#10 stranded wire

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the only thing I have seen spec'ed as solid was smaller stuff. Like telephone wiring and sometimes for instruments.

I can understand it for telephone wiring, but never did get the reason why for instrumentation.
 
billdozier 78 said:
Just curious do they make a 4\0 in solid. The spec calls for #10 and Larger to be solid. Hmmm is that a loophole around the spec for the contractor?
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Besides the bare ground #4, the largest manufactured solid is #10. I have seen #8 solid for older installations but i don't think it is manufactured anymore.
 
roger said:
Charlie, look at any of the conduit or tubing article 3xx.26 sections


Roger
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342.26 Bends ? Number in One Run. There shall not be more than the equivalent of four quarter bends (360 degrees total) between pull points, for example, conduit bodies and boxes.
 
IMO #10 solid in raceways should be banned. With modern value engineering conduits are being filled to their absolute maximum. #10 solid only makes it more difficult to install with no real gained value to the end user.
 
infinity said:
IMO #10 solid in raceways should be banned. With modern value engineering conduits are being filled to their absolute maximum. #10 solid only makes it more difficult to install with no real gained value to the end user.
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people still run green wires in rgc despite there being no real reason to do so in most cases.
 
iwire said:
It meets the job specs and have never found it to be a hardship to use.
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In my opinion the additional labor costs exceed the cost increase between solid and standed. There is no way that it pulls as quick and as easy as stranded.

I guess part of it would be that I have rarely done anything other than industrial work in past 20 years and we don't use any solid other than CAT5e on our industrial jobs.
 
iwire said:
I am just so used to working with solid MC in 10 AWG I don't find 10 THHN hard to work with.

Unless it is in walker duct, then it is awful. :rant:
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I keep forgetting about the cable stuff....don't see much if it around here.
 
iwire said:
Or it could be that I am in a position to make others do it while I type on a keyboard. :p
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iwire said:
I would not be, I spent last night working pulling long cable runs across a store ceiling. :(
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I think you meant you spent last night making others pull long runs across a ceiling.



don_resqcapt19 said:
In my opinion the additional labor costs exceed the cost increase between solid and standed. There is no way that it pulls as quick and as easy as stranded.

I guess part of it would be that I have rarely done anything other than industrial work in past 20 years and we don't use any solid other than CAT5e on our industrial jobs.
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If you primarily work alone most of the time, you will find you can often pull a run of stranded conductors yourself, may take a little more time than if you have a helper but can be done. Try to do the same pull with solid conductors and you can't do it alone.

don_resqcapt19 said:
How is solid better in wet locations?
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I wondered that myself.

peter d said:
Probably because water can more easily wick into the stranding.
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That means you have a hole in the insulation. Hopefully the ends are not submerged or you are looking for more troubles at some point anyhow.
 
charlie b said:
I have a contractor asking me for an exception to a specification requirement that says #10 and larger shall be solid. They want to use stranded #10 for a specific application. I have no basic objection, but I would like a sanity check on their reason for the request. They stated, "10AWG can be pulled through RMC only on a straight line. We require 10AWG for the Water Heater line with multiple 90 degree bends in the RMC conduit."

Does anyone have an opinion on the statement that "10AWG can be pulled through RMC only on a straight line"?
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#10 and larger? Are you sure he didn't mean #10 and higher (smaller)? I wouldn't want to be pulling 4/0 solid wire. :D
 
peter d said:
Probably because water can more easily wick into the stranding.
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It still has to get under the insulation and that would be the same for either. Water between the stands without insulation damage is not an issue unless it is running out of the conductor onto the energized parts.
 
don_resqcapt19 said:
It still has to get under the insulation and that would be the same for either. Water between the stands without insulation damage is not an issue unless it is running out of the conductor onto the energized parts.
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I am going to say you are mistaken in that.

I have a lot of first hand experience with this and with smaller stranded conductors water wicked into the stranded destroys the wire much faster than a solid conductor.
 
iwire said:
I am going to say you are mistaken in that.

I have a lot of first hand experience with this and with smaller stranded conductors water wicked into the stranded destroys the wire much faster than a solid conductor.
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If the water is getting into the conductor as a result of insulation damage, I would agree that the stranded conductor would fail quicker, but they would both fail.
 
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