aluminum wire expands and contracts with heat. copper is more stable. unfortunately you have aluminum. in a device connection, its not an issue. just make sure that your connection is secure, by pulling on the individual wires of the connection to be sure the wire doesn't pull apart. what you should check is the screws that hold your aluminum wire at the source, make sure those connections are tight. a loose connection will generate excessive heat.heat will melt metal, plastic, and cook body parts.make sure you are not grounded when you touch the source. I know of no electrician who would use aluminum wire in any application except a service entrance. I used copper on my own houses. Yes. You need special Al or AlCu devices for aluminum. Remeber aluminum reacts with copper so you can't connect aluminum to copper. Idontreallycare - Aluminum wiring was used in houses built in the 60s when there was a shortage of copper due to the Vietnam War. It is no longer used in new construction, but still exists in old houses
aluminum wire violates code for any use anywhere in US. If this is true, why would aluminum wire be sold? I know it is used for service entrance.
Almost all circuit breakers are rated for copper (cu) or aluminum (al), there is a label on every breaker made, as long as it has the (al) marking it is suitable for use with aluminum wire
Yes, you can use an aluminum wire. Aluminum does conduct electricity. However, there is a well-known problem with aluminum wire. When exposed to air, the outer layer of aluminum forms a non-conductive oxide. There is resistance to the flow of electricity as it attempts to get through the aluminum oxide coating to the conductive aluminum below. When aluminum wire is used to reduce weight, it is usually welded to another metal that makes a better contact, such as copper. The contact metal is then what is connected.
Splice a new green wire to extend it, using the same size gauge of wire. Do not use wire nuts, use a proper electrical connector with grub-screws which can be securely tightened-up. As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.Before you do any work yourself,on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOBSAFELY AND COMPETENTLYREFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
Don't worry about it some fixtures have no ground terminals. just shove the groung wire to the back of the box. Correction, if the fixture is metal and it shorts out, the metal surrounding the fixture could become electrified. That's why fixtures today are normally grounded to their mounting plates and then the lead is attached to the incoming romex. In the past, attaching these plates to metal boxes (either grounded by an incoming wire or grounded to the BX cable) eliminated the need for a ground wire. If the hot wire hit or shorted to the fixture, it would blow a fuse or circuit breaker. Many electrocutions and fires later, the folks at Underwriters realized that even that method of grounding wasn't sufficent (the old aluminum boxes and bx cables were crappy conductors. Solution; (and I practice what I preach because I remodel many old homes) get a little creative and spend the extra time to wrap a little ground wire to a mounting screw, or piece of metal, on the mounting plate of the fixture and then attach it to your incoming romex ground. On an old fixture, it could mean the difference between a fire and a tripped circuit breaker. If you have any metal boxes, old or new, ground to those too. <><><> Connect a pigtail to the metal canopy, and use a wire nut to connect the safety ground to it.
aluminum wire violates code for any use anywhere in US. If this is true, why would aluminum wire be sold? I know it is used for service entrance.
copper plated aluminum wire
Don't use aluminum wire inside the house.
The type of wire you are looking for is called lamp cord. It comes in different colours usually to match the fixture. Fixtures hanging from chains use a clear insulation so as to blend in with the fixture chain colour. Remember that the smooth wire of the lamp cord connects to the hot wire and the ribbed wire on the lamp cord connects to the neutral wire in the ceiling junction box.
Almost all circuit breakers are rated for copper (cu) or aluminum (al), there is a label on every breaker made, as long as it has the (al) marking it is suitable for use with aluminum wire
If you don't have the wire then you just can't ground it. This should not be too much of a problem. Most light fixtures are not grounded and some don't even have ground wires.
Yes, you can use an aluminum wire. Aluminum does conduct electricity. However, there is a well-known problem with aluminum wire. When exposed to air, the outer layer of aluminum forms a non-conductive oxide. There is resistance to the flow of electricity as it attempts to get through the aluminum oxide coating to the conductive aluminum below. When aluminum wire is used to reduce weight, it is usually welded to another metal that makes a better contact, such as copper. The contact metal is then what is connected.
Splice a new green wire to extend it, using the same size gauge of wire. Do not use wire nuts, use a proper electrical connector with grub-screws which can be securely tightened-up. As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.Before you do any work yourself,on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOBSAFELY AND COMPETENTLYREFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
Don't worry about it some fixtures have no ground terminals. just shove the groung wire to the back of the box. Correction, if the fixture is metal and it shorts out, the metal surrounding the fixture could become electrified. That's why fixtures today are normally grounded to their mounting plates and then the lead is attached to the incoming romex. In the past, attaching these plates to metal boxes (either grounded by an incoming wire or grounded to the BX cable) eliminated the need for a ground wire. If the hot wire hit or shorted to the fixture, it would blow a fuse or circuit breaker. Many electrocutions and fires later, the folks at Underwriters realized that even that method of grounding wasn't sufficent (the old aluminum boxes and bx cables were crappy conductors. Solution; (and I practice what I preach because I remodel many old homes) get a little creative and spend the extra time to wrap a little ground wire to a mounting screw, or piece of metal, on the mounting plate of the fixture and then attach it to your incoming romex ground. On an old fixture, it could mean the difference between a fire and a tripped circuit breaker. If you have any metal boxes, old or new, ground to those too. <><><> Connect a pigtail to the metal canopy, and use a wire nut to connect the safety ground to it.
No. Most large services use aluminum wire to keep the overall costs of the installation down.
Yes, contained within the fixture body is a transformer that boosts the voltage to the required value that is needed to ignite the lamp starter.
A 100 amp service requires that you use AWG 4 copper wire or AWG 2 aluminum wire.