How Do You Bend a 90 in Conduit?
Join this channel to get access to perks:
/ @electricianu
⚡🔨SPONSOR: PENN ALUMINUM🔨⚡
www.pennconduit.com/
Installing conduit is one of the primary tasks of a commercial/industrial electrician. Without it, wire can’t get from one point to another! And bending a 90 degree bend in conduit is one of the first skills learned when starting to bend conduit. Most of us electricians start out learning to bend on steel EMT conduit. But what about Aluminum EMT conduit? Is there a difference? In todays episode of Electrician U, Dustin Stelzer talks a bit about the pros and cons of each as well as the necessary steps to successfully bending a 90-degree bend.
🤘⚡️MEMBERSHIP⚡️🤘
JOIN ELECTRICIAN U - become a member and get:
FREE Continuing Education every year
FREE Practice Exams
FREE Monthly Video Courses
FREE Weekly Live Instructor-Led Classes
FREE Monthly Educational Newsletter
Premium Members-Only Content
Private Discord Channel
Monthly Members-Only Discord Chats
Sign up here --- www.electricianu.com/electric...
🎧🎹MUSIC AND VIDEO:🎹🎧
/ descantmv
🎬✍️ART AND ILLUSTRATION:✍️🎬
www.daverussoart.com
First let’s talk about Penn Aluminum, todays sponsor. Penn Aluminum produces some of the best Aluminum EMT conduit available. But why use aluminum EMT instead of steel? Its considerably lighter than its steel counterpart and easier to bend, which results in much less stress on the installing electrician and leads to much greater productivity. In todays market, aluminum EMT conduit is anywhere from 10% to 20% cheaper than steel EMT, which can add considerable cost SAVINGS to a project. However, one of the downfalls to using aluminum EMT is that it IS harder to pull wire into. It just seems that the wire (or the wire pulling apparatus) gets hung up on the inside of the pipe. Penn Aluminum has developed a special coating for the inside of the conduit called Blue Lightning. This coating acts much like Teflon making the inside of the pipe super slick and wire goes in much easier even than standard steel EMT. Check out Penn Aluminums website- they have a ton of products that will certainly meet your conduit needs! Great company!
The first step in bending a 90 in conduit is to establish a length. Once a length is established, you will need to mark this on the conduit- lets say 36”. The next step in the process is to apply the deduct (this is the length required where the conduit will actually SWEEP and that will need to be considered in our calculation). Standard deducts are ½”- 5”, ¾”- 6”, 1”- 8”. Subtract this distance from your original mark- for our 36” 90, we will make another mark on our conduit at 30”. Hook the bender onto the conduit with the open end of the bender FACING the direction you hooked your tape measure on. Place the ARROW on the bender handle on the 30” mark (distance needed for 90 MINUS the DEDUCT). A very important step in the bending process is to apply FOOT pressure, not just PULL with your arms. So, step on the bender shoe, while pulling on the bender handle until the measured portion of the conduit is vertical in the air. Using a torpedo level, continue to adjust the vertical portion until it is at 90 degrees. That’s it! Bend completed! Not to worry if you OVERBEND, just step on the portion of the conduit still on the ground and PUSH the vertical portion of the conduit AWAY from you until it is at 90 degrees.
A variation of this bend technique can be used. There is a star marking on the bender shoe that signifies the BACK of a 90-degree bend. If you had a longer 90 degree needed- say 8’ in lieu of our 36” mentioned earlier, make your initial measurement, turn the bender around and hook it on the conduit facing AWAY from the side you measured from, place the STAR on your mark, and then bend the conduit as normal! This keeps you from having the short part of the EMT on the ground and 8’ of pipe flailing around in the air!!
A few tips- use a PENCIL to make marks on conduit and erase them once the bend is completed. It just looks better! Also, carry a level with you so your bends are accurate. Use constant foot pressure (don’t just pull with your arms) so your bends don’t kink. If you are having trouble with the conduit sliding around on you, consider putting your tool pouches on your hips to add some weight and/or put the long end of the conduit on the ground up against something non moveable (a wall for example) so it won’t slide.
We hope this has been an informative look into Aluminum EMT conduit and 90 bending techniques. Is there a topic you would like to see discussed on Electrician U? Leave a comment in the comments section and let us know. Please continue to follow Dustin and Electrician U as we are constantly updating our content to assist our followers in becoming the best electricians that they can be.
#electrician #electrical #electricity #how #do #you #bend #a #90 #in #conduit
Another thing I learned is if you ever bend it a lil too much you can use the handle from the bender to straighten it back
Nuff blessings to you Electrician U from Jamaica , it is a blessing learning a hold lot
Grate video!!! You should do a second part of bending conduit like making offsets and saddles bends that would be really nice!! I really appreciate everything you do I am really learning a lot
I work in electrical department since I am following your videos, my job get easer than ever and safer . Thank you so much.
The “Stubs 6” to ⬆️” on the bender is your takeoff or sometimes referred to as a deduct. It’s usually cast into the head on 1/2”, 3/4”, and 1” benders. Only mentioning if someone was curious what that meant. Not all benders refer to it the same way as the Klein he is using.
I know Milwaukee does the same as Klein. I have an 1/2 inch Milwaukee bender and a Klein 3/4 inch bender. I like the Milwaukee better because it has a black shoe with white printing on all the degree marks so it makes it really convenient for bending being able to see.
Good info, also use a pencil so your work is not covered in sharpie marks.
I’ve been using these bending videos to help with night school. We have a test on bending and I missed the first week because my daughter was born. I bought a bender and 100’ of 1/2 Emt and have been practicing my bends using sharpie with what degrees I used per your video so I can easily look at all of my bends and can easier learn what degrees I need to have, and shrinkage calculations because I’ve been struggling to figure it out in the book. Much appreciated for the help!
I guess a minor disadvantage to aluminum conduit is your magnetic level doesn't stick so you have to keep putting it down and picking it back up when dialing into the angle you want. Though with a 3D printer I suppose you could fix it and have two clips that slide onto the ends of the level to allow you to clip the level to the conduit. (Opposite facing clips that provide tension to lock the conduit into the groove down the one side of the level with a twist.) Probably not a big deal if you are experienced and usually only need one tweak to hit your angle per bend. But for beginners not having the level mounted to the conduit could waste a lot of time just picking up and putting down the level.
They make a magnetic level with a locking mechanism for pipe.
I like Benfield Conduit Bending Manual. Also, you do incredible work in breaking things down.
Good old Jack Benfield ... he literally wrote the book. We watched his instructional movie, in black and white back in my apprenticeship. A lot on the use of a hicky while roughing in a slab with rigid conduit.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge! Can you please make more conduit bending videos?
I was asked to review your comment. I gave 😢.
This video has helped me in the field many times
As a homeowner running conduit for a room renovation on my home (required for code; Chicago area), this was extremely useful. Thank you!
How'd it go brother?
Love aluminum conduit for weight saving, back breaking, and bending…..as far as pulling wire thru; that is what my apprentice is for😅, as I’m watching and taking a “standing drink”😉
Great but confusing. Wish you would’ve been running EMT to a box & demonstrate what & why you were trying to accomplish.
Nice basic video! Looking forward to seeing one on an offset, maybe some saddles ???
Essentially a plumber's job. Cross-trades. Original conduit was from gas lighting piping. Interesting fact.
Cool video Dustin keep them coming back lol ❤🎉
The only time I use the sharpie is when it's where I'm cutting or the conduit is being buried. When it's exposed I do as you suggested, I use a pencil. The other part of pushing down on the shoe of the bender is that crinkles can form on the inside of the bend. It's happened to me incidentally when I didn't have enough pressure on the shoe with my foot.
Like you, ... don't care for Sharpie lines on my beautiful work. I do however still prefer a Sharpie, but I use a modest dot, oftentimes smear it away when done. I guess an exception I remember being underground work.
Muy buena aportación para los que empiezan en el sector eléctrico ,la herramienta Klein es lo mejor ,yo soy de la ciudad de México y tengo 30 años trabajando con herramientas Klein.
Sale bien la marca IDEAL?
The first bend is called a stub bend, The second is called a back bend.
Do u have a playlist of conduit bending?
The EU team is incredible. Thank you for the great content !
Love your videos! I’m learning so much! I’ve only been in the trade for about a year. I started out in residential and now I’ve converted to commercial. I love it! Can you make a video on how to read blueprints? It would make life easier! Thank you!
Reading electrical blueprints is extremely easy. All you have to do is read the legend and the scale and just look at the print. And match up every symbol to the legend. I think it looks more intimidating than it really is. You're going to want to look for the letter E in the bottom right-hand corner when you have all different trades in one big bundle of blueprints. Hope this helps at least a little bit for you
@@theseattlegreen1871 helps a bunch! Thank you!
Thanks. Make sure the camera has a good view of the marker marks before and after, maybe use a different color for the take up. When I did my first conduit project I got the Conduit Bender Elite app, I think it’s still available (just to be sure, I have no affiliation with them)
Out in the field sharpies are a life saver bc on rainy days pencils ain’t gonna work. Can’t write on metal with a pen. Can write on anything with a sharpie
On the website, there is all the books and everything that you used to study for electrician schooling, do I need to get the newer books or are the 2017 books fine?
You are the best brother
Here because i wanted the opposite direction 90 cause I didn’t want 8ft of conduit going in the air while bending lmao so thx!
I needed a bend at 79 for 1/2 emt for a corner so I measured 79 and then took off 5 inches for half-inch EMT and it’s a couple of inches short. What happened?
Is there a specific reason I wouldn’t just use the star ??
thank Electrician U for the lesson,by the way, how about sharing bending using GI conduit with stand to 90 degree and 45 degree ,much helpful 🤝because i using conduit bend stand not conduit rods
Would have been clearer if we could see you measuring the wall obstruction - do you measure for the inside edge, outside edge, or center of the id of the conduit?
Depends on if the inside or outside of the conduit will be against the wall or object you are bending to/around. So if you were bending on an inside corner you'd measure for the outside of the conduit as that is what will be contacting the wall. Hope you understand my explanation.
90's are always measured to back of 90
How do you calculate the marks? No video I have found actually tells you the basics.
Finally, I found a video that explains which direction to face your bender. I already know, but it's nice to see so others can benefit. Electrician U, as always, you do an awesome job! Keep up the good work. I enjoy your videos.
I think all hand Benders should get rid of the star and Teardrop and the notch and just use different colored arrows
A RULE TO NREMEMBER when bending electrical tubing- For offsets 8 inches or less use 30 degree bends- Over 8 inches use 45 degrees of bend- {where the bender handle is straight up perpindicular at a 90 degree angle
How can avail a pipe conduit bender and how much?
You should do a video ssries with holmz law
that dudes accent is rough !!...but he bends the shit outta pipe
Why was I taught since 2006 using the arrow and the deductions for 90 degree bends if all I had to do was use the star instead of the arrow? It seems like using the arrow is so much more work and time
2:35 It says on your conduit " EMT " . Aluminum conduit are usually threaded just like the ridgid steel pipes and are bendt using benders one size bigger. EMT is kind of an "in between" aluminum and ridgid . But if i'm wrong, and aluminum/EMT conduits exist, then that must be nice to work with. 😏
EMT is not a material. If you want to make it out of brass, nobody is stopping you.
@@waytospergtherebro thanks for the clarification. 22 years in the trade, and i still learn new stuff 😉
Emt is a thinwall conduit designed for use with fittings
I don’t really have any experience with bending pipe yet. I was wondering when you did the 90 degree at 78” was it 78” to the inner or outer edge?
It’s to the back of the 90°. So 78” would measure from the start of conduit to the backside of his 90°.
@@mattjjmichael thanks!
whats the gain on that bender?
I realize that this is sponsored but are there any downsides to using aluminium beyond the pulling friction that they remedied with their coating? Thx for the tutorial. Its neat to see this done
Non Magnetic. Your level won't stick to it.
@@darrenwoloshyn I could see where that would actually be pretty annoying. Thx
@@AngryAmericanWizardDepending on availability, cost, and options that really could be a deal breaker. If you can't do it right and complete the job to a high level of quality then the cons might really outweigh the pros. Thx
Assuming it's ok to use steel fittings with the aluminum conduit?
Most EMT fittings are die cast zinc. Galvanized steel fittings are permitted with aluminum EMT (and vise versa) A bare steel fitting wouldn't be permitted with aluminum EMT, but I'm not sure bare steel EMT fittings even exist.
@@andrewalexander9492 I saw some zinc plated steel fittings. Made in the USA too.
@@salatino "galvanized" just means zinc plated, so yeah, those should be allowed to be used with Aluminum EMT.
The only thing I wish Klein would do with new conduit benders, come up with a way that you can use 1 bender to bend all residential sizes we need: aka: ½, ¾, 1 inch as would save time and space, imo
I just realized when you got a perfect 90 that arrow is parallel with yhe ground
If it’s not too much trouble I have a code question for you. Does the NEC say anything that prohibits me from making a subpanel 120V instead of 240V? I have a 10/2 feed to my 240V subpanel in my garage and they’re using the non-insulated ground wire as a neutral. To avoid having to run a new feed cable as a 10/3, I wanted to just convert the subpanel to a 120V. Then the white can be a neutral and the non-insulated wire can just be a ground. Does the NEC allow that? I did some poking around online, but it’s mostly people arguing about whether or not it’s allowed and nobody seems to have a concrete answer straight from the NEC. Any answers would be greatly appreciated.
There is nothing that goes against 120V panels. The only downside is you can never hook anything up that requires 240V obviously. Make sure the subpanel is fed from a 30A breaker since you only have #10's running to it.
@@nikogarcia3249 Hey Niko. Thanks for the response. I really appreciate it.
which bathroom do you use?
I don't get why we use the star... couldn't we just use the arrow and add 6.. ?
How about other angles?
I like this
More like this
Pros and cons of aluminum vs steel?
Price, weight?
Nice
What separates the boys from the men is having to run over a thousand feet if 1.25" EMT with a bender that does not have the great foot that allows to bend 45 degrees then move foot pedal up and finish a 90 degree bend. On one job we had to install 2 & 5" saddle bends on the ten runs. When bending 1 & 1.25" EMT with a hand bender best to wear work boots ( not cheap thin sneakers ) and place the end against a wall to prevent conduit from moving and use a little clamp on level. On runs consisting of more then 3 conduits best to use unistrut that if planner correctly v will reduce # of bends. On one jib we had 360 degrees in bends to 18 or 20 receptacle drops . Used standard 15/8" unistrut coming down from 30' ceiling then mounted 1900 boxes in shallow 5/8" ( & not the speed her to find 7/8" shallow strut ) to avoid going over 360 degrees in bends and saving on installing either pull boxes or C codulets up in high ceiling making pulling wire harder.
The men are running 1” rigid
When you check that the bend is level...what if the ground isn’t level?
Find the best ground level
5:38 Can i ask how your level sticks to the ALUMINUM pipe? 🤨 And 2nd little thing i notice is that, using a level like that to make sure its 90°, is ONLY GOOD if the FLOOR IS LEVEL ALSO . 😉 Sorry if my comments are a pain in the a.. 😟 I dont hate your videos btw 🍻
I realized that with the klein benders it feels weird bending a 90 it's like you have to go further than you actually think. I feel like the ideal benders are true once your down it's 90 and your good. I couldn't stand the klein maybe its just because I've got use to the ideal over the years.
The Klein are garbage, I can feel it everytime I use a Klein Bender LOL. Ideal, Greenlee or Milwaukee are way better.
@mikerosoft1009 yeah I hated the klein bender I found ripples in the pipe I couldn't stand it. I haven't tried the milwaukee mostly used to working with Ideal and 1 Greenlee
@@robfahey1349 same with me and the ripples. I liked the orange handles so I swapped the heads for greenlee lol
I don’t kno why but everytime I’ve used a take back for 90s they never work So I just flip it and use the star lol
Why would you need backwards vs forward?
The bends you need and the order you do them in may make it difficult or impossible to do all the bends with the bender facing the same way.
@@andrewalexander9492 ahh thank you
Try to bend a 110 inch 90 the "forward" way and then do the "backwards" way and you will see
You Chuck a stick of pipe and a bender at your apprentice then yell at him for messing it up. Any other brain busters?
Ooooh, didn't know Warren Buffet was into electrical supply companies. :)
0:54 take off lengths
By making sure it's 270".
We use meters in South Africa😅
trick i learn edis put 6 inches past the end of pipe and make my mark
in here plastic tubes used more than. metal ones.
How do you bend a 120?
i almost the last year completly was bending conduit but of heavier metal, but we don´t use imperial so it did´t help me enough on measures, and you can just pull the bender to bend the conduit, but always keeping the conduit pressed agaist the floor, or it will break, and with enought ability you can even bend on the air using your wieght, but also is more risk to break, but also easier to do on some more harder conduits of higher diameter(please use metric too, USA suppossed to be using it, stop using imperial, is inefficient)
No. Freedom units ftw.
0:54
1:21
4:14
4:52
Make 2 lines. Where I push the line back 5,6,or 8 inches where I start the bend and roll it back to the first line
Unless your conduit is getting buried in a wall, you should be using a pencil so the marks don't out so much.
Your 90° is true, but is your base level....... no worries, everyone has a first day,,, just not every day..
First
Here is your prize, an internet gold star: 🌟
All ways lever before you plum! Your bending surface may not be level... green mistake....
How about correcting an over-bend :D
First thing you so is dont get down on the ground. Second thing you do is dont lay your bender on the ground. 3rd thing you do is bend with the proper stance. You should have 1 foot on bender the othe on the pipe. Please dont do another vidieo.
A 9 and a half minute video to teach a 90 bend...
Old man’s just bitter he knows how do work all these tools but his life is still unfulfilled and nobody likes him because he won’t take responsibility for his actions.
Very half assed job of explaining to people who do not understand how to bend conduit. You need to show yourself pulling an actual measurement of a 90 that you need. Explain that the measurement is always taken to the back of the 90. You need to explain WHY we use the star and not the arrow sometimes, such as when you need a 90 inch 90 or when bending back to back 90's. Seemed more like a product video(aluminum conduit) than a demonstration video.
I'll get the book. You talk too much to explain how-to bend that would've taken 2 minutes