Cable Derating Factors ~repack~ 🌟

Heat transfer from the center cables is blocked by the outer cables. The hottest cable in a dense bundle can run 20-30°C hotter than an isolated cable carrying the same current.

Remember: The cable’s rating in a catalog is a promise made in a laboratory. Derating factors are the fine print of physics. Read them. Apply them. Your cables—and your safety record—will thank you.

The real world, however, is far less forgiving.

Soil thermal resistivity ($\rho$, in K·m/W) measures how effectively soil transfers heat. Dry sand or gravel is a terrible conductor (high resistivity). Moist clay or loam is excellent (low resistivity).