Questions and Answers for Southwire 500 ft. 2-2-2-4 Gray Stranded AL SER Cable

A:  Yes if you read the specification and item description it states that this cable is Sunlight resistant

A:  The grey jacket is sunlight resistant. Without removing the jacket and examining the individual conductors for any type markings, I do not know.

A:  Yes

A:  Yes, this will work.

A:  Yes it will work fine.

A:  The cable should easily carry the current. I put it in conduit and run 100 amp service in my garage, (detached ) 40 feet away from the main 200 amp disconnect. Check codes for your own town, but it should carry 60 amps with no problem.

A:  That's exactly what I used it for; works fine. This stuff is thick and heavy and very difficult to work with, but it gets the job done.

A:  Yes. Almost a year ago I used this cable to run power from a main panel in an attached garage to a 90amp sub-panel located 86ft away in a detached garage/workshop. I've had zero issues with it since.

A:  Yes I ran mine about 100 ft to a 60 amp panel.

A:  Yes, it can be used underground. NO, it will not work in a 1" conduit. Use 2" it will be a more pleasant experience during your installation.

A:  SER cannot be buried in conduit because the 4 wire is a bare ground. All buried conduit produces condensation regardless of whether it has been made water-tight. You can place it in conduit above ground as long as it is affixed at least 18" above ground. Lastly, there are free-space ratings for wire and their chases. With respect to 2-2-2-4, you must have at least 40% free space, so 1" conduit will definitely not work. You either need to use direct burial cable or if you intend to run individual cable within conduit it must have a sheath rated for burial use that resists breakdown from the presence of condensation.

A:  SER Can not be installed underground, USE Can be installed underground. National Electric Code 2017 338.12 Uses Not Permitted (A) Service Entrance Cable (SE) (2) Underground with or without a raceway

A:  Yes and yes

A:  I ran this thru conduit, but I used 1.5 inch due to the large diameter and stiffness of the wire. I am not sure if could ever get it thru 1 inch, and it would never make a corner thru that. Hope this helps.

A:  It should be able to run it underground in a conduit. As long as it's buried@ least 1-1/2 foot deep. I would recommend a slightly bigger piece of conduit though.

A:  yes it can be used, I used a 1 1/2 conduit. Just to be safe

A:  Absolutely NOT. The cable must be U rated for underground use even in a conduit.

A:  I'm pretty sure it would have a "U" in the name for underground and I am really sure it's too big to fit.

A:  Absolutely not! The NEC forbids installing SER cable underground in any manner!

A:  Yes this cable can be run in 2” conduit.

A:  Yes, I did, from my main panel up to the rafters and then down from the rafters to my sub panel

A:  You can yes. Inspection wise they generally prefer it not still with the outer coating. Why? I have no idea. But I ran it through 1-1/2”. Make sure it’s properly sized for your project.

A:  Yes, in accordance with the NEC code you can as long as you use a sweep 90, as LB will cause a bend radius issue but as long as you can bend the cable carefully not to damage the conductors it is acceptable to encase in conduit either buried in the ground or above ground in a PVC conduit, so the 2” conduit should be acceptable. Do not go any smaller than 2 “ conduit.

A:  Yes, it cab be, but I wouldn't unless additional protection is required.

A:  Yes. Short pull I would use 1.5".

A:  Hello, I am not certain as to the OD of the wire due to irregularities of the inner cable inside the exterior casing. However, I will say that when I utilized this cable I used a 2"/50MM diameter conduit entering the panel. I wouldn't use anything less than that. I hope this helped.

A:  The cable diameter is approximately <1.00 inch in diameter( major diameter is .915) Hope this helps.

A:  This products diameter is approximately <1.00 inch in diameter.

A:  3/4

A:  Southwire lists the quadruplex as 937 Mils. It is not SER nor cable.

A:  7/8" to 15/16" outside diameter

A:  I used 100 ft of this cable to run power to a 50A subpanel in a little guest house I built. 50 ft from the main panel to the exterior basement wall and then 50 ft underground from my cottage to the outbuilding. I ran the cable in schedule 40 conduit as per my inspector’s requirement in NY State. It worked great.

A:  At a minimum you need 1-1-1-4 Al. Good luck finding it. 2-2-2-4 is not suitable for a 100A 'sub-panel', but would be acceptable if you feed it with a 90A breaker. SER cable is not suitable for direct burial, consider URD.

A:  I would use 2-2-2-4 MHF. The SER cable, where you posted your question, is prohibited by the NEC to be installed underground in any manner; not direct buried and not in buried conduit.

A:  that Is not the correct wire for your application. You need to speak with an electrician.

A:  No one makes a 120 amp breaker and 120 amps isn't enough anyway. You would need minimum 150 amps. Each dryer can be wired with #10 conductors. This sounds like a commercial project so without construction details the type cable cannot be determined.

A:  6 dryers? You most definitely need to have an electrician who knows your local area and state code requirements.

A:  3/0 Copper minimum. See chart and check wire insulation for correct sizing.

A:  You need call a licensed electrician if you are thinking of doing this yourself. I am a licensed electrican and home owners shouldn't even touch a service. You have the utility company and their requirements in addition to the local jurisdictional requirements. This is more than just looking at an ampactity chart in NFPA-70. Also you need to identify which year of the model code is the current adopted standard. Have an electrical contractor do the service and main. If you feel comfortable doing the branch circuit wiring maybe stick to that but you may get confused with 3 way switches. Trust me, you will underestimate how much work it will be for you to bend the wiring to conform and line up with the lugs. They also need to be torqued and don't even get me started on grounding, bonding, bonding bushings for concentrenic KO's for EMT if used etc..

A:  For 200 amp residential service the NEC allows either 4/0 aluminum or 2/0 copper conductors for service entrance wiring.

A:  The answer is it depends.. Are you running copper or aluminum? How far will your service panel be from your meter? And what are the town building code ordinances. You should check your local and state building codes to see which vesion of the NEC they are requiring adherence to and then pull up the NEC and the ICC and the LOCAL Building codes and determine what is needed in your location. But I would be surprised if your town or city or even your electric company allows that particular line and connection to be done without a licensed electrician.

A:  200 amp Service requires a minimum of 3/0 Copper. Make sure you specify SE for overhead Service or USE for underground service. Also use chart attached for sizing to connect from meter to panel. Insulation matters.

A:  For the "Line" side I'd use two 4" conduit risers, each with 3 - 750 MCM Aluminum Type XHHW conductors. On the "Load" side of each meter disconnect I'd use 4/0-4/0-4/0-2/0 Al SER cable.

A:  Each meter should have its own run to its panel. 3/0 copper minimum. See chart and reference wire insulation on chart.

A:  No! The cable to feed a subpanel MUST be connected to a circuit breaker. You should install a subpanel adjacent to your main panel and move a few lightly loaded circuits to the new subpanel freeing up space in the main panel for a subfeed 2-pole breaker. I would suggest you contact a licensed electrical contractor for details and assistance with your project.

A:  Many main panels have circuits with very low loads, such as 15 amp lighting circuits. If you know that 2 circuits are not fully loaded you can connect them together on one breaker to make room for the new 2-pole breaker. ANOTHER WAY: Since you are adding a subpanel you will probably have room to connect an existing circuit to the new subpanel and disconnect it from the main panel. When you do that you must FIRST disconnect the circuit from the main panel. WARNING : The fact that you asked the question suggests that you may need some help to switch circuits because if you accidently connect the same circuit to 2 panels there is a 50% probablilty that you will connect it to the opposite phase and create a 240 Volt short circuit which will cause a lot of excitement in the household.

A:  Not sure if I completely understand your question, but depending on the location of the sub-panel, this would be fine as long as you ran it from the open slot in you breaker box. I am not a pro, so always consult your local code for their requirements. If you only have one slot left, a sub-panel would do you well (depending on the location of the sub-panel).

A:  I am not am electrician. I did use this cable to feed a sub-panel, I put breaker in my main panel to do this. I also had an electrician advise me on requirements and code to insure I did it safe and right. But I did it myself.

A:  Absolutely not, It must be terminated on a 2pole 100amp breaker. Purchase a tandem breaker to free up 1 space.

A:  Get a tandem 15 amp breaker and move one of your #14 AWG wires from a 15 AMP breaker onto the tandem breaker. Get a 75Amp 2 pole breaker and attach it to that. Calling an electrician to do it isn't going to cost much, compared to your injury or the cost of repairing the damage.