Hi I'm planning on fitting some uPVC conduit in the garage and I'm not sure which fittings are best to use. I'm not sure if I should be using inspection tees, bends and elbows. Or if I should be using 3 way tee boxes and 2 way angle boxes. Basically what is the difference between the two types of fittings, the box type and the inspection type? Are the box type mainly for use with terminal blocks? Thanks.
The BESA or round boxes give more room to draw in and form cables, they also offer a point to make a fixing to the wall. If the garage is not heated, at the bottom of each drop to a socket or switch etc, leave a small 3mm drain hole in the box. Even in a dry place, moisture will collect as humidity and temperature changes. If the runs are long, more than 1 length without a bend, allow for expansion and contraction. To glue or not to glue, that is the question. The trade would say yes, but in practice and with adequate fixings, it is not essential unless water or rough usage is expected.
You can form nice bends in upvc conduit with a simple bending spring and a little warm up from rubbing the pipe with your hands Saves using a few elbows if they’re not needed for access Take a look on you tube at bending conduit with a spring No need to go down the route of filling with hot sand or using hot air guns ,,,, just not needed - keep it simple, upvc conduit spring, your hands, job done
I've never given an incorrect answer in my life. If you think inspection elbows are acceptable then that says more about you than it does about me. In fact any serious site bans them. BESA boxes should be used for drawing in cables - not bloody inspection elbows... There's a high risk of damaging cables with them. Also, it should be remember that conduit and trunking are for containing non-sheathed singles.
Can’t say I’ve ever used an inspection elbow. However I believe they can be obtained in Galv, Black Enamel and Stainless Steel, also I have seen them used in non-domestic installations in the past.
Ricky for Norn Iron must be right. It all makes sense now. How could we all have been so misled all these years? It's nice to know that even the manufacturers of steel conduit got it all wrong. If only Ricky had been there he could have explained it all to them and stopped them making fools of themselves all these years..... and turned water into wine to celebrate. I guess that inspection elbows were specifically designed only for the DIY market 80 years ago because so many DIY ers were needing to use them...in INDUSTRIAL SITUATIONS !! I do hope no one thinks I am being..........sarcastic. RS
I have used inspection elbows in all sorts of situations, sites, factories, power stations, only place they were deemed unsuitable was on submarines, probably due to some MOD quirk
Are you sure Pinocchio? Yee ha! Only if you are a cowboy. Any self respecting spark ensures he doesn't damage cables when he is pulling them in. No **** Sherlock! That's why I cant get SWA down then!
I used 20mm round plastic conduit in my garage and put in loads of sockets and 4 flories Used the conduit down to switches (1 each end of garage) and all socket drops. Easy enough to get 2x2.5 T&E through the conduit. Ok, not massive runs and no bends. Cable clipped to rafters out of harms way so just straight drops Maybe that’s all the OP needs in his garage ?
For a 90 degree bed you will need to bend it double as the conduit always springs back. No more than 2 solid bends between access points as you will have difficulty drawing in cables.