UF WIRE and Wells

[lee5425]

i just got off the phone with southwire. ??? states that UF can be used in water wells all the way to the pump. He also says submersible pump cable is a marketing tool. SPC will give you protection from gas and oil where UF will not, so if you are in good well water your ok, However most inspectors think the wire has to be stamp for a certain use such as wells. That is why the wire has codes on it so you can look up its allowed use. The other issue i seen that i think is no problem is the bare ground. When you test the Sub pump you will find the pump shell is exposed to the water and is connected to the ground, so does it matter that the ground is not double insulated? Some of the old well casings are metal and many new wells have plastic casings but you still have a ground. my way of thinking is that uf has better protection from nicks vs the other cable. i have seen many times where the twisted cable has rubbed the casing and shorted out. So why pay double for for a marketing tool! if the uf wire is the same other than protection from oil and gas

 

[Dennis Alwon]

Most of the well pumps around here are wired with UF. I don't know why it would not be acceptable.

 

[ptonsparky]

Usually UF to the pitless adapter then well cable on down for this area. Older ones had the three twisted well cables with no EG all the way back to the fuse box. Buried or flown. Sometimes all three.

 

[kwired]

When you get to the end of the cable and expose the conductors to connect them to the well are they also rated for the purpose or is just the UF sheath rated for submersion?

Submersible well cable typically has a little thicker conductor insulation than the presumably THHN/THWN or very similar that is usually in a UF cable. I like that idea for something that is submerged in water. You also have to consider that there typically is nothing going to physically damage whatever you run in the well casing except for when the well man is extracting or installing the pump into the casing.

 

[ceb58]

I suppose UF would be fine but if you use the wire holders that clip on the pipe you don't have to worry about the wire getting nicked on the casing. Every thing would be easier using the pump wire when you have to pull the pump out. The stranded is easier to handle.

 

[lee5425]

UF-B and Submersible pump wire

UF-B and Submersible pump wire

If you look at the specs for sub pump wire like the 3 or 4 wire twisted and look at specs for 12/3 uf-b you will see that the 12/3 has more jacket and insulation thickness than normal pump wire. Yes you will have to strip back some jacket and insulation to make the splice,but take a look at the wire harness that comes with a franklin or many other sub well pump, they are thin and many companys are using alum wire at the harness. The only difference is that normal pump wire has that paper thin coating that protects it from gas and oil where UF-b does not .now i believe you would have to use the 12/3 not 12/2 to comply with the multi color wire code, however you will end up having a extra ground using the bare copper wire. I am looking at cost. Here in SC pump wire is $1.00 per ft i can buy uf-b for $160 and get 250 ft. ??? at Southwire said Sub pump wire is a marketing sales thing. Customer comes in he can ask for sub pump wire and get it without doing any research on codes and wire types, but he pays double for it.

 

[lee5425]

UF-B wire and Submersible pump

UF-B wire and Submersible pump

I dont think The NEC says that a wire has to be stamped with a name for every use, It does say it must have a code and mfg data that will tell you what it can or can not be use for.

 

[lee5425]

When you get to the end of the cable and expose the conductors to connect them to the well are they also rated for the purpose or is just the UF sheath rated for submersion?

Submersible well cable typically has a little thicker conductor insulation than the presumably THHN/THWN or very similar that is usually in a UF cable. I like that idea for something that is submerged in water. You also have to consider that there typically is nothing going to physically damage whatever you run in the well casing except for when the well man is extracting or installing the pump into the casing.

look at the specs on sub pump wire, It is type THHN or THWN. The specs i read showed the uf-b had thicker insulation and jacket than standard sub pump cable

 

[kwired]

look at the specs on sub pump wire, It is type THHN or THWN. The specs i read showed the uf-b had thicker insulation and jacket than standard sub pump cable

Most of the submersible pump wire I have seen definately has thicker insulation than THHN/THWN, and I have never seen any with the outer nylon jacket.

Why would submersible pump wire need to be gasoline and oil resistant for a domestic water well? Submersible fuel pump in a tank is a whole different thing.

 

[ptonsparky]

Most of the submersible pump wire I have seen definately has thicker insulation than THHN/THWN, and I have never seen any with the outer nylon jacket.

Why would submersible pump wire need to be gasoline and oil resistant for a domestic water well? Submersible fuel pump in a tank is a whole different thing.

I guess we take good water for granted.

 

[lee5425]

oil and gas resistance Submersible pump wire

oil and gas resistance Submersible pump wire

Most of the submersible pump wire I have seen definately has thicker insulation than THHN/THWN, and I have never seen any with the outer nylon jacket.

Why would submersible pump wire need to be gasoline and oil resistant for a domestic water well? Submersible fuel pump in a tank is a whole different thing.

i dont know why the sub pump wire is oil and gas resistance. Read the southwire specs on sub pump wire sold at lowes and home depot. The wire is thhn oil, gas and water resistance.The UF-b wire thicker insulation than the sub pump wire and it has a jacket. The sub pump wire has less insulation and is the same insulation type used on uf-b but uf-b is thicker but does not resist oil or gas.