Extension cords

Hi my yard buys extension cords as #3 if I took the outer jacket off and just had the 3 wires inside would I get #2 or #1 insulated or will it still be #3? I don't wanna start and then have it just be num 3 still. The wires inside will be 16awg to 12awg. I know to keep thhn sperate. Another question does the wires inside extension cords become thhn? Thanks.

Originally Posted by CopperMiner

If you remove the outer jacket, it should be insulated wire #2. If they still see it as #3, I would keep it and sell it elsewhere.

I should make a little more I think num 2 is still going for .70 thanks. I no they count thhn as num 1 insulated so I might get lucky and give me num 1 insulated maybe I'm not sure they do like me so that will help possibly.

Oh on another note strip meister does not like stripping thhn they need a smaller hole for it. I'm not even going to try 16awg I tried to do thhn 12awg funny it does solid 12awg from romex just fine it doesn't slip with that I'm not sure why .

Originally Posted by hills

I think i would run the numbers to see if it's worth doing.

Weigh up 5 lbs. of extension cords and figure out what you would get for them un-stripped.

Next .... strip them out and see what the wire inside is worth.

I'm thinking it might not be worth the extra time & effort. My guess is that they're paying you for the copper that's inside.
You don't gain any more copper by stripping the outer jacket off an extension cord.

Agreed, i say sell as is and get paid for the jacket weight instead getting nothing for it by tossing it in the trash and focus on finding / breaking down higher quality scrap.

I'll try the 5 lb experiment and post results.

Originally Posted by CopperMiner

By the way, are your extension cords in very bad condition? If they're salvageable, try to resell them. Plausible to get more money that way. Brand new ones costs an arm and a leg.

The 10 ga. & 12 ga. extension cords do get my attention because they are so expensive to buy new. The cheapo 16 ga. & 18 ga. cords aren't worth bothering with.

You've got to be really careful though. A cord can look perfectly fine on the outside and have rotten wires inside. I've seen that on more than a few occasions. You can use a ohm meter to check the wires inside for continuity but there's no way to check and see if the cord's amperage carrying capacity is still what it is rated for.

When in doubt .... scrap it out.

Originally Posted by CopperMiner

By the way, are your extension cords in very bad condition? If they're salvageable, try to resell them. Plausible to get more money that way. Brand new ones costs an arm and a leg.

I once sold a cast iron pan for 10$ I found in a stove I scrapped haha. Don't know about selling extention cords though.

Originally Posted by mike1

I'll try the 5 lb experiment and post results.

You don't need to strip 5 #, you can just strip a foot, use a postal scale that measures in grams to get your recovery percentage.

Oh ok. Extension cords now go as num 2 insulated for 1$ a pound I don't strip any wire that's not 14awg and lower by lower I mean 12 ,10 and so on I don't strip 16awg and above.

Originally Posted by CopperMiner

By the way, are your extension cords in very bad condition? If they're salvageable, try to resell them. Plausible to get more money that way. Brand new ones costs an arm and a leg.

I have sold them. They are a bit of a hard sell. They will sit on the shelf a while, but I still find it hard to throw a 50ft 12 AWG cord into the scrap bin.

Originally Posted by t00nces2

I have sold them. They are a bit of a hard sell. They will sit on the shelf a while, but I still find it hard to throw a 50ft 12 AWG cord into the scrap bin.

Most I have seen are what people have called cheap 16 and 18awg cords haha.