All About Thermostat Wire – HVAC Control

Thermostat Wire - Thermostat wire comes in a bundle with the outer jacket being either brown or white. The bundle can have anywhere from 2 conductors inside the bundle or outer jacket and all the way up 8 or 10 conductors inside the outer brown or white jacket. The bundle for typical wire is 18 gauge solid copper conductors and each has its own outer jacket that is a different color than any of the other conductors in the bundle. These multi-color wires are colored differently for identification from one end of the bundle to the other end of the bundle. It can be purchased in a bundle as follows:

This article refers to conventional thermostat wire which is different than the wire you would have if you have a communicating thermostat.

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Running New Thermostat Wire | HVAC Heating and Cooling

Running New Thermostat Wire – It is possible that you may have to run a new thermostat wire from the air handler or furnace to the location where the existing thermostat is located. Running new thermostat wire can challenging even for professionals. If you must then following these instructions and helpful hints will hopefully help you in this endeavor. Pulling new wire should only be done as a last resort. The purpose of running new thermostat wire is necessary for certain reasons such as: (more…)

Grounding and Bonding Electrical Systems | NEC Code

Grounding and Bonding Electrical Systems and the NEC
Grounding and Bonding Electrical Systems | NEC Code - National Electrical Code Article 250 is all about grounding and bonding as represented in this photo where electrical systems are grounded and bonded to the buildings steel structure.

There are many different rules in the NEC (National Electrical Code) pertaining to grounding and bonding because grounding and bonding are important for safety reasons. Electricity will take the path of least resistance so if there is a short in the system the grounding system will be the path for the electricity instead of the motor or load that experiences the short. (more…)

Wire Type and Sizing Considerations | HVAC Technical

Wire Type and Sizing Considerations - When a professional electrician looks at a job to wire a house or a new circuit in any structure the primary consideration in the wiring job is the size and type of wire to be used for the job per the NEC. The same for a plumber when looking at a job the plumber will size the pipes based on the number of gallons needed to carry the proper amount of water to its destination. If the pipe is too small then the water needed will not reach its destination. This is almost the same for electrical wire except under-sizing electrical wire is dangerous. (more…)