500-Feet 18/4 Alarm Wire

If you need 18-gauge, 4-conductor stranded wire, look no further than Alarm Grid. Our 500-foot long rolls are exactly what you need. It doesn't matter whether you're a seasoned professional installer or a DIY user setting up your own equipment. You will love our top-quality wiring that helps make your job as easy as possible. Our wiring is durable, tough and easy to work with, making it great for any job, big or small. We are sure that our 18-gauge, 4-conductor wire will help you get the job done right and fast.

There are two important things to check when looking at wire specifications. These are the wire thickness and the number of conductors. The wire thickness is measured in gauges, which is sometimes abbreviated as AWG. The higher the gauge number, the thinner the wire. In other words, the thickest wire will have the lowest gauge value. We find that 18-gauge is actually the ideal level of thickness for wiring used with alarm systems. The reason why 18-gauge is ideal is because it offers the perfect balance of maximum wire run length and general flexibility. Thinner wire is typically more flexible, while thicker wire can support further runs of current. You don't want a wire that is too thick or too thin, as it may otherwise not provide the results you want. We do have some users that prefer the slightly thinner 22-gauge wire thickness. But if you aren't sure of which wire to get for setting up your system, then you really cannot go wrong with 18-gauge.

Four-conductor means that there are four inner wires inside the larger cable. This is good for completing 4-wire connections, which are typically found on sensors that need to draw power from the panel. This includes motion sensors and many life-safety sensors. These sensors need two connections for power and two connections for data, making a 4-conductor wire suitable. You can actually still use a 4-conductor wire for a 2-conductor connection. You would just leave two of the inner wires left disconnected and unused. The wires will be fine just sitting there. But you should be very careful not to mix up the wires. The four inner wires are colored-coded black, red, white and green to prevent this from happening. You can also buy 2-conductor wiring from Alarm Grid if you care very strongly about neatness and don't want to leave any conductors unused.

One important note about the wire we sell is that it is stranded wire. This is not be confused with solid core wire. Stranded wire is easier to work with, and it can be bent, cut and stripped without fear of damage. This is not the case with solid core wire, which must be handled extremely carefully or else it will not work properly. DIY users and professional installers both prefer stranded wire, and we recommend it for any alarm system application. Our wiring is provided from Genesis, which is owned and operated by Resideo. You can count on genesis and their stranded copper cabling for a top-quality product.