Electrical conduit is used to protect electrical wires, when a simple jacket alone is not enough. Conduit may be metal or plastic (PVC). Use with the [electrical] tag.
Questions tagged [conduit]
547 questions
60
votes
7 answers
Can Romex (NM-B) cable be run through conduit?
A few days ago I asked an electrician if I could run cable through conduit - he gave me a funny look and said "No, Romex is not allowed in conduit."
When I searched online, there seems to be a wide belief that Romex cannot be run through conduit,…
BlueRaja - Danny Pflughoeft
- 3,348
- 10
- 32
- 56
35
votes
5 answers
Why can I not assemble conduit around cable, but must pull it after assembly?
I have seen a number of answers here from our esteemed electricians about running wiring through conduit, and many of them include a warning similar to:
You're not allowed to piece the conduit together over the wires - they must be pulled only…
FreeMan
- 37,897
- 15
- 71
- 155
32
votes
4 answers
How to future-proof a long cable run
I'm starting on a project that will involve digging a long (roughly 150-200 meter) trench from my house down to the road. The trench itself will be a considerable expense and so while the ground is open, I plan on laying additional conduit(s)…
Jack Lloyd
- 423
- 4
- 6
14
votes
9 answers
Can an incoming optical fiber cable be wired internally in a house's walls?
I am building a new home, and want to get fiber internet installed in it. In my current home, the fiber is wired externally on walls, above doors and finally into the living room through a drilled hole. I want this wire to be installed internally…
Johnnytest
- 148
- 1
- 1
- 8
14
votes
4 answers
Is there a need to replace wiring if I tripped the microwave oven when drilling through drywall?
While drilling through drywall in bathroom to install a handicap bar to studs, I later discovered that the microwave oven breaker had tripped. Apparently one of the drill holes had missed a stud and went through PVC pipe in the wall (this was…
Grant
- 565
- 1
- 9
- 27
14
votes
3 answers
Can I use old abandoned iron pipe as electrical conduit?
I have an older house (1920) and I have been planning on doing some rewiring to get rid of some k + t stuff. Anyway, I just noticed today that there are some irons pipes that used to be part of the heating system. (they are no longer connected +…
A.R.
- 327
- 1
- 4
- 10
13
votes
8 answers
How do I place electrical conduit under a creek?
Short version: I need to run 4" PVC electrical conduit under a 4' wide creek where the water is usually 1-4" deep. Code in this area requires cable in conduit to be 18" deep. I do want to keep it that deep or, if I can manage it, maybe 24" deep so…
Tango
- 480
- 1
- 6
- 21
13
votes
8 answers
Why is ENT rarely used for electrical wiring?
As best I can tell, the National Electrical Code 2011 allows electrical non-metallic tubing ("smurf tube" or ENT) to be used for running 120 V electrical wire. But everywhere I look, I see remarks to the effect that its use is mostly confined to…
Jeremy W. Sherman
- 1,815
- 8
- 23
- 31
12
votes
5 answers
How do you mount conduit to a wall so that it stands off a standard box distance?
I'm running 1/2" EMT conduit between single-gang surface-mount boxes. The holes for the boxes are slightly set away from the wall so that the conduit does not mount flush against the wall. I have found various types of single screw and double screw…
KJ7LNW
- 1,025
- 5
- 17
11
votes
3 answers
Does it matter if my underground conduit overlaps or crosses over existing conduits?
I'm planning on digging a trench for underground electrical conduit. I recently called my state "call before you dig" underground locating service. They finished marking the locations of underground utilities. They all overlap, perpendicular, to my…
Andrew
- 337
- 1
- 4
- 14
10
votes
5 answers
How many CAT6 cables can fit in 3/4 conduit?
I was planning to get 3/4" conduit (Carlon ENT/Smurftube) to run network cables through the house.
Just how many CAT6 cables can safely fit into 3/4" conduit?
Slav
- 483
- 1
- 5
- 16
10
votes
1 answer
How can I adapt a wall outlet to suface mount conduit?
I have a single gang in wall outlet in my basement. I would like to adapt it into surface mount EMT conduit to get an outlet at a different location. Ideally I would be able to keep a plug at the current location, but its not critical.
Once site I…
JBCP
- 245
- 2
- 3
- 8
10
votes
4 answers
How do I get all these wires up from the basement to the attic?
I'd like to run new cabling for data, voice and tv but I'm having a hard time figuring out how to get some of the wires up to the attic for the 2nd floor and would like some advice.
I've run cables, wire and conduit before but I've hit a wall (pun…
OrganicLawnDIY
- 3,631
- 9
- 28
- 42
10
votes
5 answers
How do I properly prepare stranded wire for a screw down connection?
When connecting a stranded wire to a solid wire in a wire nut (for example connecting a ceiling fan's internal wiring to the house wiring), I know that I should tightly twist the stranded wires and that they should lead the solid wire(s) by a little…
FreeMan
- 37,897
- 15
- 71
- 155
10
votes
2 answers
How do you protect romex at the end of an EMT run?
Sometimes you need to run a circuit through both protected & unprotected space. For example, you might put a recep in workshop (unfinished walls = unprotected) over a crawlspace (protected).
To protect the wires in the unprotected space, you use a…
Jay Bazuzi
- 11,658
- 32
- 94
- 143