SWA Cable - Steel Wire Armoured
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 ก.ย. 2024
- Steel Wire Armoured Cable - construction, uses, installing the correct gland, fitting into a metal enclosure, fitting into a plastic enclosure, earth connection.
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Not only is this guy knowledgeable in his field (electrics). But he has also mastered the art of teaching and TH-cam video presentation.
I take my hat off to you sir! much respect 👏🏽
Lovely geezer , he sounds like the 2x speed option on the videos
Big Clive is awesome too.
I learn more by watching Johns videos than i do in hours at college and on expensive courses... his no nonsense to the point explanations are a great example of how to teach... i wish all tutors could follow this guys example.
Excellent video. I'm an electronics engineer and I've just installed the 'electrics' into an outside building. The only thing I wasn't sure about was terminating the armoured cable. Now I know. Thanks for an excellent, clear, thorough tutorial.
Naturally you had it signed off 😉
Glanding SWA is one of my favourite jobs, I find it very therapeutic, I could happily do it all day. Great video as always JW.
A much better instructional video than others I’ve watched John. No banging music and silliness. I’m now confident enough to install all my new shed wiring with swa and not have to worry about slack professionals. Thank you.
Excellent, thorough video. "Now you just strip off the bedding...". That's what I wanted to see you do, safely! Also the standard technique for cutting the boot is to pull it hard on to the end of the cable, and cutting it off where you can see it is slightly deformed. You did that, Blue Peter style, off camera.
Excellent tutorial video and put me straight onto the right track for running an outside lighting circuit using 1.5mm 3-core SWA. I gave the hacksaw scoring method a try but found it a tad awkward, especially when standing on top of a ladder! Job was quicker and neater with a standard plumbing pipe cutter and as I have a couple of them didn't cost any extra in new toys.
I will have a look at some of your other vids to pick up more useful tips - hope you're making money from the hard work you're putting in to share your knowledge.
I’m a Trainer - but am in awe of Johns fantastic training videos
This Man is gifted when its comes to explaining electric staff.
Hey John this is the fully informative video to all who uses cable glands. As a manufacturer of cable glands i can say this is my pleasure to come across this presentation.
nice video, good to see you using all the correct practice when demonstrating how to connect the cable. the amount of times i see this done wrong, it pisses me off, when i see these installed and the person has decided not to use a ring crimp terminal on the earth tag, just wrap the wire around the screw and tighten it up. you pull on the wire and it just untwists off the screw.
I know someone who uses pop rivet to secure the ring terminal onto the earth tag, no no no. these rivets are mate of aluminium and they corrode very quickly in any type of moister, I measured Zs on a cable like this and got 4 ohms. because the rivet had oxidised and caused loads of white powder between the connection.
and probably my least favorite is when you see the use of a plastic IP gland on swa cable and just taken one strand of the wire armour and put in into a terminal block, very poor. and it really gets on my nerves.
Very helpful, the wrap of insulation tape was spot on.
Very helpful video from someone who knows what they're talking about... and a dry sense of humour as a bonus. Thank you.
I actually stumbled across this whilst trying to find out whether to have a separate premises earth for a garden room, and ended up watching all the way through. What an excellent tutorial!!
Takes me back 30 years to my BT power section apprenticeship at their Paul Street training centre. We learnt how to strip and terminate Mineral Insulated Copper Clad fire alarm cable that week too... #flashback
Super instructional video . At 20.05 I am now aware of why my garden light failed . On inspection I discovered that the wires were completely coiled up and a couple broke over time . A simple error for a DIYer but at least now I can correct thanks to your excellent tuition . Many thanks .
Great Video. 100% accurate with clear step-by-step instructions.
I'm sure this will help a lot of people out as there is a lot more involved in terminating armoured cable as opposed to other typed of cable like twin and earth etc
And yes we have all seen shocking terminated armoured cable jobs in our time
Brilliant...... very good teacher/demonstrator. I understood everything and you were very specific and concise, thank you.
Great camera work where I could follow your narrative, top bloke.
Mate you should be doing the news with a voice like that. Very clear and concise
Top video. I usually slide a piece of outer sheath over the dust cover, then make the cut a couple mm above, it makes for a spot on cut and a tight fitting glad cover
Excellent tutorial, this guy is a natural ! his voice sounds like the BBC from the 70's. Brilliant, have installed a SWA to my shed, thanks A+++
Here's a tip : At 19:30 when you have the wires pushed up as far as they will go mark it with a marker on the cable insulation to ensure that you don't "lose" the armour shielding out of the gland as you tighten the nut. Same concept as when you glue up PVC ensure you are fully home
Quite simply superb. Far from superficial .. this video covers everything that you will need to know about terminating SWA; the level of detail is immaculate. I wish it had been available when I put swa to my garage 15 years ago!! (wrongly, but I am about to upgrade the installation following this tutorial)
Hello Sir,
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JW - thank you for this video and in fact all of them, they have enabled me to proceed with confidence in running power to my new wooden workshop (which has no extraneous metal parts) which is 30 metres from the house consumer unit. Fortunately, my consumer unit had spare ways but on the downside is a plastic unit. I have fitted a BG consumer unit in the workshop with an RCD, one 32A MCB (Type C) and one 6A (Type B) MCB. I watched this SWA cable video a few times and most recently after running the 3 core 6mm2 SWA cable which took a whole day (a circuitous route!) - by the time I got to the workshop I had 2 metres spare so had an opportunity to have a practice SWA gland termination. It all went swimmingly well and I now have a really good ‘pattern’ to ensure I make a perfect termination for the final assembly, where there is little room for error.😳 I have reservations about terminating the SWA at the supplying consumer unit as it is a plastic one - is it worth using an aluminium backing plate to spread the mechanical load of the gland and cable - I will of course be clipping the cable well -but there is still a residual mechanical load particularly while manipulating everything into place.
Metal plate would do, or the more usual method is to fix a small metal box next to the consumer unit and fix the gland into that, such as www.toolstation.com/shop/p15062
Got it - simple when you know how - I will get one of those. Thanks JW - perfecto :-)
Great video, very concise.
I do find using a hacksaw on site a little cumbersome and fiddly and so I use a 'Plumbers Adjustable Copper Pipe Tube Cutter' that will cut the plastic outer and score the wire accurately in a matter of seconds.
Keep up the good work John, I look forward to each new video and particularly the Teardowns.
I'll be making a contribution via Patreon. Cheers.
Brilliant explanation. Thanks John, I love learning from your videos. For those saying it's difficult to make the hacksaw cut, why not use a junior hacksaw with a sharp blade, surely has to be easier than a full size frame.
The black "plastic cup" or "dust cap" that you show at (6:38), we always used to call them "boots". I don't know if this is a common term amongst other sparkies but was certainly common to us lot in the fire alarm industry.
Another enjoyable vid. Thanks, JW.
Also, at (7:55), we called that brass ring an "olive". I guess not a strictly accurate moniker, the ring not being symmetrical like a proper olive you might find in a Pyro compression gland. (Or in a plumbers' copper pipe fittings, for that matter). I suppose it's like, half an olive.
I noticed a recent installation where banjo is fitted on outside and the drilled hole + thru brass bolt used to feed to internal earth on plastic consumer unit. This strikes me as giving better conduction path than clamping using the steel gland nut but maybe OTT given this is all connecting to the steel armor. Excellent video BTW - very clear.
A very thorough and extremely well explained video. Excellent.
Very thorough video. Might have been worthwhile expanding on the use of the BW glands, as they're not provided with an olive and could lead to people thinking they're missing from the kit.
Very informative and professionally presented, thank you John.
Thank you for this, very useful. It would be a good idea to highlight the fact that the ring or olive must be fitted the correct way around, it's not like a plumbing compression olive which can be fitted either way around.
Hello Neil!
Great video. Good to know that the normal practice is black becomes earth (green&yellow) and grey becomes neutral (blue)
Excellent video. Very clear from beginning to end with all points covered.
Hi John, something very satisfying about working with SWA it's also tricky to get it right every time,
You showed how to make a strong reliable connection
Good job
Kind regards Warren
Thank you, would not have managed this task without your excellent video. Used this SWA cable for fish pond, may have over speced using this cable. But following your video, at least I know it is correct and safe.
Excellent video. I personally no longer install SWA into anything plastic, but I do fit the brass banjo regardless. Many metal junction boxes do not have an earth terminal, and relying on just the gland alone to ground the box seems inadequate. By using the banjo you are able to link the earth core, the metal box and the armouring all together.
thanks John for the great video. it`s always fun watching you work
Excellent explanation and instruction - patiently goes through whole sequence, covering each step in detail. Thank you very much.
Very well explained. One thing though, I always use Banjo washers even on metal boxes.
Just watched this for the second time as a refresher for doing some outside work. It’s ‘steel’ an excellent well explained step by step video, why can’t other college school video be made this simple. Cannot understand why a few would give you thumbs down. Is there a vid on testing and inspecting. Thanks again.
Testing series: th-cam.com/play/PLVsHvs2SuqmrHBQ0PDDHzq2LXkssRBp4Q.html
All videos arranged by category: th-cam.com/users/jjwardplaylists?view=1&sort=dd&shelf_id=0
An excellent demonstration. I would add one point. If terminating into a steel enclosure such as a distribution board, it is usually necessary to carefully remove any paint around the entry hole, exposing clean metal, to ensure good earth continuity between the enclosure and the gland. Coarse emery paper is probably the easiest for this.
Excellent video, clear, concise and informative. Good sound and picture quality. Many Thanks for going to the trouble to pass on your knowledge and experience.
Another great and very useful video John. If you're after ideas - how about one on wire stripping and wire stripping tools?
JW, fantastic video as always, In fact I shall be be marshalling apprentices to watch some of you media as I believe it is of sadly a higher quality than what they are taught at college.
Of a personal opinion, I particularly enjoy watching your videos of old switchgear and cabling please keep it coming!
Fred, Bunty, Jack and John would be proud!
My thoughts exactly, it was like watching an episode of how, brilliant !
Thank you for this. I’ve looked high and low to see how to earth Swa cable.
I like this guy he explains things properly
John,Really enjoy your videos. In fact, if you'd have been one of my instructors/lecturers during my early years (in the 70's), I'd have probably opted for life as a Sparky as opposed to a Clanky. Really hope the videos bring you the commercial success you deserve, or the satisfaction that I and many others obviously derive from them.
Big help for me thank you. You answered all the questions I had regarding the armour and earthing. Cheers.
Excellent Guide to terminating SWA cable
Excellent video John, just what I was looking for. Thanks.
If you have a long run of armoured cable, does the electrical resistance of the galvanised steel wires compromise their ability to transfer current to earth?
Fantastic video john, well presented. Has cleared up a few questions i had about wiring swa cable. Top job
Hi John another method for outbuilding is to use two core and earth stake the end thus saving cost of running an earth cable all the way up the garden thanks for instructive videos. neil
John, can you do a video about mineral insulated cable?
All of your videos are excellent & well explained.
Cheers John
Excellent video, great voice for presentation, clear and easy to listen to. Thanks
Are there any different earthing requirements when connecting SWA to a TNS or TNCS supply at the CU end.
Great video, thanks! Also like the M102 in the background, I have one and also a RT3.
alun morgan iI
Great video. Are there regulations relating to how deep the cable should be buried (running to a garden) shed?
Interesting. I don't think I've seen anything like that in residential wiring here in the US, aside from the mains coming in from the pole. I'm surprised UK code allows using structural parts of the cable as the sole grounding conductor. IIRC US code stopped allowing that some years back, and usually UK code is a bit stricter, eg socket shutters, which just started coming into the US.
Just about the best instructional video I’ve seen, great job thank you
Another great video!!! Thanks so much for passing in your knowledge
Whilst much has changed in the Regs, since I served my apprenticeship in the early 70s (14th Edition), its nice to see some things haven't changed 😀
Excellent mate. I've learnt a lot about SWA cable and fitting them now. 😁👌
I'm not even an electrician and I find this very interesting.
Superbly useful video. Great pace of delivery. Thank you 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Very nice video with step by step explanation. Thanks.
God it's wierd watching someone use the old wrenches now knipex are everywhere 😎
Great video John. Can you please answer a question? I have a SWA cable terminated in a junction box inside a shed (the way you explained in video). But on the other side the cable goes directly into the house and into the RCD unit which is plugged in standard socket. Now this means that steel wires protecting the SWA cable are not earthed on the house side, only in the shed. Is that a problem? Should I terminate SWA in a junction box in the house and have another cable running into a socket? Thank you.
I know its a bit late, but as long as the SWA armour is earthed at one end then that is fine.
Agreed- an excellent and easy to follow demonstration
Just the right amount of information. Really good video. Thank you
Excellent video, thank you John
Good video ,clear and not rushed!
Very therapeutic videos and & tutorials,, I Salute You :)
Fantastic video thank you, did my 1st swa connection today with glands
Hi John, the SWA is NOT the earthing conductor and should only ever be connected to earth to bond it. You can either select a cable with an earth core or run an additional CPC along with the armoured cable.
This is because the armour is galvanised steel and if a stone ruptures the sheath and allows water ingress it will corrode the armour away completely devoiding the installation of a CPC.
You are talking complete rubbish it can be used as a cpc .
Not sure about the latest regs, but in the past it could be used as the CPC. There was even a table in the regs listing the size of SWA against earth loop impedance.
Personally though, I always ordered an extra core.
@@briwire138 That's correct, the 15th edition allowed the use of the SWA as the CPC, but when the 16th edition came along it banned the use of the SWA and said it should be bonded as it was an exposed conductive part.
"fuse, circuit breaker or whatever" maybe nail or wire? i love that humour
.22LR if you're really stuck. I'm sure it'll be fine...
Very good, informative video, thanks.
I choose to solder an earthing cable to the banjo (before fitting to the gland of course!)
Excellent tutorial confident now to wire up shed. Thank you.
Great video! He sounds like Terry Wogan!
Thanks for another excellent video. Very detailed useful. 👌
Very clear, practical and helpful, thank you.
Another really informative video - thanks John.
Hi JW. Thank you so much for your videos, they are some of the best on the net. I wondered if you had ever come across a 32mm to 25mm SWA gland reducer. Only that where the 25mm SWA cable is going to come into the consumer unit the factory cut hole is 32mm. I fear that if I cut it myself it will weaken the structure and therefore would prefer to fit a reducer/adapter. Do you know if any such thing exists? Many thanks - please keep making the vids, I love them!
They exist, but are sold for metal conduit rather than SWA. If you search for 'galvanised conduit reducer' you should find them. The reducer will screw directly onto the thread of the SWA gland, leaving you with the 32mm outer thread for the hole in the consumer unit, you will then need a 32mm locknut to secure it in the panel. The 25mm nut supplied with the gland is not used.
Best of luck to you trying to do it neatly and easily as this in the field!
Thanks for the vid. I kind of wish we had a cable like this here in the US. One thought... wouldn't it be easier to use a tubing cutter (rollers and cutting wheel type) to score the armor instead of a hacksaw? It would offer much better control and automatically give you a very even score around the cable.
+PetrosArgy There is a product like that, the Kew Technik Blade Runner. Never used one, but the blades apparently don't last long and are very expensive.
+John Ward I checked that out on amazon.co.uk and it looks like a ripoff. From the comments it sounds like it has a toothed blade rather than a smooth wheel. I would look for a good quality plumber's tubing cutter with a smooth wheel. We've been using them here on rigid steel pipe for a hundred years and they work well. I have a RIDGID model 104 which is labeled for 5-24mm diameter tubes which would probably work a charm.
Found it! It looks like the SACS tool is the closest, purpose made tool to what I'm thinking of. Not a hack saw version of a pipe cutter...
+PetrosArgy
Scoring the armor with a hacksaw is actually a lot harder than it looks in this video. Normally you can't just turn the cable around as you score it. I tend to use a junior hacksaw which is a bit easier to maneuver, but I like the idea of some sort of cutter.
Many thanks to John for a clear and well-paced video tutorial. The _C.K T2250 ArmourSlice SWA Cable Stripper with 5-Blades_ is £27.73, or 40 USD approx., on Amazon's UK site, 28th May 2016. While it might be great for a frequent user, I'll get out my plumber's pipe cutter as suggested when I tackle this job next week. (FWIW, C.K make decent quality equipment in my experience.)
I have found that when you go back to so called water proof glands after a few years water has ingressed the gland a rusted up the steel armouring to the point of it breaking off (The shroud makes it worse because it helps hold the moister in)(not good if you using it as a cpc). So now I think it’s better if possible (you may have to fit an extra size pvc box and a large terminal earth bar to accommodate this) to run the SWA cable fully into the box with a pvc packing gland strip the armouring back and screw up tight to one side of the cable fit heat shrink earth sleeving and shrink on or wrap with G/Y tape and connect to large earth bar (you may have to split over two terminals) or bolt it with a crimp. This may only be done with lighting cables as the bigger cables are more difficult to do but not impossible an extra pvc box certainly helps. This method sounds and looks a bit amateurish but I think if it stops the water rotting the SWA away then it’s got to be a good thing.
Superb instructional video - recommended !
explained very well, Thank You.
Hi John. Great video and well explained. I have 4 garden lights to wire up with SWA and will be “daisy chaining” them but how do I terminate the steel wire to maintain a continuous earth connection
Remember the olive only works in one direction. It's connical. If you can't get the nut to the thread - thats why. Only thing to add to this.
Excellent John.
Thanks for sharing
I've been caught short on a job before and must admit that I've used an earth clamp to earth this cable. Not ideal, but it does the job, and it's pretty hard to damage this cable. Sometimes we just have to improvise.
Excellent tutorial - thank you
Any idea how well the armour shields the cable electrically? Just wondering whether it would provide any protection against a surge induced by a nearby lightning strike for instance. Would the spike only travel through the armoured wires where it can be safely directed to Earth, or would it penetrate into the actual conductors?
Excellent demonstration
My questions is regarding earthing the armouring. Like you said it should always be earthed whether at one or both ideally for protection purposes, but what size earth ( fly lead) would you use when connecting the gland/ banjo to earth? Would you match the fly lead to the same size at the live conductors?
So for example if you were using armoured for outside lighting using 1.5mm 3 core would you just earth the armouring using a 1.5mm fly lead matching the live conductor?
I hope that makes sense. It’s simple but seems to have confused me. Cheers.
John, great video as always. I plan on wiring up my garage at the house I just bought, and was wondering the best way to do it.The garage is 5 metres away from the house and I have plenty of SWA, but I don't want this going into the CU. Can I run T&E to a jcn box on the outside wall, then SWA to the garage into the CU in there? Would 2.5mm2 would be the wrong size from the CU to the jcn box? I am planning on running a ring of twin sockets in the garage, and a single lighting circuit.
Thanks in advance
Hi John, great video. Just a quick question, my friend has recently had a power supply fitted to his garage, however they have used standard two core and earth cable running from the house along a tension wire to the garage and it's not protected from the weather. I'm sure they should have used armored cable?
Doesn't have to be armoured if overhead as it's not likely to be damaged but it should be protected from the weather as T&E isn't intended for use in exposed locations.