My first big service upgrade took 14 hours instead of 8

I figured a 200 amp panel swap would be a solid day job but the old conduit was full of water and rusted solid. Had to chip out the mud ring and drill new holes in the block. Has anyone else found a faster way to deal with corroded rigid conduit on service changes?

1 comments

1 Comment

sullivan.john9h ago

Man that's a rough one. Best trick I found is to hit that old rigid with a torch for a minute or two before trying to pull the locknut. The heat expands the metal just enough to break the rust seal. Also keep a set of those big Channelocks handy for when you gotta grip the hell out of it. If the threads are totally shot I'll just cut the conduit flush with the box and use a mechanical coupling on the clean end inside the new panel. Saves you from chipping out the whole mud ring. Just be careful not to scorch the block too much if you go the torch route.