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my result was more abstract art than electrical work
Story of my life right there.
- Honestly, I'm all about saving a buck, but after kinking two sticks of EMT and nearly launching my bender across the yard, those pre-bent 90s started looking like money well spent.
- I’ve used flex in tight spots, but if you don’t secure it every couple feet, it gets floppy and looks rough. Not sure it’d survive my kids’ bikes smashing into it, either.
- Fittings with flex? Total pain. Half the time I’m wrestling with it just to get the threads started.
- At the end of the day, if it’s hidden and works, I’m not losing sleep over “creative” bends. If it’s a rental, though, I go EMT and just budget for a couple extra connectors (and maybe a cold drink after).
Pre-bent 90s are a lifesaver, no shame there. I tried the “I’ll just bend it myself” route once and my conduit looked like a rollercoaster—never again. Flex is okay if you’re desperate, but yeah, it’s basically spaghetti if you don’t strap it every couple feet. I’ve got kids too, and I swear their bikes are drawn to anything that looks remotely fragile. At this point, if it’s behind drywall or tucked away, I just make sure it’s safe and call it a day. Not worth stressing over perfect bends unless you’re showing it off.
Couldn’t agree more about the pre-bent 90s—tried to “save time” bending my own once, and ended up wasting an afternoon fighting kinks and ugly offsets. I’ve learned my lesson: if it’s going in a finished wall or somewhere I’ll never see it again, I’m not sweating over whether the bend radius is textbook-perfect. As long as it’s safe, code-compliant, and nothing’s going to snag on it (or get crushed by a rogue scooter), that’s good enough for me.
One thing I’ve run into with running power out to detached garages is the trenching. It always seems simple until you hit roots, rocks, or some mystery pipe you forgot about from a previous project. Then you’re either rerouting or spending half a day with a shovel and a lot of creative language. Sometimes I wish flex was allowed underground just for the sake of my sanity.
Anyway, if it’s out of sight and protected, I’m with you—no need to make it pretty unless you’re planning to show off your electrical skills to the neighbors.
I’ve learned my lesson: if it’s going in a finished wall or somewhere I’ll never see it again, I’m not sweating over whether the bend radius is textbook-perfect.
Running into old pipes or tree roots mid-trench is basically a rite of passage at this point. I hear you on the flex—would make life a lot easier, but code’s code. I’ve found that marking out the trench path and probing with a rod helps, but it’s never foolproof. Pre-bent 90s save so much hassle, especially when you’re working in tight spots or around obstacles. At the end of the day, if it’s safe and up to code, I’m not losing sleep over a few less-than-perfect bends either.
At the end of the day, if it’s safe and up to code, I’m not losing sleep over a few less-than-perfect bends either.
I get that, but I still find myself fussing over the details, even if nobody will ever see it. Last time I ran conduit to my shed, I hit a chunk of concrete from who-knows-what and had to reroute everything. Pre-bent 90s helped, but I still ended up with a couple “creative” bends. Sometimes you just have to accept that perfect is the enemy of done.