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Electrical

Garage - existing SWA size and water pipe

Anonymous user 23/02/2024 - 3.40 PM

Hi, I have a steel garage that has what I think is 10mm SWA entering up through a hole in the concrete floor and feeds an air pump for a waste water treatment plant. The cable measures 20mm in diameter so would this be 10mm SWA and would I be correct in thinking that this could be used to power lights and a few sockets via a consumer unit? (Powering a garage door, air compressor, the odd bench tool and chest freezer, oh and some LED lights) Another thing is the 100mm hole in the concrete floor that the cable comes through also has a blue PVC water pipe that feeds a garden tap. Is it OK for both the electric cable and water pipe to enter at the same point? Edit following answer from T&B Electrical; The SWA & Water are not run in the same pipe. They only enter the garage through the same hole in the floor

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4 Answers

T&B Electrical

Rating: 5 out of 5

Hornchurch

The cable shouldn’t be in the same pipe with water pipe The 10mm armoured should be ok for powering lights and few socket but this need to be seen by an electrician Thanks

Answered8 April 2021

CJM Electrical

Rating: 5 out of 5

Prenton

Doesn’t really matter if the cable is next to the water pipe? Swa cables are laid in the ground or clipped to walls etc where it gets rained on, don’t let that confuse you. Also, in relation to your 10mm swa supply, you need to take into account what the load is of the primary purpose. Ie if there is a 10mm swa feeding a pump which is 40amp and it runs constant. Then if you break away off that 10mm into a sub-board and supply your stuff, and if both loads are on, an total more than the 10mm supply protective device, then it may trip/overload.

Answered26 April 2021

Anonymous user

No problem with an SWA cable being in the same conduit as the water pipe. The water pipe is plastic, MDPE, and the armoured cable is designed for harsh environments. Pointless running two separate conduits. The SWA was probably pulled through for ease of installation.

Answered9 April 2021

AB Electrical

Rating: 5 out of 5

Bromsgrove

If the SWA cable is indeed 10mm it should be able to carry 71amps if done by Reference method D (In ground) But it will also depend on the length of the cable as volt drop will need to be calculated as well. I can’t see it being a problem if the cable comes through the same hole, as the pipe is plastic and it’s SWA cable.

Answered6 May 2021