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Working with PVC conduit, and bending it with a springWhy glue every PVC joint?

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Working with PVC conduit

  • Cutting: you can buy special PVC conduit cutters (like scissors), or just use a hacksaw.
  • Edges: there's less of an issue with sharp edges than with steel, but plastic can still be sharp and damage a conductor, so run a file in there if needed.
  • No threads: fittings are push-fit. Boxes simply slide on, though sometimes they're very stubborn.
  • Fixing: drill through the box to fix it to the wall, and use saddles on walls, ceilings or floors, just like steel.
  • Glue the joints with PVC conduit solvent cement. The tin has a brush built into its lid. It's quite gloopy: put a bit around the end of the conduit, slide the box on, and wipe the excess away. After a few minutes it's fixed and won't come loose.
Why glue matters
PVC moves with temperature (it expands, contracts and can warp). If a run isn't glued and isn't well fixed, the conduit pulls out of the boxes. You often see this on old PVC installations where the electrician didn't use glue.

Bending PVC with a spring

You don't use the bender for PVC. Instead you use a bending spring that matches the conduit size (20 mm spring for 20 mm conduit; 25 mm springs are available too).

  1. Tie a piece of cable or cord to the end of the spring. You'll push the spring down inside the conduit and need the cord to pull it back out. This is Sparky's best tip.
  2. Slide the spring in so it sits where the bend will be. Tap the conduit and you can hear where it is.
  3. Bend the conduit using your body. Most people use their knee, rolling the conduit round it to get a nicely rounded bend rather than a tight one.
  4. Pull the spring out with the cord. Watch your eyes, and anyone near you, as it comes out.
  5. Once the plastic has cooled after being stretched, the bend stays in place and you can fix it.
cord tied on to pull the spring out spring sits at the bend keeps the tube round inside 20 mm PVC conduit No spring? kinks, flattens or snaps
The spring supports the wall of the tube so it bends smoothly. Without it, the PVC kinks or snaps. Roll the bend round your knee for a smoother radius.
No earthing needed
PVC is an insulator, so PVC conduit is not an exposed-conductive-part and doesn't need connecting to the MET. (Any metal boxes or accessories on the run are still earthed through the CPC, which you must draw in because there's no metal conduit to use.)

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