What is the Benefit in Shifting to RTRC from PVC?

There are several industrial benefits to making the shift from polyvinyl chloride (PVC) Schedule 40/80, to reinforced thermoset resin conduits (RTRC), aka epoxy fiberglass for cable/wire protection. On top of that, RTRC is not even close to being as toxic for the surrounding environment as PVC, when tested under hazardous conditions (fire, corrosion, overload meltdowns, etc.). A closer look at these benefits and more should help in understanding why RTRC is the future.

Incredible Resistance to Fault Conditions

The two primary functions served by wire conduits are that of:

1. Providing protection to the wiring inside.
2. Containing the fire and electricity inside the conduit, in case of a meltdown.

It has been found that even in instances of severe electrical faults, high quality, industrial fiberglass solutions do not melt, fuse or weld with the wiring inside. No other conduit material can claim the same level of resistance, which includes PVC (SCH 40 and 80), aluminum and even galvanized steel.

Zero Halogen Emissions

When exposed to fire, fiberglass reinforced thermoset resin conduits do not release toxic halogens (bromine, fluorine, chlorine, iodine and astatine) into the surrounding environment. PVC and PVC coated steel conduits release these toxins in dangerous quantities upon catching fire from a fault. Both galvanized steel and aluminum are also more sustainable than PVC, since they do not emit halogens on coming into contact with fire either.

Lighter than PVC

Prior to the introduction of epoxy fiberglass, PVC was considered to be the lightest material for conduits. However, RTRC is significantly lighter than even Schedule 40 PVC conduits. Universal comparisons are difficult to provide, as slight variations will always be there, depending on the manufacturers in question. Nevertheless, consider the fact that every 100 feet of 4-inch PVC SCH 40 and SCH 80 conduits weighs approximately 199lbs and 260lbs, respectively, while 100 feet of 4-inch RTRC conduit weighs only 65lbs – 67lbs, without losing rigidity.

As a result of the huge difference in weight, epoxy fiberglass conduits heavily reduce pressure and load from supporting structures. They are also a lot easier to install and repair, which saves on both time and labor costs.

Temperature Resistance

Industrial RTRC solutions are designed to stay unaffected by a much wider temperature range, as compared to PVC. Whereas both SCH 40 and SCH 80 PVC conduits can only resist 40°F – 150°F, RTRCs can easily handle temperatures in between -60°F – 250°F.

Do note that PVC conduits cannot handle colder climates, since their maximum effectiveness begins to falter well before the freezing point (32°F). On the other hand, it would take an arctic level drop in temperature to affect reinforced thermoset resin conduits. However, aluminum or galvanized steel conduits would be better suited for installations which are indeed likely to face temperatures below 60°F.

It should be clear by now that the benefits of fibreglass epoxy over PVC are far too many to be ignored. RTRC conduits will eventually come to replace all previous installations of PVC conduits, and they will also become the default conduits of choice for (compatible) future installations.