Copper cable
From Exterior Memory
Cable Diameter Standards
| Area (metric) | Diameter | American Wire Gauge | Ampacity | Typical Use | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.08 mm² | 0.32 mm | AWG28 | 0.8 A | Wires inside a data cable | |
| 0.10 mm² | 0.36 mm | AWG27 | 1 A | Thin hobby wire (home electronics for up to 30cm) | |
| 0.14 mm² | 0.40 mm | AWG26 | 1.3 A | Cat5 UTP, Flexible hobby wire | |
| 0.25 mm² | 0.50 mm | AWG23 / AWG24 | 3 A | Cat6 FTP, breadboard wires, Thicker hobby wire | |
| 0.50 mm² | 0.75 mm | AWG20 / AWG21 | 5 A | Low voltage power cable (e.g. for phone or doorbell or powering electronics) | |
| 0.75 mm² | AWG18 / AWG19 | 10 A | Power cable between outlet and device | ||
| 1.5 mm² | AWG16 | 12 A | Thin power wire in walls (black wire for switches) | ||
| 2.5 mm² | AWG14 | 15 A | Normal power wire in walls (power, zero and earth wire) | ||
| 6.0 mm² | AWG10 | 30 A | Thick wire in electric panel (groepenkast) |
The metric area is the advertised area, equivalent of mm² copper. The actual diameter, when translated from AWG specification may differ.
The Ampacity is the maximum current that can be transported through the wire without exceeding its temperature rating. In this case, the Ampacity at 60°C is given. For higher temperatures, multiply by 1.5. Given the power and voltage of a device, this allows you to determine the required amperage, and thus the required cable diameter.
Other considerations
- Core
- solid or flexible.
- Material
- copper of CCA (copper cladded aluminium). Copper is considered slightly better. CCA is cheaper and is consider good enough.
Network Cabling
Further Reading
For UTP cabling
https://www.utp-kabel.nl/blog/welke-kabel-moet-ik-kiezen.html https://planetechusa.com/blog/ethernet-different-ethernet-categories-cat3-vs-cat5e-vs-cat6-vs-cat6a-vs-cat7-vs-cat8/
