AL Wire?

[Mark P]

This looks so shinny and new looking I'm wondering if it is NOT AL. Everything else in the box is copper. I could not trace the wire to read the sheathing. I could see no nicks exposing copper underneath.

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[dcheck]

Looks like aluminum to me !!

[Jim Morrison]

Definitely some AL wiring. You'll see that sometimes in older homes that were renovated in the late 60's/early 70's.

Nice work,

Jimmy

[hausdok]

Yep

OT - OF!!!

M.

[Mark P]

Okay - Thanks. Not sure why I was doubting myself. It is nice having folks to validate our findings when in doubt.

This is the 3rd time the house has been under contract and I was told that the house had already been inspected by two other local HI and everything on their reports was fixed, so I should not find any problems... The realtors will be sorry te see my report. I guess that is why the other guys are doing 3 houses a day and I'm not. I'm thinking they'll get sued out of biz sometime, but there still around.

[John Kogel]

Mark, the nick in the bare part of the Al wire is a potential hot spot , so that wire should be trimmed. (The sparky is not going to like laying on his gut in a crawlspace as much as you do - $$$).

If that is not the main disconnect for the house, those grounds should be separated from the neutrals, neutral buses isolated. OK only if that's the main(, in the USA). (Never OK in my country)

If that is the main, it is not properly accessible. $$$

The breaker at the top is backfeeding the panel. I think I see a screw holding it in place? It needs to have a screw holding it in place.

Tinned copper will have old-fashioned black rubber insulation. That was the primary reason for tinning it, to prevent corrosive action from the rubber on the copper, I think. What Jim said, any older vintage house can have had Al wiring added during a 70's reno. Only a circuit or two, I would call for replacing it $$$. You were right about the realtor. []

[Mark P]

Thanks John, it is the main.