How You Can Keep Your Family Safe From The Dangers Of Aluminum Wiring Without Ripping Out Your Walls ... I'll also show you how to fix it without investing a truckload of cash doing it.
If your home was constructed during the late sixties to the mid seventies, there is a likelihood that aluminum circuitry was utilized instead of copper for its electrical circuits. Aluminum was utilized since there was a scarcity of copper due to the Vietnam War.
However, gradually, problem emerged - specifically ... homes were burning down with the aluminum connections to gadgets - outlets and switches - as the cause. As a matter of truth, research conducted by Franklin Research Institute for Consumer Item Safety Commission (CPSC) exposed that houses built with aluminum wiring are 55 times more likely to catch fire than houses wired with copper. There is nothing wrong with the aluminum itself. It is an excellent conductor and less costly than copper. The issues arise since aluminum expands and contracts far faster than copper when used. This can trigger a loose connection, creating gaps that can cause stimulating and fire. Intensifying the problem further is the truth that aluminum almost immediately begins to oxidize the minute it is exposed to the oxygen in our air. This response forms an oxide finishing on the wire similar to rust kinds on iron.
This oxide reduces the ability for the wire to conduct electrical energy resulting in much more heat. Eventually, it can end up being hot adequate to melt or burn fixtures - such as wall outlets and changes - where the exposed aluminum touches with the brass connections. So the problem is the exposed aluminum around the connections - and the connections themselves. When deemed to be risky in 1974, aluminum circuitry was all but discontinued in house applications. Regrettably, it was far too late for the houses already set up with it.
If your home is fitted with aluminum electrical wiring, you can be dealing with other issues aside from the apparent risk of fire. Some insurer will not insure homes with aluminum wiring unless it is upgraded to present day electrical code. This can cause unforeseen and undesirable financial commitments if you were trying to offer your house or get your remodellings passed by a government inspector. In addition, if your insurance company finds that a fire in your house was triggered by aluminum electrical wiring connections, they may reject your claim for financial compensation. Now there are numerous services to this bad situation, but the first thing you have to do is determine if you have aluminum circuitry to start with. You can get an electrical contractor managed by a master electrical contractor to take a look at it for you.
But the simplest way to do this is to look at the printed or embossed markings on the external coat of the electric electrical wiring, which are visible in unfinished walls or ceilings in basements, attics, or garages. Cable with aluminum conductors will have "Al" or "Aluminum" and other details marked on one side of the cable television coat every few feet along its length. If for whatever factor, you can not see any circuitry, then there is another, albeit a bit more involved method of checking.
Here are the 3 basic actions:
Action 1 - plug a hair clothes dryer or light into any wall outlet, turn it on and leave it on.
Action 2 - go to your circuit panel and journey (turn off) the breaker representing that outlet. You'll know you have the ideal breaker when your hair clothes dryer or light is off when you inspect back on it.
Step 3 - unplug the device and eliminate the outlet from the wall and examine the wiring connected to it. DO NOT DETACH THE CIRCUITRY. You can make the connection worse if you do.
You must be able to see the bare wire below the screws. It is easy to acknowledge aluminum because of its colour. If you an orange color, this is copper. However, if the exposed wire underneath the screws is white, it is aluminum. Got it?
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