Best way to pull wire

Nov 17, 2009 7 Replies

I am trying to figure out the best way and best direction to pull 3 #



3 wires and a # 6 wire from a run from my house to a 100 amp sub panel in a detached garage. It will be 2 inch PVC conduit. The run will start in my attached garage where the main panel is located. It will go inside that wall up about 10 feet into an attic space above my garage. It will run about 20 feet across the attic and then go outside into an LB fitting. It will go down to the ground on the outside of the attached garage for about 15 feet into a sweeping 90 then a straight run of 50 or so feet to my detached garage. The total run is about 110 feet. I will be mostly working by myself maybe the wife could help.

Anyway, is it best to start in the attic, run the wire down into the main panel then out through the outside wall. Will it be a pain to unravel this wire in the small attic?



Or would it be best to start at the detached garage, run it through the long straight run, then up the attached garage wall into the attic ect.



I will have LB=92s above the main panel, Outside the top of the garage, and inside the detached garage just below the sub panel.



Any advice is appreciated! I have a small tractor if that helps but I am hoping I can do this by hand.


You are using relatively large conduit, but I wouldn't bet on pulling it alone.

With the information given I would fish the LB to detached garage first.

If you use a small cable or rope to pull through the PVC sweeps it can cut through them.

Some general advice:

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Run the long stretch first, coming out of the LBs at each end, then run your stubs to each panel. You really need 2 people, one to pull and one to feed the wire into the pipe. Otherwise you will be doing a lot of running back and forth. I know guys who squirt a little lube in each piece of pipe as they are assembling the run. The main thing is to keep the dirt out.

What happens if dirt gets in there?

Dirt causes drag and makes the wire harder to pull. Always try to pull wires into conduit downhill if possible. It's better to have gravity working for you instead of against you. It does make a difference.

It will create extra friction and make it harder to pull.

I use a fish tape, but I've never tried such a long run. Wire lube also makes a huge difference. Whatever you pull it with, make sure it's attached securely because if it comes loose 90% of the way there you'll be kicking yourself.

I use tensile force. THAT is the BEST WAY to PULL wire.

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