Electrical Forum - ALUM WIRING MORE SUGECTIONS

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Subject - ALUM WIRING MORE SUGECTIONS
BAGGY	WHAT ARE THE DOWN SIDES TO BUYING A HOME IN MA THAT HAS ALUM VS COPPER WIRING?? BUILT APPROX 1975 THREE UNITS ALL ELECT. ANY INPUT WOULD HELP OUT ALOT.WHAT ARE INHIBETORS?? THANKS
kbsparky	Be prepared to replace much of that aluminum wiring, or at the very least, to install copper pigtails on all your wiring devices. Personally, I would rip most of it out, and replace it
lctrc789	I used to be a specialist in that feild when I was doing residential home repairs and insurance jobs. He is right with the 1st post that you could have problems, you may not have to replace all the wiring, but you should at least have copper pigtails installed with proper inhibitors and have all connections checked for looseness at every point. Being 30 years old now and under wear and tear it is time to have it all at the least checked for bad insulation, tighten all connections including the panels, and every device. If you can keep up with it and have it maintained properly you can live with it but it can be a head ache for sure. Aluminum wire has a tendency to always expand and contract even when it is under very little load in smaller sizes such as 12 gauge they used back in the 70 s .
SoCalMike	I'm also looking at a house (built in 1968) that most likely has AL wiring. I've been reading a lot lately about the risks and remedies of this wiring. I know complete replacement is the best bet. Can anyone ballpark how much time and money this would take? Its a single story house, approx 1100 sq ft, on a concrete slab foundation, with a small attic above most of it (I think). I found an article on the CPSC web site that recommends using AMP Copalum connectors for pigtailing copper onto aluminum. They also claim that Ideal's wirenuts (#65) specificially made for copper to aluminum connectors are a fire hazard themselves because the antioxidant inside and the plastic shell burn and aren't recommended. I really like this house and the way prices are going, there aren't really any others that I can afford in the area I want to live in. I don't want to blow a great opportunity by blowing the risks out of proportion. I don't want my house to burn down either.
lctrc789	Mike, if the aluminum wire is properly maintained and you install good pigtails and keep up with the general maintanance on them you should have no problems. To re wire a home that is existing can get pretty expensive, I do not know about California and the rates so it would be hard to say for sure on the cost. To give you an example to rewire a 1000 sq foot home where I live with new service and replace all wiring and bring up to code would be about 3500.00 dollars, this would be a home that would get a new 100 amp service no 240 circuits re wired and the kitchens in most of these homes were wired in coper anyway. With new GFCI in bathroom new smokes and arc fault detectors in bedroom 2 in this case. A smaller average home, the customer would be responsible for all notches and cuts and patching due to cutting drywall where necessary as well.
JimmyDee	quote: I'm also looking at a house (built in 1968) that most likely has AL wiring. Al romex gave me 2-3 service calls a week for several years in an apartment complex until the apartment owners got Alcoa to rewire it. We didn't get the job. I wouldn't even consider an Al wired house. Jim
luckyshadow	I am going to have to agree with Pat on this ... as long as the circuits have the proper overcurrent protection, the connections are tightened and PROPERLY pigtailed, and most important there are NO "back" stabbed devices.
lctrc789	I have had to re wire some homes that had aluminum wiring and for the most part if you keep up good maintanance on it and use a qualified person to keep it up to par so to speak it is OK if you can keep up with it. 15 years or so ago I had the same deal as Jimmy, an apartment complex that was built in the 70 s and had all aluminum wire, we rewired that entire complex right after that job 3 years or so the owners filed bankruptcy and they eventually tore downthe buildings. We had to cut so much drywall and ceilings and they had to move people around like crazy this was very expensive ordeal for such a lrge complex but they had fires in two units and one maintanance guy get burnt real bad so they decided to re wire them.