Are #2 conductors worth any money?


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Old 08-30-15, 03:39 PM
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Are #2 conductors worth any money?

There is an abandoned 2" metal conduit in my attic.

One end of it ends right above my panel. It is a 2" rigid conduit, with threads on the ends. Inside this conduit are three #2 conductors. The panel is being fed by another 2" PVC conduit from the outside meter.

So along the way, years ago they ran this metal conduit, then abandoned it for some reason.

I tried pulling on these conductors and they won't move. It's stuck.

I was in the attic doing other things and out of curiosity I put a flash light on the spot where the other end of this metal conduit ends, I can see it but can't reach it because the attic is dusty and it's an A frame roof and one has to basically crawl to that spot near the edge. I can see the other end of the conductors sticking out of the conduit but someone made a U shaped bent on them so they won't pull out on the other end.

I can try and crawl to that spot to straighten out the conductors and salvage them, but are they worth the effort? Basically three #2 copper conductors stranded about 45' long each. Will it buy a six pack of beers?
 
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Old 08-30-15, 03:43 PM
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120' of scrapped #2 will buy a case of beer...... maybe a keg if you strip it.

Weight: 0.254 lbs per ft including insulation. 120 x .254 = 30 lbs.
 
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Old 08-30-15, 03:48 PM
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Sometimes the scrap business can be lucrative. Other times, it's a lot of work for a small reward, especially when it's cast iron.
 
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Old 08-30-15, 03:52 PM
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I would think with the amount of use in new autos..... especially Ford p/u's..... that the price of aluminum would climb. It hasn't. Almost not worth scrapping in small amounts.
 
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Old 08-30-15, 04:06 PM
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I received about 30 cents a pound for clean aluminum from a local recycling company last July. A larger company may give you more or may discount for a smaller quantity. Of course you will have to deduct the value of your time spent in stripping off the insulation as well as the cost of taking it to the scrap yard.
 
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Old 08-30-15, 04:21 PM
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I"ll play with scrap if I don't have any other work. Some people do it all the time.
 
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Old 08-30-15, 06:51 PM
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I would think with the amount of use in new autos..... especially Ford p/u's.....
I am saving up aluminum for a new truck now!
 
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Old 08-30-15, 10:26 PM
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Good luck Joe.

You'll look real good in a 2029 Ford BF-150 pickup sportster.
 
 

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