RACEWAYS Book definition: raceways are wiring accessories or channels designed for holding wires, cables, or busbars which

are either made of metal or any insulating material. Ehow definition: A wide variety of covered plastic or metal troughs or channels, known as raceways, hide various sorts of wires and cables, protecting them from physical damage. Raceways keep wires out of the way in home, office, commercial and industrial areas.

IMPORTANCE OF RACEWAYS IN PRACTICAL USE

Household -Raceways can run along the walls at the baseboards, ceilings or in corners. They hide wiring to just about anything, including speakers and home entertainment systems.

On Floors -Raceways with slanted edges placed on floors protect the wires and also people from tripping over them or getting tangled. The slanted edges allow wheels to pass over easily.

Raceway Systems -Different types of raceways can be joined together in complex arrays to hide wiring to multiple locations. Raceways help greatly where many computers are installed in a small area.

Power Poles -Some vertically mounted, stand-alone raceways have electrical outlet sockets to power multiple appliances that need AC power.

Corner Ducts Raceways -Raceways designed to fit into corners along ceilings use an adhesive, requiring no tools to install. They can be painted to match the walls or ceilings.

TYPES OF RACEWAYS: 1.) CONDUITS 2.) CONNECTORS 3.) CONDUIT COUPLINGS, ELBOWS, AND OTHER FITTINGS 4.) CONDUITS SUPPORTS, SUCH AS CLAMPS, HANGERS, ETC. 5.) CABLE TRAYS, CABLE BUS ETC. 6.) METAL RACEWAYS, NON-METAL RACEWAYS AND OTHERS

1.) CONDUITS (closed raceways/ conduit pipes/ tubings) They are the most common electrical raceways.

a rigid tube or duct for carrying and protecting electrical wires or cables

TYPES OF CONDUITS:

a.) STEEL CONDUIT- they provide enclosed wiring from mechanical injury and corrosion
Provides a ground metal enclosure for the wiring in order to avoid shock hazard. Provides a system ground path Protects surrounding against firehazard as a result of overheating or arching or enclosed conductors Supports the conductors

b.) ALUMINUM CONDUITS- its use has greatly increased over the years because of its weigh advantage over steel. -it has better corrosion resistance in most atmosphere. -it is non-magnetic, giving a lower voltage-drop -its non-sparkling and does not generally require painting. - its major drawback is its harmful effects on many types of concrete causing spalling and cracking when embedded.

c.) FLEXIBLE METAL CONDUIT It is known as Greenfield It is principally for motor connections or other locations where vibration is present, when movement is encountered or where physical obstruction make its use necessary. It should always be used in connections to motors, transformers, ballasts and the like.

d.) LIQUID-TIGHT FLEXIBLE METAL CONDUIT This conduit is of the same construction as flexible conduit, except that it is covered with a liquid-tight jacket.

It is not intended as general purpose conduit, its use is being restricted to connections where flexibility and imperviousness to liquid is required.

e.) NON-METALLIC CONDUIT They are raceways formed from materials such as fiber, asbestos cement, soapstone, rigid poly-vinyl chloride and high-density polyethylene. Its made to be resistant to moisture and chemical corrosion.

f.) METAL SURFACE RACEWAYS They may be utilized only in dry, non-hazardous, uncorrosive locations, and may generally contain only wiring operating below 300v. They are normally installed in places not subject to physical injury.

IMPORTANCE OF ELECTRICAL CONDUITS: a.) To provide a means for running wires frim one point to another. b.) To physically protect the wires. c.) To provide a grounded enclosure. d.) To protect the surroundings against the effects of fault in the wiring. e.) To protect the wiring system from damage by the building and the occupant. f.) To protect the building and the occupant from damage by electrical system.

2.) CONNECTORS They are metal sleeve usually made of copper that slipped over and secured to the butted ends of conductors in making a joint. It is also called splicing sleeve.

3.) CONDUIT COUPLINGS, ELBOWS, AND OTHER FITTINGS 4.) CONDUITS SUPPORTS, SUCH AS CLAMPS, HANGERS, ETC. 5.) CABLE TRAYS, CABLE BUS ETC.

Cable trays are used in industrial areas where many insulated cables are run together.
Individual cables can exit the tray at any point, simplifying the wiring installation and reducing the labour cost for installing new cables. Power cables may have fittings in the tray to maintain clearance between the conductors, but small control wiring is often installed without any intentional spacing between cables.

6.) METAL RACEWAYS, NON-METAL RACEWAYS AND OTHERS

 2 RACEWAY SYSTEMS (WIRING METHOD) 1.) FLOOR RACEWAYS 2.) CEILING RACEWAYS

1.) FLOOR RACEWAYS A.) UNDERFLOOR RACEWAYS The raceways may be installed beneath or flush with door, are covered find their widest application in office spaces, since their use permits placements of power and signal outlets immediately under desks and other furniture, regardless of furniture layout. Some necessary methods are: a.) Channel the floor and install a conduit in the chase, connecting it to the nearest wall outlet. Patch the chased out portion. b.) Drill through the floor and run a conduit on the ceiling below to an outlet below. c.) Drill through the floor twice and connect the new outlet to an existing outlet via a conduit on the ceiling below. d.) Install a surface floor raceways. B.) METAL CELLULAR FLOOR RACEWAYS C.) PRECAST CELLULAR FLOOR RACEWAYS The structural concrete system is similar to cellular metal floor in application. A cell Is defined as a single, enclosed, tubular space in a floor made of precast cellular concrete slabs, the direction of the cell being parallel to the direction of the floor member. Feed for these cells is provided by header ducts, which is normally installed in concrete fill above the hollow core structural slab, although feed from the ceiling below is also practical. The cells can be used in air distribution and even for piping.

2.) CEILING RACEWAYS this system is actually more flexible than under floor raceways, since they energize lighting as well as provide power and telephone facilities; furthermore, they permit very rapid changes in layout at low cost. An additional advantage is that it itself can be altered at will since it is not cast in concrete. HEADER DUCTS- connect electrical panels and telephone cabinets in the power and telephones closets respectively. DISTRIBUTION DUCTS- tap onto the headers. This later acts as subdistribution wireways or may feed fixtures poles directly.