Most security installers would reach for PVC conduit before they'd go for steel conduits - PVC is less expensive, easier to work, easier to find, lighter and so easier to carry and fasten.
Benefits Of Steel Conduit Include Resistance To Attack And Weather.
Benefits Of Steel Conduit – Most security installers would reach for PVC conduit before they’d go for steel conduits – PVC is less expensive, easier to work, easier to find, lighter and so easier to carry and fasten.
But for security applications, using steel conduits where cable runs are exposed is smart thinking. The beauty of using steel externally is varied. For a start, steel conduit is resistant to attack, with standard 20mm or 50mm diameter conduit able to withstand violent blows or pressure.
Weather resistance is another property of properly prepared steel conduit – in fact, it’s the measure by which steel conduit is measured. Medium-level weather resistance conduit is zinc-coated on the outside and has an internal coating of anti corrosive. Maximum protection levels are achieved by hot-dip galvanization of internal and external surfaces.
Steel conduit has a minimal co-efficient of thermal expansion and retains its shape, strength and form in both heat and cold. In the medium term, PVC conduits will fail this test and that’s before a few years of UV have done their work.
Make no mistake, PVC conduit has its place and properly installed – especially under the cover of a roofline – can have a long lifespan. But if you’re outside the sterile zone with a cable run, or you need to get through a rugged, wet environment chock full of vandals, think screwed steel conduit.
Note in closing that every steel conduit run should be earthed at its beginning with a connection between the conduit and the earthed metal enclosure of the control panel the conduit is servicing. If it’s impossible to earth the conduit directly, use an earthing conductor linked to an earth clip and firmly fixed to the conduit. Depending on the nature of the installation, any peripheral hardware along a cable/conduit run should be earthed if it’s connected to the conduit using any metal fixing.
You can learn more about steel conduit here or read more SEN news here.
“Benefits Of Steel Conduit Include Resistance To Attack And Weather.”
A professional writer and editor who has been covering the security industry since 1991, John is passionate about clever applications of technology and the fusion of sensing and networking. A capable photographer John enjoys undertaking practical reviews of the latest electronic security systems.
