Happy New Year!!!
I'm designing a pcb which controls an external appliance via a relay and plan to put it in a box which is pluggable via an ac plug/receptacle.
I don't plan to solder the relay to the receptacle and want to use some kind of mounted interconnect. Does anyone have any recommendations? I'm just a hobbyist so any advice is welcome.
Thanks a bunch!
Use an SSR instead. No need to solder or plug in. Use proper (ratchet) crimped lugs for the mains connection.
What load are you switching?
Weedpharma
the power consumed by the appliances would be less than 150w. lugs seem like a good idea but the signal is provided by an atmega and will be routed on the pcb so i was thinking that the relay would need to soldered.
Are you thinking of a relay that has a through hole connectors on one end and lug terminal on the other?
Some relays have tabs that accept [u]quick disconnects[/u]. However, you usually have to be a little creative to mechanically mount the relay if you don't want it dangling.
Most 120V/240V solid state relays have screw terminals that accept [u]spade Lugs[/u] or [u]ring lugs[/u]. These relays also mount with screws.
There are also various [u]relay sockets[/u].
skreech:
the power consumed by the appliances would be less than 150w. lugs seem like a good idea but the signal is provided by an atmega and will be routed on the pcb so i was thinking that the relay would need to soldered.Are you thinking of a relay that has a through hole connectors on one end and lug terminal on the other?
Something of this style
There are cheaper suppliers, this is just for reference.
Get one with the current capacity you require.
It has easy mount holes and would simply need a flying lead from the PCB for the input.
Weedpharma
This is a good relay mounting block that fits many different relays: Jaycar SY4064
For switching AC mains power, there's a lot better ways than using a relay. Something with a zero-crossing function will switch very cleanly without radiating glitches through your house wiring. Jaycar SY4088. Depending on your point of view, SSRs can look expensive or they can look like the perfect answer to getting an Arduino to control mains power.
If you're in the USA , Frys sells relays and sockets for them.
Relay sockets
i don't know if that will work for your PCB but you can take a look.
I am pretty much thinking that you mean screw terminals as here:
thanks very much for the suggestions! I don't mind either mechanical or solid state so long as i can find a safe way to connect it to my pcb... i will have a look for some relays and corresponding sockets! The separately mounted pcb option looks good but might be a bit hard to find here in hong kong..
I don't plan to solder the relay to the receptacle
After seeing Paul's post, I think what you meant to say is:
I don't plan to solder the relay to the receptacle so I want the relay soldered to a PCB that has screw terminals like the relay modules you see on ebay
skreech:
The separately mounted PCB option looks good but might be a bit hard to find here in Hong Kong..
That now takes the cake as the most absurd thing I have heard recently. 
I would guess that most of the PCB mounted screw terminal relay bds on ebay come from China or Hong Kong. Perhaps the OP meant the Phoenix connectors might be hard to find in H.K.
i said a bit hard. not impossible.
the hong kong sites for element14, mouser and digikey don't seem to stock them and selling components through an online english website isn't exactly common practice for local retailers here. even the larger ones. also just because something is made in china doesn't mean you can just rock up to any store anywhere and get it. if you have been to mongkok or sham shui po where all the hardware shops are you'll know how difficult it is to pinpoint a shop that sells something you want without having to trawl through a whole street of them.
But at least you can trawl through a whole street of them, and if and when you find it, you have it quicker than any of us could.
It would seem to be a matter of getting to know who does what.
My suspicion of the various sellers on eBay of the things that often interest us, is that there really are not quite that many separate sellers, but two or three (or more) often appear to be essentially in the same warehouse or at least sharing stock, perhaps different family members.
Like some sellers I know at the North Rocks Computer Market in Sydney.
i agree that most things are more easily obtainable, but some components - especially those used more by hobbyists are just not sold. For example, none of those shops actually sell arduinos or atmegas, nor even a simple 16X2 lcd.
These shops have been there for decades and still cater to electricians primarily.
The practice you refer to is common and encouraged in China. It's sometimes called "dropshipping" (http://www.banggood.com/Drop-Ship-Program_hl18).
So - what is the reason companies like that do not sell within China and HK?
They do but the domestic market despite the size of the population just isn't big enough to support hobbyists exclusively, so they tend also to sell toys, cameras, mp3 players etc. I guess there just isn't the demand where in many cases it's still cheaper to buy a new fixture or even hire an electrician than buy an arduino.
Nonetheless I've managed to find a local arduino support group. Hopefully they will be able to point me in the right direction of where to get stuff more easily.