Quality Differences in Electrical Cables

Hello everyone,

I have often read about quality differences in electrical cables (e.g. NYM) between hardware stores and wholesalers. (Whether it's weight, stripping behavior, etc.)
PRYSMIAN (formerly Pirelli) are supposed to be good.

How do you rate LAPP or FABER here? For network cables, I think you can't go wrong with DRAKA.

I have often read about quality differences in electrical cables (e.g. NYM) between hardware stores and wholesalers.

hm. But it can't be that bad if everyone sells the same cables, just at different prices, and all cables comply with the usual test standards. And that weight is supposed to be a quality feature is new to me. Maybe one cable is a bit stiffer than the other. But it can also be just as "worse" in the wholesale trade as in the hardware store. Advantage of wholesale: they sell larger bulk packages (500m drums) than in the hardware store, where the layman briefly needs 10 or 20m.

Yes, that's correct. My electrician said that in terms of copper, it should be no problem since the cables should comply with VDE standards. If there are differences, it would be the sheathing. However, since the cables would be plastered over, that wouldn't matter either. It would be different if cable trays are used and cables are repeatedly pulled through. Still, it would be interesting to know whether Faber belongs more to the quality cables like Lapp or Prysmian.

Nevertheless, it would be interesting to know whether Faber belongs more to the quality cables like Lapp or Prysmian.

It is all "quality". Once again - let the price decide. There are no quality differences with comparable cables.

All cables must comply with VDE, although there can be significant differences in the processing. Some cables are hardly stripped, others quite easily. But basically, a cable is a cable, the current and voltage don't care at all.

Currently, one should rather be glad to get any goods at all...

I noticed partly significant differences (we laid all the electrical cables ourselves over 300m² of living space, and did so in a star pattern because of the smarthome). We bought a lot at Hornbach (they had 400m rolls which are much easier to handle than the 500m ones! Especially when they have to go from below to the upper floor over the scaffolding... ugh). The Hornbach cables (some "brand manufacturer" was printed on them) were partly quite flattened in the last meters (and not just over 5...). Sometimes hard to unroll straight and accordingly difficult to pull into protective tubes (which we did entirely). A 500m roll ordered online from another "brand manufacturer" was clearly better, the cable was just more uniform and round. I am always talking about the sheath; the inner cables were almost identical, whether 3x2.5 or 5x1.5, all were easy to strip. I think we laid about 2km of cable, so that does make a difference. For the next house (haha) I would always prefer the "better" cable.