISTRO BOX INSPECTION:

There are many features to check on the distro equipment so you can enter production with confidence and assure optimal performance.

First, you want to inspect the lunch boxes and ensure the switches are not loose and the outlets look good in the circuit breaker.

Also, does the box itself look good or does it appear to have suffered some damage?

Shane begins with a 1200 amp distro box that delivers 220 out and 110 from the back.

He inspects the breakers and cam locks on the side. In the example below, notice the dent. However, Shane affirms that it is just cosmetic damage.

SNAKE BITE INSPECTION:

Taking up a 100 Amp Snake Bite, Shane makes sure the Camlock connectors look clean.

GANG BOX INSPECTION:

Shane takes up the 100 Amp Gang Box next. While a lot of filmmakers choose the lunchboxes over the gang box, the latter works well with generators and provides plenty of extra outlets.

BATES CABLE INSPECTION:

Next up is the 60 Amp to 60 Amp Bates Cable. Check to make sure there are no wires hanging out of your 60-to-60 and 100-to-100 amps Bates Cables.

SOFT THREEFER INSPECTION:

Look at the ends of the Soft Threefers and make sure there are not any cuts or exposed wires.

CABLE INSPECTION:

Shane likes to begin by organizing all of the cables into lines by type so they are easy to count.

It requires minimal inspection that primarily consists of looking at both ends of the Camlocks.

You are really trusting the rental house to provide cable that doesn’t have slices in it. Depending on the quality of your rental house, you may have to go through and check. If there is a slice and water gets in, that will obviously create issues.

Shane maintains the same process as stated above for the 5-Wire Banded Cable, 100 Amp Cable, and 60 Amp Cable.

IN CONCLUSION:

The distro equipment check-in is primarily a visual process. Organize everything in a clear fashion by laying it out on the ground, and perform a visual inspection of the distro gear.

Lighting Equipment Check-In

Check your lights like Shane Hurlbut, ASC’s elite team!

4 Lessons
45 minutes of instructional videos

Lighting Equipment Check-In is a comprehensive guide through the process of checking in lights from the rental house.

Shane Hurlbut, ASC demonstrates how to inspect lighting equipment while considering industry etiquette and protocols. In this course, Shane checks in Tungsten, HMI, and Kino Flo lighting units along with power distro equipment.