# running pipe on top plate



## charlesboyd (Nov 6, 2021)

I'm curious about a bracketing system that would allow for running pipe on the top plate of a wall. it's not the ideal way to run pipe, but I would love to hear what type of brackets, or support you guys have used to successfully run multiple pipe runs on the top of a wall.


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## Dennis Alwon (May 9, 2009)

Why would you run pipes on top of walls. Unistrut is the main system I have seen in commercial buildings


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## That_Dude (Feb 13, 2012)

charlesboyd said:


> I'm curious about a bracketing system that would allow for running pipe on the top plate of a wall. it's not the ideal way to run pipe, but I would love to hear what type of brackets, or support you guys have used to successfully run multiple pipe runs on the top of a wall.


Perpendicular or parallel to the wall?


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## bill39 (Sep 4, 2009)

Mineralacs?


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## MechanicalDVR (Dec 29, 2007)

Dennis Alwon said:


> Why would you run pipes on top of walls. Unistrut is the main system I have seen in commercial buildings


That's about the most over engineered trapeze setup I've ever seen for a commercial building, not every job is a nuclear power plant,

A piece of strut hung on all thread with strut clamps is far more the norm in the real world.


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## mburtis (Sep 1, 2018)

What does a strut rack need guy rods for ? What's going to be shoving sideways on it. Two pieces of all thread and a chunk of strut is all I've ever seen.


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## HertzHound (Jan 22, 2019)

mburtis said:


> What does a strut rack need guy rods for ? What's going to be shoving sideways on it. Two pieces of all thread and a chunk of strut is all I've ever seen.


Seismic requirements in some areas.


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## mburtis (Sep 1, 2018)

HertzHound said:


> Seismic requirements in some areas.


I did not know that. Interesting.


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## MechanicalDVR (Dec 29, 2007)

mburtis said:


> I did not know that. Interesting.


You install lay-ins and exhaust fans without seismic support cables?


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## mburtis (Sep 1, 2018)

Im in Wyoming, the only thing we have to worry about is yellowstone blowing and if that happens I'm just cracking a beer and watching the fireworks.


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## SWDweller (Dec 9, 2020)

In Arizona I figure I have another 10 minutes before the cloud gets to me, so I will have the second drink.


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## Scubahigh97 (Aug 18, 2021)

mburtis said:


> What does a strut rack need guy rods for ? What's going to be shoving sideways on it. Two pieces of all thread and a chunk of strut is all I've ever seen.


Seismic protection


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## Majewski (Jan 8, 2016)

Dennis Alwon said:


> Why would you run pipes on top of walls. Unistrut is the main system I have seen in commercial buildings


oh em gee, could you imagine the cost? jeezuz


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## 99cents (Aug 20, 2012)

A wall might be ten feet tall and a ceiling at sixteen so the wall could be easier to get to. One problem with laying conduit on top of a wall is obstacles (plumbers pipe and your own conduit coming out of the top of the wall). I don’t know how secure strut would be attached to the top of a steel stud wall.

If I’m running conduits flat against a wall, I will sometimes attach aluminum flat bar to the wall first and strap up the conduit with Tek screws. It’s an alternative to strut.


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## MechanicalDVR (Dec 29, 2007)

99cents said:


> A wall might be ten feet tall and a ceiling at sixteen so the wall could be easier to get to. One problem with laying conduit on top of a wall is obstacles (plumbers pipe and your own conduit coming out of the top of the wall). I don’t know how secure strut would be attached to the top of a steel stud wall.
> 
> If I’m running conduits flat against a wall, I will sometimes attach aluminum flat bar to the wall first and strap up the conduit with Tek screws. It’s an alternative to strut.


Isn't the aluminum expensive?


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## 99cents (Aug 20, 2012)

MechanicalDVR said:


> Isn't the aluminum expensive?


Nope. I buy it from Princess Auto, the Canadian equivalent to Harbor Freight.


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## MechanicalDVR (Dec 29, 2007)

99cents said:


> Nope. I buy it from Princess Auto, the Canadian equivalent to Harbor Freight.


Interesting


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## splatz (May 23, 2015)

99cents said:


> A wall might be ten feet tall and a ceiling at sixteen so the wall could be easier to get to. One problem with laying conduit on top of a wall is obstacles (plumbers pipe and your own conduit coming out of the top of the wall). I don’t know how secure strut would be attached to the top of a steel stud wall.
> 
> If I’m running conduits flat against a wall, I will sometimes attach aluminum flat bar to the wall first and strap up the conduit with Tek screws. It’s an alternative to strut.


There are a lot of places built like this any more. Distribution centers, they put the offices inside the big box, so above the drop ceiling it might be 28' to the trusses. The walls protrude above the tiles a ways but of course not all the way to the trusses. 

In places built like that, I often make runs on top of walls, usually cable but once in a great while, conduit. It's usually pretty easy to run your conduits along the vertical face of the wall, above the ceiling near the top, but not on top of the wall. You can just use self drilling screws and one hole clamps and secure at studs. If that's not secure enough for you with metal studs, you could toggle it in, or if you have a lot of conduits toggle strut to the stud and strap to the strut. The only reason I can think of not to do this if there's stuff in the way so you don't have a clear path there. 

If I had to run multiple conduit along the top of a wall, I might fasten a perpendicular piece of strut to the top of the wall with a single toggle bolt, as long as it's not too long I think that would be solid enough. Of course you could also use a piece of scrap conduit, that's cheaper than strut. If you're all in cheap, you could bailing wire the conduit to the scrap trapeze. It's compliant. But I'd probably never do that. 

Probably the best install, and the way to go, would be to take say a 2' piece of strut, fasten the last 6" of the strut vertically to the top 6" of a stud, so 18" of conduit sticks up vertical, and strap to that. (You'd have to use toggles for sure if it's metal framing.)


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