Stripped vs. Insulated Copper Wire – What does it cost you?

When you open any shed, garage, or old toolbox, you may find a heap of cables. Extension leads, old appliance cords, old bits and bobs from a renovation, old bits and bobs from an electrician's visit. Each contains copper, one of the most valuable common metals to recycle. The dilemma is, do you sit and pull all that wire out before you sell it, or do you take it in as is? This is not the same for all cables. In this article by Divine Metal Recycling, they discuss how cables are treated, when it's worth stripping copper wire, and when it's just a weekend activity.

Why copper wire is worth recycling.

Copper is valued for its excellent electrical conductivity and is used to make electrical wires for homes, appliances, vehicles, and tools. It is also highly recyclable. Copper can be melted down and reused again and again without losing its useful properties, and recycled copper goes back into new products.

For you, it's not garbage. It's a product with constant demand, and recyclers are always looking for it. The problem is how to get it in front of them in a way that they're satisfied with the outcome for all the work.

The copper wire that is stripped.

Copper wire without plastic or rubber coating around it is stripped copper wire. Recyclers buy it as bare copper and sort it by cleanliness and thickness. Bright, shiny, clean wire gets the best price; dull, tarnished, soldered, or mixed wire gets less guesswork. Tison's law: If it looks bad, it is bad. The scale reading is the weight of the copper, and a recycler can read it immediately.

What is Insulated Copper Wire?

Insulated copper wire is wire with a coating. Recyclers need to determine the amount of copper and plastic. Recyclers use cable machines to chop or granulate the cable, separating the copper from the insulation.

Insulated wire is cheaper per kg than clean bare copper because the weight is plastic, not metal. This is because you are selling less copper per kilogram. The recycler isn't giving you a bad price for wire.

Why Weight Is Not All the Same

This is where many people go awry. Suppose two lengths of cable are placed on the scale and have the same mass. One is thick and has heavy copper conductors. The other is a strand of thin phone chargers and lamp extensions. This thick cable may be made nearly all of copper, and these thin cables may be made almost all from plastic. After recooping the copper, the thick cable yields much more metal for the same starting weight.

This is the reason why it is essential to choose between stripped and insulated. The thicker the copper conductor you coat, the better the cable is, whether it is stripped or not. Thin cables have more insulation and less copper inside, so they're easy to strip.

When Stripping Is Worth the Effort

For a good amount of heavy single-core or multi-core cable, stripping is a good idea. You can get a lot of copper in a meter of large cable, such as heavy power cable, and a good stripping tool can remove it quickly. The additional value of selling it as clean bare copper may be substantial if you have a lot of it.

If you are patient, have the right tools, and can keep the copper clean and free of nicks and contamination, it also makes sense. Consider it as an hourly fee. If an hour of stripping gives you a valuable amount of extra copper, it's a worthy use of time. If an hour provides you with a few thin strands, it is not.

When It's Time To Pack It Up

Thin cable, small appliance cords, phone and data cords, and any product with thin conductors should typically be sold insulated. The total amount of copper per meter is small, and hand stripping would take an extremely long time to gain only a very small amount. You also risk cutting through strands and ruining the copper, compromising its quality.

It also saves you the hassle of cleaning up after you leave it uninsulated. Stripping creates many plastic offcuts that must be disposed of safely. When you have a mix of small cords, it is best to head to the yard as-is and let the gear do the work.

Fire can not be used to clean the insulation.

Some consider the fast route to the copper to be to set the plastic on fire. Don't do this. Insulation smoke is toxic to you, your neighbors, and the environment, and many locations limit or ban burning waste. It also negatively affects the copper, causing blackening and oxidation, which typically lowers the copper grade and value. Using the right tool to cut the insulation off is safer, cleaner, and yields a better result.

How to find out what you really are looking for.

Not all cables that look like copper are made of copper. Real copper has a reddish-orange color, isn't magnetic, and is fairly soft. Some cables use aluminum conductors, and others use aluminum coated with a thin layer of copper. A simple scratch test assists. Gently scrape the conductor and look for silver inside; if you find it, it's not solid copper. In addition, aluminum is easily visible as a lighter, more comfortable hand piece.

You may also come across tinned copper, which has a silver-coloured coating over the copper. It's still copper, but possibly a different grade than bright bare wire. If you're not sure what it is, bring a sample and ask the team at Divine Metal Recycling. Better to check than to guess.

Sorting and Preparing Your Wire

It's a good idea to prepare a little before going out. Separate your wire into groups: clean, stripped copper; heavy insulated cable; thin insulated cords; and anything mixed with other materials. Remove plugs, connectors, and fittings that aren't copper, as they can reduce the grade if mixed with copper plugs. Never let the wire get wet or dirty, and never mix copper cable with aluminum cable. When the wire is bundled, it is easier to carry and assess.

Safety and Doing the Right Thing

Recycle only wire that is your wire or wire that you are permitted to sell. Avoid touching any cable which may be energized, and ask an electrician to disconnect and unplug any cables from walls or switchboards. Cable from electrical, telecommunications, rail, or street lighting structures is not for your sale. It is a form of theft and is life-threatening. Honest sellers will be asked to provide ID, source information, etc. by reputable recyclers.

But which pays more?

It's best to sell stripped copper cheaply, since you're selling pure copper. However, the ultimate winner depends on the cable. Remove it when it is heavy, abundant, and easy to access. When thin, tangled (or small in number), leave it insulated. If you have any questions, divide your pile in half. Remove the thick cable that is worth something and then bring the remainder as is. If you need guidance, reach out to Divine Metal Recycling, and we will help.

FAQs