BS8436 Cable
Multicore electric cables with a voltage rating of 300/500V and low emissions of smoke and corrosive gases when subjected to fire. Manufactured in accordance with British Standard BS8436 for use in building voids, partitions and walls.
British Standard BS8436 specifies requirements for 2-core, 3-core and 4-core cables with an uninsulated full-size circuit protective conductor of tinned annealed copper and metallic screening.
Designed for use in building voids, partitions and walls, cable manufactured to this standard have a protective metallic or laminated metallic screen for electrical and mechanical protection to meet the 17th Edition of the Wiring Regulations BS 7671:2008 (2011) for concealed cables at a depth of less than 50mm, Regulations 522.6.100 to 522.6.103. Designed to be electrically fail-safe in the event they are penetrated by a nail or screw, cables manufactured in accordance with BS8436 must pass a nail penetration test six times and maintain functionality on each of these occasions.
The thermostatic voltage rating of cables manufactured in accordance with BS8436 is 300/500V.
BS8436 cable construction
| Insulated conductor | Plain or tinned annealed copper (Class 1, 2 or 5) |
| Uninsulated circuit protective conductor | Tinned annealed copper of the same class as the insulated conductor |
| Insulation | EI5, GP4, GP6 or GP8 |
| Screen | One or more metallic or laminated metallic tape(s) |
| Outersheath | Type LTS 3 (conforming to BS7655-6.1 |
This standard requires the protective metallic or laminated metallic tape screen to be applied longitudinally or helically (or as a combination of the two), placing the metallic side of the tape in direct contact with the uninsulated circuit protective conductor. It also requires the sheathing to have low smoke zero halogen properties, curbing the smoke emissions when subjected to fire and eliminating halogens such as chlorine gas which can be produced through the burning of the materials. This reduced the risk to life and essential equipment, including fire detection and fire alarm systems, in the event of fire.
BS8436 Core colour coding
| 2-core + uninsulated circuit protective conductor | Brown, Blue or brown, brown |
| 3-core + uninsulated circuit protective conductor | Brown, black, grey |
| 4-core + uninsulated circuit protective conductor | Blue, brown, black, grey |
Accessories to match the BS8436 cable range are available - speak to our sales team for more information.
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