Common Situations of EMT Conduit Damage

Damage to EMT conduit (electrical metal conduit) is often related to external forces, environment, installation, materials, and maintenance. The core scenarios are as follows:

One is external impact and mechanical damage, which are the most common situations. During construction, heavy equipment crushing, scaffold tilting and impact, or later wall drilling errors during decoration, can cause the pipe body to sink, bend and break, the interface to detach, and the internal wires to be exposed; Long term compression by load-bearing structures can also cause a reduction in the cross-sectional area of the conduit and fatigue cracking of the pipe wall.

The second is environmental corrosion, and EMT pipes made of galvanized steel are easily affected by the environment. Wet bathrooms, basements, or seaside areas with chloride salt spray, as well as chemical areas with acid and alkali content, can damage the galvanized layer, causing electrochemical corrosion, rusting of pipe walls, and detachment of zinc layers. When buried underground without anti-corrosion treatment, corrosion will form holes faster.

Thirdly, the installation operation is not standardized. Using non specialized tools to bend pipes or bending with too small a radius can cause the pipe wall to stretch and crack, and the inner side to wrinkle; The interface is not polished with burrs, and the locking nut is not tightened properly, which is prone to water ingress and dust accumulation, accelerating corrosion; If there is a lack of cross grounding, it will cause interface oxidation and erosion due to leakage and overheating.

The fourth issue is material and maintenance. Poor quality pipes have thin galvanized layers and brittle substrates, which are prone to breakage during installation; Failure to conduct regular inspections in the later stage, failure to promptly address corrosion and loose connections in the conduit, or blind slotting and drilling during unauthorized modifications can accelerate damage.