Aluminum wire is most often used in electrical jobs. In recent years, it has been cheaper than using copper wire and its conductivity is fairly good, although not quite as good as copper. Electricians like it because it is easy to work with. The flexibility and lower price tag are an added bonus. Aluminum wire metal typically comes in 2 forms – insulated and bare. It can take some time to acquire and accumulate a large volume of aluminum wire, however, once you have, it can be pay off at the scale when you bring it to our Jacksonville FL scrap yard.
Aluminum wire is shiny and very easy to bend and flex as compared to steel wire, which is stronger. Some types of aluminum wire have steel running through the middle of the strands of aluminum. You can check your wire with a magnet to determine if it has steel in it or if it’s all-aluminum. If you bring it to the Jacksonville metal recycling yard with the steel wire running through it, it’s considered aluminum and will be priced as such. You can, however, take the time to strip the steel from the aluminum and separate it out and the steel can be scrapped separately. To prepare aluminum all other metals including different kinds of aluminum attachments must be removed. Insulated wires need to be separated from each other and put in separate containers for the best price.
Why Do We Buy Aluminum Wire?
Aluminum is one of the most recycled materials and the process is very easy to recycle. The recycling industry has had a process for recycling this material for a long time. Making recycled aluminum only takes around 5% of the energy needed to make new aluminum so it’s a big money saver to recycle aluminum rather than make new aluminum. Recycled aluminum makes up 80% of U.S. aluminum production, as of 2022, according to Alumnium.org.
How To Prepare Aluminum Wire
How you prepare the aluminum wire depends on what the aluminum wire is. Bare, clean aluminum wire is worth more than steel-reinforced or insulated wire. If it’s insulated, you may want to strip it. If it’s got steel in one of the wire tubes, then you probably would want to remove the steel, because, with the steel inside of it, it’s not worth as much as bare aluminum. You should just pile it up and separate it according to the type of wire that it is. Once you have about 50 pounds or so, it’s worth it to bring it to us, Jacksonville Scrap Yard.
Insulated Aluminum Wire VS. Bare Aluminum Wire
Bare aluminum wire will bring significantly more amount of money than insulated aluminum wire. It is to your benefit if you spend some time stripping it prior to bringing it to the yard. It is easy to do if you have a stripper. It’s best to wait until you have at least 50 pounds of aluminum wire before you strip it all at once, or begin to sort it out if it has steel running through it. Scrap yards will accept smaller amounts of aluminum wire, however, they’ll be more apt to pay you a higher price if you have a lot of it and if it is pre-sorted and pre-stripped. This way you get the most for your money. You should never burn insulated aluminum wire to strip it. It is a fire hazard to do that.
Neoprene Wire
Neoprene is a material that is often used to insulate an aluminum wire. It can show in a variety of sizes. The amount of aluminum inside of the neoprene is what really matters. Some thin wires are not really going to give you a large buck for the amount of time you’ll spend stripping it. It’s up to you to decide if the money/time cost makes sense to you.
ACSR – Aluminum Conduct Steel Enforced
This looks like aluminum wire in its bare form, however, it’s not. It has steel running through the aluminum wires. Usually, the steel is only in one or a few. Spread the aluminum wires apart and check them with a magnet. You’ll probably find one steel reinforced wire that has steel within it. Pro-tip, don’t use a typical wire cutter to try and cut the ACSR wires. It has steel in them and it will mess up your wire cutters.
EC Wire
This type of aluminum wire is worth more than the others. It is not going to be magnetic at all. It looks a lot like bare aluminum wire. It comes in different widths. This is what is used for electrical conducting. It sometimes is also referred to as Aluminum 1350.
Jax Scrap Metal Recycling buys all different types of metal. Our Jacksonville FL scrap yard is the top choice for those seeking the highest dollar amount of their scrap. We’d love to serve you.