Mule Tape (Pull Tape)
Mule tape is a flat, low-friction tape installed in conduit to pull fiber cable later. Learn how OSP crews use it, strength ratings, and markings.
Mule tape is a flat, woven polyester tape that fiber contractors install inside empty conduit so a stronger pull line or cable can be attached and drawn through later. It has a low-friction coating, a rated breaking strength printed on the jacket, and sequential footage markings that let crews measure conduit runs as they work.
Why Crews Pre-Install Mule Tape
Underground fiber conduit often goes in the ground months before the cable that will eventually run through it. Crews pull mule tape into every duct at the same time they install the conduit, whether that's open-trench, plow-installed, or placed with directional drilling equipment. Leaving tape in place means a future crew doesn't have to send a rodder or fish tape through a long, curved run again. When it's time to place cable, the installer ties a swivel and pulling eye to the mule tape and winches the cable through from the far end. On long or high-tension pulls, crews sometimes use the tape to pull in a heavier pulling rope first, then use that rope for the actual cable pull.
Strength Ratings and Footage Markings
Mule tape is sold by breaking strength, with common ratings in the 1,250 to 3,000 pound range depending on conduit size and expected pull loads. Every foot is printed with a running length marker, so crews can read the exact conduit distance between handholes or vaults without a separate measuring tool. Some mule tape has a conductive copper or steel tracer woven into it, which lets a locate crew find buried conduit routes electronically before anyone digs. Tape width and coating vary too. A flatter, waxed profile cuts friction and reduces the tension the cable has to withstand during the pull.
Mule Tape (Pull Tape), answered
What is Mule Tape (Pull Tape)?
Mule tape is a flat, woven polyester tape that fiber contractors install inside empty conduit so a stronger pull line or cable can be attached and drawn through later. It has a low-friction coating, a rated breaking strength printed on the jacket, and sequential footage markings that let crews measure conduit runs as they work.
Does mule tape get left in the conduit permanently?
Sometimes. If a cable fills the duct, the tape may stay wound alongside it, or crews pull a fresh tape back in right behind the cable so the conduit is ready for the next occupant. Empty spare ducts almost always keep a mule tape in place so a future pull doesn't need a rodder run first.
What's the difference between mule tape and fish tape?
Fish tape is a stiff steel or fiberglass rod pushed through short, mostly straight conduit to find a path. Mule tape is flexible woven webbing that gets pulled through afterward and does the actual work of hauling the cable, not locating the route.
Does mule tape connect straight to the fiber cable?
Usually not directly. Crews tie a swivel between the mule tape and the cable's pulling eye or pulling grip. The swivel absorbs the twist that builds up in the tape during a long pull so that torque doesn't transfer into the fiber cable itself.