Vapor Seal Assembly And Method For Installing

A vapor seal assembly for passing at least one wire through an aperture defined by a bulkhead without terminating the wire at the bulkhead, the vapor seal assembly comprising:

• a shell including a cylindrical extension for passing through the aperture, wherein the cylindrical extension includes a threaded exterior surface, wherein the shell includes an annular flange attached to one end of the cylindrical extension, wherein the flange includes an outer periphery and defines a plurality of notches along the periphery, wherein the shell is split approximately half along an axis of the cylindrical extension;
• a cylindrical insert sized to fit within the cylindrical extension, wherein the cylindrical insert defines at least one elongated channel along an axis of the cylindrical insert, wherein the cylindrical insert includes an exterior surface, and wherein the cylindrical insert defines a least one slot placing the elongated channel in communication with the exterior surface, wherein the slot is for enabling the wire to pass through the slot to be received within the channel during installation of the vapor seal assembly;
• an annular gasket having a first flat surface for abutting the bulkhead when the vapor seal assembly is installed, and a second opposing surface for engaging the annular flange of the shell, wherein the gasket includes a plurality of tabs on the opposing surface for positioning within the notches, wherein the gasket is split approximately in half along a diameter of the gasket;
• a generally annular nut having a threaded interior surface for engaging the threaded exterior surface of the shell, wherein the nut includes a plurality of extensions arranged around an exterior surface of the nut, wherein the nut is split approximately in half along a diameter of the nut;
• and
• a generally annular retainer defining an aperture for receiving the cylindrical extension of the shell, the retainer including a surface for contacting the bulkhead when the vapor seal is installed, wherein the retainer defines a hollow cavity for receiving the nut and defines a plurality of receptacles for receiving the extensions, wherein the retainer is split approximately in half along a diameter of the retainer.

A vapor seal assembly comprising:

• a split shell having a threaded, hollow cylindrical extension and an annular flange attached to one end of the cylindrical extension, wherein the flange includes a first engagement means;
• a cylindrical insert sized to fit within the hollow cylindrical extension, and defining at least one elongated channel along an axis of the cylindrical insert, wherein the channel is for receiving a wire passing through an aperture defined within a bulkhead;
• an annular gasket including second engagement means for complementary engagement with the first engagement means;
• a split annular nut that includes an interior threaded surface for threading onto the cylindrical extension;
• and
• a split retainer that defines a cavity for receiving the nut, wherein the nut and the retainer include respective complementary locking means, for locking the retainer and the nut together when the nut is threaded onto the cylindrical extension.