ACT Cable

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What is ACT cable, and what is it used for? For some reason I'm having a hard time finding it on Google... Thanks
 
Can you explain a bit more about where this question is coming from? Without knowing more, I'd guess that what you're looking at is referencing "Advanced Cable Ties" or the wire used to suspend drop ceilings.
 
This what I found in Article 320:

III. Construction Specifications
320.100 Construction. Type AC cable shall have an armor
of flexible metal tape and shall have an internal bonding
strip of copper or aluminum in intimate contact with the
armor for its entire length.
320.104 Conductors. Insulated conductors shall be of a
type listed in Table 310.104(A) or those identified for use in
this cable. In addition, the conductors shall have an overall
moisture-resistant and fire-retardant fibrous covering. For
Type ACT, a moisture-resistant fibrous covering shall be
required only on the individual conductors.
Click to expand...
 
20.104 Conductors. Insulated conductors shall be of a
type listed in Table 310.104(A) or those identified for use in
this cable. In addition, the conductors shall have an overall
moisture-resistant and fire-retardant fibrous covering. For
Type ACT, a moisture-resistant fibrous covering shall be
required only on the individual conductors.
Click to expand...

Guess that's what they call the paper that the conductors are wrapped with? Sounds like all the new AC that I have ever used is ACT. The old cable with R or RW conductors had an overall wrap around all conductors so that wasn't ACT.

Funny though, you never see manufacturers call it ACT- http://www.afcweb.com/ac-hcf-armored-cables/ac-lite-armored-cable/

Conductor Insulation Covering
Moisture resistant Fire Retardant Paper Wrap


-Hal
 
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Kansas Mountain said:
Can you explain a bit more about where this question is coming from? Without knowing more, I'd guess that what you're looking at is referencing "Advanced Cable Ties" or the wire used to suspend drop ceilings.
Click to expand...

It’s in a review question in one of our textbooks and the student wasn’t able to find the answer. If I remember correctly the question was something like “What’s the difference between type AC and ACT cable”? He told me he was sure it wasn’t covered in the text, so i tried googling it with no luck. We looked the answer up in my teachers guide and it said something about one having thermoplastic and the other thermoset insulation, I’m going from memory here, and one insulation would melt when overheated, while the other would get hard and brittle. I’m sure I’m not quoting it correctly...

Funny thing is that I think I heard someone discussing this on a Mike Holt video on YouTube.
 
Well, I think between Rob and I we found your answer. ACT has the conductors individually wrapped with paper which accounts for all the type AC cable we have today. Why the ACT listing reference is not in the manufacturer's literature I don't know. (Maybe it is somewhere and I didn't spend the time to find it.) Actually it does sound familiar though, I wonder if I saw it on the tag?

Sounds like the author of the text book saw 320.104, made up the question but didn't know the answer to it them self. That bit about thermoplastic and thermoset insulation isn't even a good guess.:dunce:

-Hal
 
:lol: Where have you ever seen AC cable with XHHW conductors?

No. Whoever wrote that question didn't have a clue. Read 320.104 again and think about how AC cable is constructed. There is your answer.

-Hal
 
Just another thought. What kind of course is this? Book, online? Where did these questions come from? It seems to be based on the NEC so I hope that where ACT is mentioned in the course material there is a reference to the applicable NEC Article. I would like to see it.

Or did you just find these questions and answers someplace?

-Hal
 
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Cengage, Electrical Wiring Residential 18th Edition (2014 NEC), Chapter 4 review.

Doing a quick scan I found one section that discussed AC and MC cable. It has an excellent chart that does a side-by-side comparison of the two. This is toward the end of the chart. The student that questioned me about this is pretty thorough, and he said he carefully looked over every page and couldn't find a reference. I've been telling him to be persistent, and he'll find the answers in the code, but this one has us both stumped.

It's not a huge issue... It's actually a good lesson. Even the guys who write the books make mistakes.
 
Type ACTHH

K32dOOMhx7oUX7__9VmB3hRU4udlrkaMRnDbyfGb_8qZGjD7rsjpD1daVOpoXTd8BhVVdTpa0ZKmLhlfa_8Tk4rlk81qjTzxNbKkYKstwKtDknL0_EKmUymeSFtV5h8uGTp5g-Bc9W7CYBLmjSJCf0ib_PZBDvuNfja0keXdqgvVEAWiS3AbSXz69w5eGC4KGwGZAR1loVteI-Yy7zw=s500-pd-e365-rw-pc0xffffff
 
I did say I remember it being on the tag. I can find no reference to it at least on the AFC website, they only call it "AC" as does the NEC in Art. 320. So this does appear to be manufacturer's (or maybe UL) designations or modifiers to "AC" to indicate the temperature ratings of the conductors. This is much like the designations for NM: NMB, NMC.

Relating to the test question: in the absence of an explanation in the text book we can only look to the NEC. The only mention of "ACT" is in 320.104 which states "[For AC] the conductors shall have an overall moisture-resistant and fire-retardant fibrous covering. For type ACT, a moisture-resistant fibrous covering shall be required only on the individual conductors."

So the only answer that can be given to the question "What is the difference between type AC and ACT armored cables?"

Answer: Type AC has conductors with an overall moisture resistant fibrous covering. Type ACT has the individual conductors wrapped with a moisture resistant fibrous covering.

The thermoset/thermoplastic issue is irrelevant to the user and is proprietary to the manufacturer of the cable. You would have to work for the cable manufacturer to know that since conductors are not marked.

-Hal







 
Who cares?? I buy cable, I use it. I don't make it and what kind of plastic is used for the insulation makes no difference to me as long as I know what the temperature rating is and the cable is listed. They can use extruded bubble gum for all I care!

-Hal
 
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