How do I count the degrees in a conduit run?

Add up every bend between one pull point and the next — the actual angle of each bend, not the shape it makes. A 90 is 90. An offset is two bends, so a 30° offset is 60. A three-point saddle with a 45° centre is 22.5 + 45 + 22.5 = 90. A four-point saddle is four bends. Kicks count too, and so do the small box offsets at each end.

What is the maximum degrees of bend between pull points?

That limit is set by the electrical code you work to, and it can differ between codes, editions and local amendments, so this site does not print one. Look it up in your code book (or ask your foreman or the inspector) and type it into the limit field — the calculator then tells you how much you have left.

Does a box offset count?

Yes. A box offset is two small bends, usually around 10° each, so it adds about 20 to the pull. Two of them — one at each box — add about 40, which is easy to forget when you are counting the big bends.

Why does the code limit bends at all?

Every bend adds friction and tension to the pull, and tension grows fast as the bends add up. Too many degrees and the wire is damaged going in, or it cannot be pulled at all. A pull point resets the count: you pull to it, then start again from there.

What counts as a pull point?

Anywhere you can get at the wire and start a new pull: a pull box, a junction box, a conduit body where your code allows one to be used that way, or the equipment at the end of the run. Check your code for which fittings count.

Degrees of bend calculator

Coudes de ce tirage, en degrés

Chaque coude entre un point de tirage et le suivant, séparés par des virgules — ou appuyez ci-dessous pour les ajouter.

Votre limite entre points de tirage

En degrés, selon le code et l’édition que vous appliquez (et toute modification provinciale ou municipale). Laissez vide pour simplement additionner.

240 de cintrage dans ce tirage

4 coudes

Tapez la limite de votre code pour vérifier ce tirage.

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Add up every bend between one pull point and the next and compare the total with the limit in your code book. Tap the bends in as you lay the run out — a 90, an offset's two bends, a saddle's three — and type your code's limit once. The calculator gives the total and how many degrees you have left, or how far over you are.

How to count a pull

Count the angle of each bend, not the shape. An offset is not "one offset", it is two bends; a saddle is three or four. The table is the usual shapes, counted:

Shape	Bends	Degrees
A 90 (stub, corner)	90	90°
Offset at 30°	30 + 30	60°
Offset at 45°	45 + 45	90°
Box offset (about 10° each)	10 + 10	20°
Three-point saddle, 45° centre	22,5 + 45 + 22,5	90°
Three-point saddle, 60° centre	30 + 60 + 30	120°
Four-point saddle at 22.5°	4 × 22,5	90°
Four-point saddle at 30°	4 × 30	120°
Kick 90 with a 22.5° kick	67,5 + 22,5	90°
Rolled offset at 30°	30 + 30	60°

A kick 90 counts as two bends because it is two bends: the corner is pulled to 90° less the kick, and the kick goes on top of it, so the pair add to 90. A rolled offset is still two bends — the roll changes which way they point, not how many there are.

Worked examples

Panel to a rooftop unit

A stub out of the panel (90), an offset at 30° around a beam (60), a 90 up the wall (90), and a box offset into the disconnect (20): 90 + 60 + 90 + 20 = 260°. If your code book's limit is higher than that, the pull is fine; if another 90 turns up on site, check again before you bend it.

A long corridor with saddles

Two 90s (180), then three pipes to cross with 45° three-point saddles (3 × 90 = 270): 450°, before a single box offset. That pull almost certainly needs a pull box in the middle — put it where the count is roughly half, and each side restarts from zero.

Over the limit?

You have three ways out, in the order most crews reach for them:

Add a pull point. A pull box or junction box (or a conduit body, where your code allows one to be used for pulling) splits the run and each side counts from zero.
Take bends out. An offset and a kick in a row can often be one rolled offset. A saddle over something you could run under or beside is a saddle you do not need.
Use smaller angles. A 22.5° offset is 45° of bend where a 45° offset is 90. It needs more room along the run — the offsets around obstacles page shows how much.

Questions

How do I count the degrees in a conduit run?: Add up every bend between one pull point and the next — the actual angle of each bend, not the shape it makes. A 90 is 90. An offset is two bends, so a 30° offset is 60. A three-point saddle with a 45° centre is 22.5 + 45 + 22.5 = 90. A four-point saddle is four bends. Kicks count too, and so do the small box offsets at each end.
What is the maximum degrees of bend between pull points?: That limit is set by the electrical code you work to, and it can differ between codes, editions and local amendments, so this site does not print one. Look it up in your code book (or ask your foreman or the inspector) and type it into the limit field — the calculator then tells you how much you have left.
Does a box offset count?: Yes. A box offset is two small bends, usually around 10° each, so it adds about 20 to the pull. Two of them — one at each box — add about 40, which is easy to forget when you are counting the big bends.
Why does the code limit bends at all?: Every bend adds friction and tension to the pull, and tension grows fast as the bends add up. Too many degrees and the wire is damaged going in, or it cannot be pulled at all. A pull point resets the count: you pull to it, then start again from there.
What counts as a pull point?: Anywhere you can get at the wire and start a new pull: a pull box, a junction box, a conduit body where your code allows one to be used that way, or the equipment at the end of the run. Check your code for which fittings count.