Copper Cables and More

When it comes to cables,  copper  is actually the oldest and most prevalent cable used today. There are several types of cables that use copper and these include the coaxial cable, the twinaxial cable, and the twisted pair  cable. Copper is the perfect medium for handling both outdoor and indoor connection needs and is one of the best types of cables available to choose from.

The coaxial cable is an electric cable that is used for transmitting or sending radio signals. If you’ve ever had cable television, then you are undoubtedly familiar with a copper coaxial cable, as this is the type of cable that your cable company uses to send a signal to your television set. The first coaxial cable was invented in the year 1929 and they first hit mainstream use when AT&T to carry sound waves utilized them. When looking at a coaxial cable, you’ll see that there is a main copper wire in the center of the cable. This wire is surrounded by insulation. The white plastic or rubber coating that you feel on the outside of the cable is the cable’s ground. It isn’t uncommon for there to be many copper wires inside of a coaxial cable.

Twisted pair is another type of cable that is used frequently in society. It derives its name due to the fact that the cable consists of two wires that have been securely wrapped or twisted around one another. There are two types of twisted pair copper cables. These are STP or shielded twisted pair and UTP or unshielded twisted pair.

Twinaxial cable is sometimes simply known as twinax. This type of cable consists of two copper wires in its center. It resembles a coaxial cable only it has two wires in the center instead of one. It’s important to understand the differences between various copper cables to ensure that you select the one that best meets your project’s needs.

Today, PVC is used to cover a copper wire cable. PVC or polyvinyl chloride is plasticized before covering the wires, as this makes the PVC flexible or increases its plasticity. There are many uses of copper in cabling systems today. Though at one point, the use of aluminum in wiring began to take popularity, it was quickly realized that aluminum wiring did not work well with conductors that were designed for copper. In today’s building industry, it is imperative that all electrical wire is used as determined by the building codes.