A question about water and conduit

sub3marathonman

OK, I've almost got things figured out about the conduit. Hopefully that is.

But the one thing I've been worried about is water getting into the conduit and then down into the house, since it will be run from the garage roof, down through the attic, and into the garage.

On an old answer from BB. (5/15/2006) he said, "On my solar install, the vendor tried to make everything water tight--and I ended up with water dripping out of my conduit connections in my garage until I made an place for the water to drain."

I was wondering how something like that was done, and if I should do that with the conduit on the roof before the 90° turn down through the roof. Also, could there be a drain somewhere along the vertical conduit run? Or is it possible to use something to seal the conduit where it makes the 90° turn?

icarus

Re: A question about water and conduit

Why not use a conventional service weather head? Send the wires out, properly drip looped etc.

Tony

BB.

Re: A question about water and conduit

For my roof entry--there was a plastic J-Box... Drill one or two small holes in the low point of the box and the water drains out before it got in the conduit.

Where the run entered my home, there was a "close 90 degree" box (don't know the trade name--basically a right angle molded metal box with a plate on the outside that lets you pull the wire straight, then pull through the other conduit run--then place a cover on the box when you are done). In this case, just removed the bottom part of the gasket so that water could weep out the bottom.

No problems since--however, we have had several years of near-drought conditions since.

If I was going to do it again--I would have required them to use the same fitting as used to bring the utility feed into a home (hooded cover where the wire goes up into the hood then down). Basically, there is a "drip loop" entering the hood, so water cannot follow the wire into the box/conduit. As always, everything has to follow code--so work with your installer to have it done "right").

Still not a guarantee that nothing will leak... My 50 year old home--this same utility head/entrance started leaking a few years ago--dropping water into my meter/main breaker box--I had to replace the box/breakers because of water damage. The water appeared to be coming in through a threaded union/coupling. I ended up sealing everything to finally stop the leak.

-Bill

icarus

Re: A question about water and conduit

"I would have required them to use the same fitting as used to bring the utility feed into a home (hooded cover where the wire goes up into the hood then down)."

AKA in our parlance,,weather head.http://electrical.hardwarestore.com/14-47-service-entrance-fittings/pvc-weatherhead-602111.aspx for example

BB.

Re: A question about water and conduit

Thank you Tony,

I hated/did terrible with industry/trade nomenclature. Still screw up Coupling vs Union (once is a simple threaded sleeve, the other two fittings that can be joined/broken with a single large nut)...

A coupling is the simple threaded "tube"... The Union is allows the joining of two separate pipes... I always think of how coupling is used otherwise--trains, hydraulic quick connects "coupling", etc. and get it backwards.

From your link, the right angle conduit fitting (removing gasket to allow "leaking" draining of water) I was typing about is called a Rigid Service Elbow.

-Bill

icarus

Re: A question about water and conduit

Like wire gauge and sheet metal gauge!

Wire gauge,,, smaller number bigger wire,,,sheet metal, larger number, thicker metal,,,I think or do I have it confused?

Tony

BB.

Re: A question about water and conduit

Both numbers, larger numbers equal "thinner metal". Until you get to "zero"--then the "bigger the zero" the thicker the metal (2/0, 4/0--"4 aught" in US English).

Brown and Sharp Non-Ferrous gauge is different than XYZ of ....

-Bill

icarus

Re: A question about water and conduit

Or shotgun shells,, 20 gauge, 12 gauge, or 410?

T

BB.

Re: A question about water and conduit

20 gauge is small, 12 gauge is large... I think 410 is really 0.410" not not a "gauge" number.

The "shotgun" gauge is the number of balls, the diameter of the bore, that would make up one pound of lead... "20 balls" per lb is smaller than "12 balls" per pound for a larger gauge.

Usually, this "weird" gauges have a very useful bases in low tech rules of thumbs/math. How much black powder vs size of barrel. How stiff the metal would be or how much it weighs in "squares" as you change size, etc.

With computers and the "pre-packaged" state of high tech packaging "everything"--the history and useful reasons of these units has been lost.

-Bill