Conduit Installation Guide and Tips For EMT, PVC and FMC

You can find and see conduits visible everywhere, as electric wiring poses a serious
safety risk when left exposed. Per the National Electrical Code, it’s required to have wires placed
inside of conduits for safety reasons, while also protecting the wires from damage. Thus, if you
have thought about installing conduits yourself for a job you’ve been brainstorming over the
weekend, then it’s important that you learn the best practices for conduit installation. We’re going
to go over three very common conduit types, and their respective installation tips, in order to allow
for better installation and successful completion of your projects. The three conduit types are as
follows:

• EMT (Electrical Metallic Tubing)

• PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride)
• Flexible Metal Conduit (also called “flex”)
Before you can even choose the best conduit type for a job, it’s important that you lay out the
conduit system in a drawing. This will immensely help with the design. The benefits include
designing straight conduit runs, while limiting the total number of bends to 360 degrees, and
avoiding existing conduits, piping, and/or boxes that may be existing, which are hidden
underground in your design area.

Note: for underground conduit runs, it’s very important that you have access to existing plan
drawings of your design and construction area in order to avoid damage to existing infrastructure,
as well as for safety.

After you properly plan and complete your conduit layout design drawing, you must choose the
best fitting electric conduit for your specific job. The right conduit choice will ensure your
installation is simple and successful, problems avoided, and future repairs remain straightforward.
We will now go over each of these three conduit types in order to find out how to best choose the
right conduit for your job.

EMT (Electrical Metallic Tubing)

Where to use? EMT is great to use in indoor areas, where aesthetics is not a primary concern.
Imagine a warehouse, storage shed, unfinished basement, garage, or any other undecorated
area.

Tips

#1 Sizing calculation – size your conduit from the number of wires you pull through the conduit,
per NEC (National Electrical Code) requirements. Use our conduit sizing tool, which is based on
the NEC, to help you size your conduits.
#2 Size larger – using a conduit larger than required to pull your wires through, not only is
acceptable, but it will make your installation work much easier. If you have a couple of 90 degree
bends in your conduit run, and you need to pull a delicate cable through, then it would be a wise
idea to upsize your conduit.
#3 Pre-bent and fittings – in routing your conduit, you will cut, couple, and bend your conduit.
EMT can be bent using a conduit bender, however, using pre-bent conduit and fittings will
drastically simplify your work. Find parts to complete your conduit run like a puzzle, with the least
amount of self-bending as possible in order to avoid possibly damaging the conduit.
#4 Cutting and reaming – EMT can be cut using a hacksaw. However, after cutting, be sure that
you “ream”, or smooth, the edges with a metal file. This is very important, as the sharp ragged
edges of the conduit can tare and damage the conductors that are being pulled through.
#5 Bends – when a single conduit run includes more than 360 degrees in bends, then install a
pull box to more easily and successfully pull the wires through. It is also important to know that
the NEC does not allow you to have more than 360 degrees in total turns in a single conduit run
(NEC Article 358.26).
#6 Strap support – use straps to anchor EMT 3 feet from every box or fitting, and every 10 feet in
all other places in the conduit run per NEC requirements (NEC Article 358.30).
#7 Connectors – if your conduit is not long enough, join conduits together using thread less
setscrew couplings. The end pieces of conduits go inside either end of the couplings and then are
tightened with setscrews.
Flexible Metal Conduit
Where to use? Flexible conduit is great to use when you’re limited in space and bending EMT is
too difficult. As well, using flex for large equipment and appliances that need to be moved around
for repair is always an excellent choice.
Tips

#1 Cutting – flexible conduit can be cut with a hacksaw similar to EMT. If you use connectors
and couplings that screw in, you will not need to smooth the ends of the flexible conduit after
cutting.
#2 Bend – flexible conduit is certainly flexible as the name implies, but it should not bend more
than a total of 360 degrees. Similar to EMT, having no more than 360 degrees in turns in one run
is a NEC requirement (NEC Article 358.26).
#3 Strap support – support flexible conduit 1 foot from a pull box and every 4.5 feet apart in the
conduit run per NEC requirements (NEC Article 348.30).
PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride)
Where to use? The conduit you see used most often is Schedule 40 PVC. PVC is great to use in
most every application, as it is resistant to heat, fire, and sunlight. What is even greater about
PVC is that it is light weight, yet, it is still very strong and durable; as well as inexpensive. The tips
we will go over for PVC are similar to EMT that we covered above; only some slight differences.

Tips
#1 Cutting and reaming – similar to EMT, you can cut PVC with a hacksaw, however, afterwards
the sharp and rough edges will need to be reamed in order to prevent conductor damage.
#2 Easy to install – PVC can be cut, shaped, welded, and joined together easily using couplings.
Also, PVC is bent best using an infrared heater. However, similar to EMT, it is best to avoid
self-bending, in order not to ruin the very material that makes this conduit so amazing.
#3 Bends – like the other two conduits that we discussed, when a single conduit run includes
more than 360 degrees in total bends, then it is best to install a pull box to more easily and
successfully pull the wires through per NEC requirements (NEC Article 358.26).
#4 Strap support – PVC has much closer support spacing requirements than EMT. Support PVC
conduit runs 3 feet from each box or fitting and 6 feet along the run for PVC 3 inches in size. Use
NEC Article 352.30 to find support distances for the other PVC conduit sizes.
PVC conduit can easily be run through and supported through walls as well, to ensure the optimal
installation can be made.

Over to You!

Installing conduits can be an arduous and time draining task, but with proper planning, through
creating a conduit layout drawing, selecting the appropriate conduit type and following our
installation tips, installation will become much simpler. And always remember to review and use
the latest National Electric Code to ensure your installation is code compliant and your work is
safe.