Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

A 10 foot copper pipe that cost $4.00 last year is now going for
$16.00

A roll of 12/2 copper wiring that cost $68 last year is now marked at
$199.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

JimL wrote:
A 10 foot copper pipe that cost $4.00 last year is now going for
$16.00

A roll of 12/2 copper wiring that cost $68 last year is now marked at
$199.


Dang it! I was thinking of a sub panel in my garage. I'm scared to price
out the wire. I guess I'll look into Al.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

"No" wrote in message ...
JimL wrote:
A 10 foot copper pipe that cost $4.00 last year is now going for
$16.00

A roll of 12/2 copper wiring that cost $68 last year is now marked at
$199.


Dang it! I was thinking of a sub panel in my garage. I'm scared to price
out the wire. I guess I'll look into Al.
don't forget the tube of anti-corrosion paste for the Al wire.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

It'll be coming back down soon.

--
Steve Barker



"JimL" wrote in message
...

A 10 foot copper pipe that cost $4.00 last year is now going for
$16.00

A roll of 12/2 copper wiring that cost $68 last year is now marked at
$199.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

On Thu, 06 Jul 2006 23:58:59 GMT, "Steve Barker LT"
wrote:

It'll be coming back down soon.

Nope.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

right up with gas another 30 cents a gallon increase:(

I will NEVER use alunimum house wiring, copper is a ONE TIME expense.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

Yep.

--
Steve Barker

"JimL" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 06 Jul 2006 23:58:59 GMT, "Steve Barker LT"
wrote:

It'll be coming back down soon.

Nope.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

JimL wrote:
A 10 foot copper pipe that cost $4.00 last year is now going for
$16.00

A roll of 12/2 copper wiring that cost $68 last year is now marked at
$199.

Its gotten so bad around here and recycling prices have gotten so high
that contractors have had to hire patrol vehicles to watch their houses
during the night and weekends. Several have reported having the wire
stripped from houses the night it was installed. Copper plumbing taken
out. Heck, one air conditioning supplier in town had the coil stolen
from the air handler they cooled their own building.

I'm waiting for my first theft. I install aluminum ornamental fencing.

Wonder what would happen if I wired an electric fence box to the
fence.......that would be worth seeing.

JD

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

Wonder what would happen if I wired an electric fence box to the
fence.......that would be worth seeing.

JD

someone would sue you.

people are stealing copper gutters and downspouts off homes.........

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

wrote in message
oups.com...


Wonder what would happen if I wired an electric fence box to the
fence.......that would be worth seeing.

JD

someone would sue you.

After you got out of jail.

Bob

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

My kid was given permission to take away some old romex and some heavier
gauge copper wire from a plant rewiring job where he works. He took a
tangled mess of it maybe three cubic feet in volume to a local scrap metal
dealer and came home happy as a pig in s**t with nearly a hundred bucks in
his wallet. I hope his bosses never catch on to what they gave away. G

His boss should be happy. I work for a large company and lots of wiring was
torn out. This is big 4/0 size to about # 12. We sold about $ 40,000 worth
and it only cost us about $ 60,000 to get it removed.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

JD wrote:
JimL wrote:
A 10 foot copper pipe that cost $4.00 last year is now going for
$16.00

A roll of 12/2 copper wiring that cost $68 last year is now marked at
$199.

Its gotten so bad around here and recycling prices have gotten so high
that contractors have had to hire patrol vehicles to watch their houses
during the night and weekends. Several have reported having the wire
stripped from houses the night it was installed. Copper plumbing taken
out. Heck, one air conditioning supplier in town had the coil stolen
from the air handler they cooled their own building.

I'm waiting for my first theft. I install aluminum ornamental fencing.

Wonder what would happen if I wired an electric fence box to the
fence.......that would be worth seeing.

JD

Look for steel to come back in place of aluminum in highway signs and
guardrails. They are taking the entire guardrail out here. Report in
the paper where a company lost a batch of copper wiring. Cut pff from
breaker boxes with the circuits live.

Harry K

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

I seriously doubt steel will get much use as guardrail sinve it
REQUIRES painting etc.

Alunimuum is just set and forget till someone destroys it

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

wrote:
I seriously doubt steel will get much use as guardrail sinve it
REQUIRES painting etc.

Alunimuum is just set and forget till someone destroys it

There are treatments and alloys that do not require painting. Putting
aluminum rails up just to have them stolen is a losing proposition.

Harry K

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

Built my house in the early 1970s, for those who can remember that far back,
was when aluminum was popular as an electrical wire because the price of
copper had skyrocketed. Even though I was on a tight budget, I paid the
price and installed only copper wire in the house. I cut corners to pay for
copper by buying cheaper finishing items that could be easily replaced at a
later date, and they were replaced. Many years later, many remodels later, I
am still happy, safe and comfortable that some of the original wiring is
still in place and working properly.

Back then the NM cable had each wire paper wrapped over the insulation,
additional paper cords to fill out 3 wire cables to make them rounder, then
a paper over wrap under a braided sheath which was soaked in tar then
painted orange. Finally they coated the cable in a wax material to make it
easier to pull through holes in the wood framing. It took time to strip the
ends of the cable and to work your way down to the actual wires. There is
still some of this cable in use in my house.

Bite the bullet, buy copper, save money on something else, you won't regret
it.


wrote in message
oups.com...
right up with gas another 30 cents a gallon increase:(

I will NEVER use alunimum house wiring, copper is a ONE TIME expense.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

" wrote:

I seriously doubt steel will get much use as guardrail sinve it
REQUIRES painting etc.

Or galvanizing.


--
Silly sig to prevent isp ad

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

I'm getting a little off topic
"EXT" wrote in message
anews.com...
Built my house in the early 1970s, for those who can remember that far
back,
was when aluminum was popular as an electrical wire because the price of
copper had skyrocketed. Even though I was on a tight budget, I paid the
price and installed only copper wire in the house. I cut corners to pay
for
copper by buying cheaper finishing items that could be easily replaced at
a
later date, and they were replaced.

That's kinda what I tell my customers building a house. Spend the extra
money on upgraded windows, not upgraded wall paper. Increase the efficinecy
of your heating and cooling system, don't install the granite countertop!

Good point.





Many years later, many remodels later, I
am still happy, safe and comfortable that some of the original wiring is
still in place and working properly.

Back then the NM cable had each wire paper wrapped over the insulation,
additional paper cords to fill out 3 wire cables to make them rounder,
then
a paper over wrap under a braided sheath which was soaked in tar then
painted orange. Finally they coated the cable in a wax material to make it
easier to pull through holes in the wood framing. It took time to strip
the
ends of the cable and to work your way down to the actual wires. There is
still some of this cable in use in my house.

Bite the bullet, buy copper, save money on something else, you won't
regret
it.


wrote in message
oups.com...
right up with gas another 30 cents a gallon increase:(

I will NEVER use alunimum house wiring, copper is a ONE TIME expense.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

An aluminum
guardrail wouldn't have much strength (unless very
thick) compared to steel. Maybe aluminum ones are
used for decoration. Guessing you guys live in
the east.

around pennsylvania rust is a major problem, coating guardrails only
helps till the coating is damaged by say someone scraping it.

road salt causaes much of the problem, i will try a magnet on some this
week.

i suppose they could spot weld the guardrails to the uprights to make
them more vandal resistant.

i took a bunch of scap in recently they now make a copy of your drivers
license, no doubt the poilce will be called if you take in guardrails
or light poles.

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message
...
wrote:
I seriously doubt steel will get much use as guardrail sinve it
REQUIRES painting etc.

Alunimuum is just set and forget till someone destroys it

Strange. I know signs are made of aluminum.
Never seen an aluminum guardrail. An aluminum
guardrail wouldn't have much strength (unless very
thick) compared to steel. Maybe aluminum ones are
used for decoration. Guessing you guys live in
the east.
Here in the rust belt, most highway guard rails are steel K-rail style.
Coated steel, heavily galvanized. They last okay. A formerly common name for
the was Armco rails, related, I presume, to the company that came up with a
coating method that works. Yeah, I do remember rusty rails from the old
days, but anything put up in last 20-30 years seems to be fine.

aem sends...

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

"EXT" wrote in message
anews.com...
Built my house in the early 1970s, for those who can remember that far
back,
(snip)
Back then the NM cable had each wire paper wrapped over the insulation,
additional paper cords to fill out 3 wire cables to make them rounder,
then
a paper over wrap under a braided sheath which was soaked in tar then
painted orange. Finally they coated the cable in a wax material to make it
easier to pull through holes in the wood framing. It took time to strip
the
ends of the cable and to work your way down to the actual wires. There is
still some of this cable in use in my house.

Bite the bullet, buy copper, save money on something else, you won't
regret
it.

Either you built that place earlier than you remember, or your supply house
gave you some real old stock. I was a gofer in my old man's construction
company in that era, and the romex we used was all plastic skin by 1966 when
my father built his dream house. My grandmother's 1961 house had the
multi-layer cloth stuff, as does the original part of the expanded 1960
cookie cutter I am sitting in now.

But to the question at hand- nothing but copper for household wiring and
potable water supply side. PVC is okay for drains. Haven't ever used PEX- I
understand it is popular in Europe- but it has a bad rep in this country
from the cheap crap they put in trailers, er, 'manufactured housing', for
several years.

aem sends...

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

On Sat, 08 Jul 2006 19:46:07 GMT, "ameijers"
wrote:


"EXT" wrote in message
tanews.com...
Built my house in the early 1970s, for those who can remember that far
back,
(snip)
Back then the NM cable had each wire paper wrapped over the insulation,
additional paper cords to fill out 3 wire cables to make them rounder,
then
a paper over wrap under a braided sheath which was soaked in tar then
painted orange. Finally they coated the cable in a wax material to make it
easier to pull through holes in the wood framing. It took time to strip
the
ends of the cable and to work your way down to the actual wires. There is
still some of this cable in use in my house.

Bite the bullet, buy copper, save money on something else, you won't
regret
it.

Either you built that place earlier than you remember, or your supply house
gave you some real old stock. I was a gofer in my old man's construction
company in that era, and the romex we used was all plastic skin by 1966 when
my father built his dream house. My grandmother's 1961 house had the
multi-layer cloth stuff, as does the original part of the expanded 1960
cookie cutter I am sitting in now.

But to the question at hand- nothing but copper for household wiring and
potable water supply side. PVC is okay for drains. Haven't ever used PEX- I
understand it is popular in Europe- but it has a bad rep in this country
from the cheap crap they put in trailers, er, 'manufactured housing', for
several years.

I believe you may have polybutylene and pex confused. Pex seems
totally different than PB.
I believe pex has around 30 years service in Europe. Many contractors
going with pex now as the "copper recyclers" will break out the
drywall to get the copper plumbing and wiring.
--
Mr.E

Goodbye Copper, Hello Pex and Aluminum
 

wrote in message
...
On Sat, 08 Jul 2006 19:46:07 GMT, "ameijers"
wrote:


(snip)

But to the question at hand- nothing but copper for household wiring and
potable water supply side. PVC is okay for drains. Haven't ever used PEX-
I
understand it is popular in Europe- but it has a bad rep in this country
from the cheap crap they put in trailers, er, 'manufactured housing', for
several years.

I believe you may have polybutylene and pex confused. Pex seems
totally different than PB.
I believe pex has around 30 years service in Europe. Many contractors
going with pex now as the "copper recyclers" will break out the
drywall to get the copper plumbing and wiring.
I do believe you are right- I drive a desk these days, and those old
acronyms run together in the mists of memory. I'm old fashioned- I like
copper.

aem sends...