When renovating, it's crucial to pay attention to the most basic plumbing and electrical installation. Problems with these basics can significantly impact your living experience after moving in. Therefore, before hiring an installer, it's crucial to understand some basic renovation knowledge to avoid being misled by them. Also, when visiting building material markets, many shop owners ask whether they want hard or flexible wiring. Many people don't know the difference between the two. Let's take a look!
Is it better to use hard or flexible wiring for home wiring?
1. Price
Flexible wiring is more expensive than hard wiring. A higher price doesn't necessarily mean better performance. This is primarily due to the significantly more complex manufacturing process and manufacturing process involved. However, one thing is that for the same square foot of wire, flexible wiring can carry a greater load than hard wiring. Simply put, flexible wiring can connect to more appliances than hard wiring.
2. From a Construction Perspective
Hard wire still has certain advantages when it comes to connecting sockets and switches in your home, and when crimping, it's easier to use than flexible wire. Because flexible wire is more flexible and has greater tensile strength, it's more advantageous when running through conduit and also helps dissipate heat. However, it's crucial that you absolutely avoid mixing it with hard wire, as this can easily cause it to break. Flexible wire is only suitable for small household appliances and shouldn't be used on longer runs.
3. From a Usage Perspective
Since homes now have more appliances and wiring is more complex, hard wire is a better choice. Its rated current is sufficient for most households, it's less prone to oxidation, and it's easier to connect to things like switching power supplies. When purchasing, consider your home's specific circumstances.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of hard wire and flexible wire?
1. Cross-sectional area: For the same current carrying capacity, hard wire has a smaller cross-sectional area, while flexible wire has a larger cross-sectional area.
2. Tensile strength: Hard wire is stronger, while flexible wire is weaker.
3. Corrosion resistance: Hard wire is stronger, while flexible wire is weaker.
4. Fatigue resistance (resistance to transverse fracture): Hard wire is weak, while soft wire is strong.
5. Insulation strength: Hard wire and soft wire both depend on the material and thickness of the insulation layer.
6. Scrap recovery rate (metal recycling): Hard wire has a higher rate, while soft wire has a lower rate.
Generally speaking, for general household use, single-strand (hard) wire is recommended, as it has better oxidation resistance and longer service life. However, during construction, if the circuit has many turns, multi-strand (soft) wire is easier to thread. There is no inherent difference between hard wire and soft wire; the difference lies in the application scenarios.
