My chimney camera cable snapped halfway through an inspection

It happened on a job in Bellingham last Tuesday, about 15 feet up a flue. The old cable had a weak spot I missed. I had to pull everything out by hand, which took an extra hour. What's a good brand for a tough replacement cable that can take a bend?

3 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In

3 Comments

hannahs717mo ago

You mentioned pulling it out by hand. I'd check the cable's pull strength rating, not just its bend ability.

3

baker.phoenix6mo ago

My old man was a phone installer back in the 90s and had this whole spiel about tensile strength versus flexibility. He'd say you can yank a garden hose all day, but fold it sharp once and it's toast. That's the kink problem the_wren is talking about. Makes me wonder if hannahs71 is coming from a data center background where straight pulls are more common. I've seen both fail in the real world, honestly.

8

the_wren7mo ago

But what if the bend rating IS the real test, @hannahs71? A cable can survive a pull but still fail from a tight kink.

2