The wire and the cable are very similar but there are some differences as well.
In general, the cable consists of a number of wires but to answer "how many of them are within a cable" some factors must be considered.
Wires are usually made of copper or aluminum, and these conductive materials act as wire insulation to power different parts of your home.
When installing new wiring, choosing the right wire or cable is half the battle.
On the other hand, when examining old wiring in your home, the identification of the wire type can tell you a lot about the circuit to which the wires belong (if you open a junction box, for example, you need to determine which wires are where).
wire and cable
Wiring in modern homes is fairly standard, and most homes built after the mid-1960s have a similar type of wiring.
Any new electrical installation will require new wiring that complies with local building codes.
Below, learn about the different types of household electrical wiring to choose the right option to complete your electrical project accurately and safely.
It helps to understand some basic terms used to describe wiring.
A wire is a conductor, a material that conducts electricity.
In the case of home wiring, the conductors themselves are usually copper or aluminum (or copper-clad aluminum) and are solid metal conductors or stranded wire.
Most wires in your home are insulated, meaning they are wrapped in a non-conductive plastic coating.
best wire and cable
A notable exception is the ground wire, which is usually solid copper, either insulated with a green jacket or bare (bare).
Non-metallic (NM) cable, often called "Romex" by a popular brand, is a circuit wire designed for indoor use in dry locations.
NM is the most common type of wiring found in modern homes.
It consists of two or more individual wires wrapped in a protective plastic sheath.
NM cables typically contain one or more "hot" (current-carrying) wires, a neutral wire, and a ground wire.
These conductors are installed with white (usually neutral) and black (usually hot) insulation.
Most NM cables have a flat, tubular shape and pass invisibly through your home's wall, ceiling and floor cavities.
Almost all wiring in sockets and light fixtures in modern homes is NM cable.
wire and cable features
It is dangerous to handle NM cables when the circuit conductors are live.
The Underground Feeder (UF) is a non-metallic cable designed for use in wet locations and buried directly in the ground.
It is often used to supply outdoor fixtures such as lampposts.
Like standard NM cables, UF contains insulated live and neutral wires and a bare copper ground wire.
However, while the jacket on NM cables is a separate plastic sheet, the UF cable jackets are solid plastic that surrounds each wire.
This type of wire is also slightly more expensive than nanowires due to its durable insulation.
UF cables are usually sold with a gray outer jacket.
UF cable is also used for main circuit wiring and can carry dangerous voltages when the circuit is open.
THHN and THWN are codes for the two most common types of insulated wire used in conduit.
wire and cable types
Unlike NM cables, where two or more individually insulated conductors (copper or aluminum) are bundled in a plastic sheath, THHN and THWN wires are single conductors, each with color-coded insulation.
These wires are not protected by NM cable sheaths, but rather tubular metal or plastic pipes.
Conduit is often used in unfinished areas, such as basements and garages, and for briefly exposed wiring inside the home, such as line connections for garbage disposals and water heaters.
The THHN and THWN wires are circuit wires and should never be handled when opening a circuit.
Low-voltage wires are used for circuits that typically require 50 volts or less.
A few common types are landscape lighting wiring, sprinkler system connections, bell wiring (for doorbells), speaker system wiring, and thermostat wiring.
Wire sizes range from approximately 22 gauge to 12 gauge, and these wires can be made of copper or aluminum.
