Thomas & Betts LTBUS01L-K LFMC CMP UL 3/8IN BLU 150M/500FT

LTBUS01L-K is 3/8 inch trade size liquid tight flexible metallic conduit supplied on a 500 foot (150 m) reel. It is a single bulk reel part number, so if you need a shorter run you are still buying the full 500 feet.

The blue jacket on the LTBUS01L-K is a color-coded identification jacket. Contractors and facility electricians use color to separate circuit types or systems at a glance on a jobsite or in a plant, rather than tracing every 3/8 inch whip back to its source. Electrically and mechanically it is the same liquid tight flexible metallic conduit construction.

Galvanized steel core with the liquid tight outer jacket over it. That steel spiral is what gives the conduit its crush and pull resistance on equipment whips and motor connections, and it is what distinguishes LFMC from nonmetallic liquid tight, which has no metal core.

Three-eighths inch is the smallest common trade size and it is a whip size, not a raceway size. It gets used for short final connections: motors, rooftop and packaged HVAC units, disconnects, pumps, small control devices, and anywhere vibration or a wet location rules out rigid pipe. For feeders or multi-conductor runs you want a larger trade size.

Both keep water out; the difference is the core. The LTBUS01L-K has a galvanized steel core, so it resists crushing and physical damage at exposed rooftop and grade-level equipment and gives the run a metal path. Nonmetallic liquid tight is lighter and easier to bend tight, and is the usual pick where physical abuse is low and cost matters more. Where a condensing unit whip is walked on, hit by carts, or exposed at a loading dock, the metallic version is the durable choice.

Full reel only. The part number covers one 500 foot (150 m) coil of 3/8 inch blue liquid tight, which is how contractors and MRO storerooms usually buy it for stocking whips. There is no cut-length option under this model number.