Preparing copper wire to sell for scrap
Does anyone know a way (not burning! terrible air pollution!) to get all the insulation of copper wire in bulk form? I’m wondering about heavy stiff stuff as well as lighter romex.
I recently sold a pile of such stuff at #2 copper scrap price to a recycle outfit. They must somehow get the insulation off to effectively turn it into #1 copper scrap. Wonder if there was a way for an individual to do that?
Replies
They use commercial choppers and strippers and separators. Some of the smaller machines may be 'affordable'.
Google is your friend. Here's a hand-cranked unit:http://wirestrippermachine.com/index.html
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Thanks. I call them.
heavy stiff stuff
how heavy? #2 or bigger, drill a hole just bigger than the copper size in a 1/2" steel plate, clamp the plate in the 6" zvise on you truck tailgate. Strip a foot or so from the heavy wire and splice with wire clips to a short cable or chain. Roll the cable out straightr on the ground.
Hook that to the hitch on your other truck and drive away. Put the old insulation in pvc recycling. If PE, it actually does burn clean, and #1 bright brings more $$ that oxidized Cu.
If I were you, I'd just save the wire till the price quadruples again, or use the stripped stuff for crounding conductors.
Thanks for the suggestion! I was originally going to just save it, but it began to be a storage problem.
if it's big enough and long enough...then it will bring more as wire than scrap... and you don't have to strip it... there is usually a electric supply house in most areas that sells used breakers... used equipment ect... they will usually pay 10-20% more than scrap for good usable large wire... new copper wire usually COSTS them about 250% of scrap... so your used wire will make them more profit and they can still sell it under market price... the place i deal with... will sell you a 4ft "scrap" if thats what you need to build a service or something... you might have to buy a 4ft'6" scrap when you really only needed 4ft but when it's 500mcm that "scrap" still ain't cheap
P
My son is an elect contractor and he bought a harbor freighy bead roller and i machined 2 of the rollers to make them flat no beads or offsets. He powered it with and elect motor. It's adjustable for space between the rollers . running the wire thru smashes it ant the insulation comes off easily.
Please do not post any information on this subject. Taunton should remove this thread.
I don't want the criminals who steal wire to have any more incentive to steal my wire. I realize that there may be legitimate reasons to sell scrap wire but stolen wire sold for scrap is a crisis now. The value of scrap is trivial compared to the damage stolen copper causes.
Eric
Really.... anyone who has had the wire cut out of one of their houses knows this pain... As far as I'm concerned the only one who should have scrap copper wire is an electrician and he doesn't need any info on now to remove insuation.
My son-in-law works with electricians. (he's a low voltage tech, does computerhook ups stereo, and burglary systems) Most simply leave their scrap copper wire laying around. He's trying to get ahead and save for a down payment so any scraps that he can find he strips at home at night watching TV.
He'd appreciate knowing about these strippers..
The benefits to people selling copper properly do not come close to the costs borne to society from stolen copper. Your honest son in law is the legitimate face of a crooked industry.
I'm sorry if I sound bitter but my personal damages from stolen wire are extreme. Expensive (and repeated!) replacements where $2000 worth of wire is fenced for $20 are just part of it. The dry lake and lost property sale resulting from the damage cost me $1,000,000. And the local power company is hurt even more - and passes the bills on to us in higher rates. The copper salvage industry needs significant overhaul - and easy exchange of information on how to launder stolen wire is not a good step.
I do not imply in any way that your son in law or others on this board are thieves. But some bad people will search this board for information. Hopefully there is not too much good information already posted.
Eric
Anybody with an IQ over 80 who steals wire in the first place probably knows enough and cares nothing about burning it off at night, which is the easiest way and keeps one warm while snorting their crack.
PS: I have personally had over $1K of motors and a big Aluminum housing pump stolen, but think the OP had a valid question, especially as posted.
PS2: WA state stolen metals dropped dramatically when scrap dealers were required to record the photo and drivers liscense of scrap sellers, even of old car bodies. Lobby your state legislator.
in Tn we always had the ID take a picture of the seller and record the sale... even required the scrap people to keep each lot seperate for 7 days... none of this helped... UNTIl they changed to law where they now must MAIL you a check for copper... and if it's AC copper you must show your epa lic. ... this and the drop in price slowed it alot...
think i've only lost 4-500k worth in the last 5 years... fun be'n me
:)P
People with legitimate needs to dispose of scrap copper should be encouraged.. the trouble is the police don't feel there is any reward for catching those crooks who steal from houses and construction sites..
They would rather patrol a road and write speeding tickets (or sit in coffee shops and eat doughnuts)..
Maybe the problem is we don't have enough police or the police are too lazy etc..
Have you done enough to motivate the police to seek the criminals involved or did you just turn it over to your insurance company and shrug your shoulders?
I recycle household waste regularly (maybe I am a bit green?). None of the people at the recycling center I see fit the profile of working electricians getting rid of excess trimmings. Especially with burnt wire. The problem is real.
Copper recycling must not be a cottage industry. Strict controls on sellers and sources must be in place. Yes, this will hurt a few honest go getters. But the benefits to society far outweigh the losses to those few.
The original post seemed innocent enough but the information is dangerous. Explosives are used commonly in construction but bomb making information is properly restricted. Copper theft is ground zero in damage to the security of our property.
I had no insurance. Real purchase prospects were chased away - and with dry lakes it is difficult to sell. Power is restored to the property but the long wire run and pumps are not replaced. The IID copper theft inspector was invited to hunt on the property and he is there often. Between all that and the dropping price of copper I haven't had the power wires stolen in the last few months.
Major redesign with alarm systems will acompany the new wire and pumps. This will probably cost far more than the truly legitimate recyclers in my area make. The copper recycling industry is not good for society as it stands now. I'm not sure I should post anymore as it bumps this thread.
Eric
It is big problem every where! When I legitimately demolish a house. I keep the copper, doors etc.
But I was stunned as two huge cables reels, sat untouched for about 6 months on a trailer about 5 miles down the road from me. I almost bet $ with my friend to see which holiday weekend they would go missing.
A friend of mine who is and Electronical engineer, works for the local utility, said they are trying to find a way to id copper wire.Up here in Sask Canada the local scrap buyers will not buy burnt wire. If they want they can report you to Enviornment Dept.
Edited 4/22/2009 7:12 pm ET by Shoemaker1
I've only recycled copper once when it was at it's peak I sold all the scrap copper I had.. bit of a line and I had plenty of chances to look at those in line with me..
While some weren't exactly dressed well the odds and ends most presented couldn't have come from stealing.. I was probably the most suspicious but like all others I showed my drivers license when I was handed my cash they took pictures of it and me and then counted out the money..
Seems if someone stole rolls of wire etc.. somebody would have a record of it here..
Per man hour spent, tickets are a better return on investment.
Very few copper thiefs have any money to pay fines.
Jail time also cost the system money.
The purpose of the police department isn't to make a profit, it's to stop crime..
while crime is a relative thing, damage done in the case given of a million dollars makes it worthy of some serious investigation.. Police don't investigate anymore they react..
It's extremely easy for a cop to sit waiting for his alarm to go off and then go write a ticket. IT take intelligence dilegence and foretitude to do the investigating..
COPS ARE COPS BECAUSE THEY ARE LAZY.. BULLIES
Edited 4/23/2009 8:19 am ET by frenchy
I'm a C-10 in Sacramento, CA. Up here, the metals companies that buy scrap copper are required by law to:
--take a thumbprint from the seller;
--take a photograph of the seller;
--delay payment for three days if buying from a private party (not so when buying from a licensed business). Checks for payment must be mailed to a residence or business address, not a PO box or PMB.
I don't know whether anyone is using this info to compare copper wire sold with copper wire stolen. Unless wire is somehow marked with a fingerprint or tag, I think it'd be hard to trace it. And hard to prove someone stole it even if it could be traced.
Anyway, I don't know whether this is a state law or a local one. Seems that it'd make sense for it to be statewide, or you'd have theives selling copper in the counties that con't have such requirements. The guy at the metals company said that when the requirements kicked in, the amount of copper wire turned in by "scavengers" dropped significantly.
Cliff