Tools, Clothing & Equipment – Page 2

Last week I needed to purchase a lot of PVC plastic conduit to run our cables in. I needed it relatively quickly so was happy to pick it up in the van myself to save the delivery time. Whilst quickly searching to work out the weight of PVC conduit to make sure it wouldn't be too heavy on the roof of the already well stocked (ie messy) van, I discovered that information is not easily accessible. With this in mind I decided to do some research and put together these tables comparing the weights of PVC plastic conduit as a guide for other electricians to use. I've also included how much conduit saddles and couplers weigh to help if anyone is needing to do on-site calculations. Enjoy! PVC Plastic conduit installed on ceiling Conduit weight varies from brand to brand so I've calculated the average weight and put these below each table. I've also done the multiplication sums to save you even more time! If you came here looking for weight guides for metal conduit you can find that article linked here. Comparison of Round 20mm Plastic (PVC) Electrical Conduit Weights The table below compares the most common brands of 20mm electrical plastic conduit (PVC conduit) weights rounded to 2 decimal places. BrandGaugeWallThickness(mm)Weight per3m Length(Kg)Weight per5 Lengths(Kg)Weight per10 Lengths(Kg)Marshall TufflexLight1.150.291.462.90CentaurLight1.20.110.571.13MKLight1.30.100.501.00Marshall TufflexHeavy1.60.462.304.59CentaurHeavy1.80.150.751.5MKHeavy1.80.150.751.5Comparing weights and wall thickness of 20mm PVC conduit The average weight of a 3m length of 20mm light gauge electrical PVC plastic conduit is 0.17KgThe average wall thickness of a 3m length of 20mm light gauge electrical PVC plastic conduit is 1.22mmThe average weight of a 3m length of 20mm heavy gauge electrical PVC plastic conduit is 0.25KgThe average wall thickness of a 3m length of 20mm heavy gauge electrical PVC plastic conduit is 1.73mm We can see from these numbers that round PVC conduit is very lightweight so choosing between heavy and light gauge is more of a personal preference than a weight consideration. Comparison of Round 25mm Plastic (PVC) Electrical Conduit Weights As before, this table below compares the most common brands of round 25mm electrical plastic conduit (PVC conduit) weights which I've rounded to 2 decimal places for ease. BrandGaugeWallThickness(mm)Weight per3m Length(Kg)Weight per5 Lengths(Kg)Weight per10 Lengths(Kg)CentaurLight1.50.180.881.756MKLight1.50.170.851.70Marshall TufflexHeavy1.90.592.935.87CentaurHeavy1.90.190.971.94MKHeavy1.90.211.032.05Comparison of 25mm plastic (PVC) round conduit weights and wall thickness The average weight of a 3m length of 25mm light gauge electrical PVC plastic conduit is 0.18KgThe average wall thickness of a 3m length of 25mm light gauge electrical PVC plastic conduit is 1.5mmThe average weight of a 3m length of 25mm heavy gauge electrical PVC plastic conduit is 0.33KgThe average wall thickness of a 3m length of 25mm heavy gauge electrical PVC plastic conduit is 1.9mm You may notice there's only two brands compared for in the light gauge category. This is because it's hard to find many companies that make light gauge 25mm. Most companies at this size seem to only make it in heavy gauge format. This would make sense when I think about it now as 25mm is a bigger more industrial size so we need the added strength that we get with the heavy gauge. Accessories Needed to Fit Electrical Plastic (PVC) Conduit If we're going to be installing all these lengths of PVC conduit on the wall and ceiling then we need something to join them together and fix them to the wall. Electrician installing plastic conduit into a wall During my research I came across this table in the MK product catalogue which gives recommendations regarding how often the conduit should be fixed to the wall. We always want to refer back to our onsite guides to make sure we are complying with the regs (BS7671 linked here) but I though it was a useful table non the less. In the interests of being thorough I wanted to make a table comparing the weights of 20mm and 25mm PVC conduit saddles. Comparison of 20mm and 25mm Plastic (PVC) Saddles for Electrical Conduit Systems The table below compares the most readily available brands of conduit saddles as a guide to the extra weight we need to take into consideration when planning an install. BrandSize of Saddle(mm)Weight perSaddle(grams)Weight per10 Saddles(grams)Weight per100 Saddles(Kg)Centaur2011.21121.12Marshall Tufflex209.9990.99Centaur2511.81181.18Marshall Tufflex25141401.40Comparison of different PVC conduit saddle weights The average weight of a 20mm plastic (PVC) saddle for attaching conduit to the wall or ceiling is 10.6 gramsThe average weight of a 25mm plastic (PVC) saddle for attaching conduit to the wall or ceiling is 12.9 grams We can see that there isn't much difference between the weights of the different brands of saddles. Even a hundred or so will not add much weight to the installation but it's handy to know I think. On long runs we also need straight couplers so I'll finish with a table comparing their weights Comparison of 20mm and 25mm Plastic (PVC) Straight Couplers for Electrical Conduit Systems This table below compares the weights of 20mm and 25mm straight couplers which are commonly used when joining conduit lengths together. BrandSize ofcoupler(mm)Weight percoupler(grams)Weight per10 couplers(grams)Weight per100 couplers(Kg)Centaur208.8880.88Marshall Tufflex209900.9Centaur2514.41441.44Marshall Tufflex2512.81281.28Comparison of different PVC straight coupler weights The average weight of a 20mm plastic (PVC) straight coupler for joining conduit together is 8.9 gramsThe average weight of a 25mm plastic (PVC) straight coupler for joining conduit together is 13.6 grams Hopefully these weight tables will be beneficial to anyone looking to complete a conduit install! If you would like reference tables regarding metal conduit I will link to the article here. Article sources: CEF electrical wholesalers and Mk Electrical