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ALUMINUM WIRING HAZARDS & REPAIRS
ALUMINUM WIRE RISK
HOW TO RECOGNIZE ALUMINUM WIRING
HOW TO REDUCE THE RISK
REPAIR ELECTRICIANS
OTHER REPAIR PRODUCTS
COALR & CU-AL DEVICES
DETAILED EXPLANATION
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Photograph of this overheating and improperly-made aluminum to copper pigtail splice.

How to Reduce the Risk of Aluminum Wiring
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  • How to reduce the risks associated with aluminum electrical wiring
  • Aluminum wire repair method details and aluminum wire repair products are described here
  • Aluminum to copper pigtailing & aluminum to aluminum wire splices are here
  • This website answers nearly all questions about aluminum wiring inspection, hazards, repairs
Photos above show an infra-red photo of an overheating aluminum wiring connection at an improper aluminum-to-copper "pigtail" splice (courtesy of G. Cohen). Aluminum wire connections can overheat enough to start a fire without ever drawing enough current to trip a circuit breaker, and improper repairs can increase the hazard. © Copyright 2008 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use the links at page left to navigate this document or to go to Other Website Topics. Green links at left show where you are in our document & website.
Our site offers impartial, unbiased advice without conflicts of interest. We will block advertisements which we discover or readers inform us are associated with bad business practices, false-advertising, or junk science. Our contact info is at inspect-ny.com/appointment.htm.

HOW TO REDUCE THE RISK of Fire and Electrical Circuit Connector Overheating in Buildings with Aluminum Electrical Wiring

Immediate Actions for Safety of Aluminum Wiring

  • See if you have aluminum wiring (solid conductor branch circuit) installed in your home. Aluminum wiring identification tips are provided at How to Recognize Aluminum Wiring

  • Look for signs of aluminum wiring failure, such as flickering lights, turn off the circuit involved and call a licensed electrician. See U.S. CPSC 516 (linked-to below) for other trouble signs.

  • Install smoke detectors at locations recommended by your local building officials or fire department. Sample smoke detector locations are also provided on instructions that come with the smoke detector.

Repair the Aluminum Wiring to Reduce the Hazards

Once the initial steps above have been addressed:

  • Re-wire the Building replacing all aluminum branch circuit wiring with copper, as a "best repair method" for aluminum wiring, OR as a next-best aluminum wiring repair method,
  • Photo of the AMP COPALUM aluminum wiring connector recommended by the US CPSC COPALUM Copper-to-Aluminum Pigtailing Use the special AMP (now TYCO) COPALUM connector and special tool to connect short copper wires to every aluminum wire end in the Building, reconnecting the copper to the various devices (outlets, switches, lights) and splices. This "copper pigtailing" procedure is performed by an electrician trained and licensed by AMP or TYCO to use this COPALUM procedure.
    The TYCO COPALUM connector method is described is described at PIGTAILING USING AMP "COPALUM" CONNECTORS. Typically this approach costs about half that of completely re-wiring a home with copper.
    COPALUM Aluminum Wire Connector Availability discusses how to get these aluminum wire connectors

Currently only these two remedies above have been formally recommended by the CPSC. Other aluminum wiring repair connector products have been sold by various manufacturers, some with good performance and some unacceptable. Descriptions are below. Emergency temporary repairs necessary to keep an essential circuit in service might be possible following other procedures described by the CPSC or by industry experts.

  • Photo of the AlumiConn aluminum wire lug connector sold by King Innovations AlumiConn TM aluminum to copper lug connectors [New in 2006, U.L. Listed, 2007 completed independent testing] available from King Innovation. Results of independent testing indicate that this product "... is predicted to have a high probability of failure-free long-term safe performance, PROVIDED THAT THE SETSCREWS ARE CAREFULLY TIGHTENED TO THE MANUFACTURER'S RECOMMENDATION". Reference: details of the study and recommendations are on page #6 (the 9th page in the .pdf file) in Dr. J.A. Aronstein's .PDF document version of "Reducing the Fire Hazards in Aluminum Wired Homes" May 21, 2007. The test results are completed and will be published in September 2007. (100 connectors cost $285. Lower prices for larger quantities.)

    Technical note on binding and poor wire connections in aluminum terminal blocks: In larger-sized electrical wire connector applications such as electrical panel buses (not this product), we have seen aluminum-block connection failures occur when the steel screw bound in the aluminum block, appearing to be a tight connection before proper contact with the wire has been made.

Mr. King informs us that they have addressed this concern by plating the screws in nickel and plating the lug block in tin, thus eliminating the galling found in other lugs. Also there is a very small gap at the back of the wire terminal block where the installer can see the wire (coated in sealant) coming through. This provides visual confirmation that the wires came all the way through.

Finally, King always recommends that installers to check the connection security by giving a quick tug on the wires to make sure they are tight. This UL-listed connector has not been recommended, nor recommended against, by the US CPSC.

Aluminum to aluminum wire splices also need to be repaired in an aluminum-wired home. The various "copper pigtailing" methods discussed in articles on aluminum wire repairs (at aluminum-wired devices such as electrical receptacles, switches, and lights) are not the best approach when repairing aluminum-to-aluminum wire splices such as at a junction box in a building (where several aluminum-wire circuits or wires are joined together). For the aluminum wire to aluminum wire connector case,

For the small aluminum wire sizes such as found in building branch circuit wiring for lighting and receptacles, the AlumiConnTM is probably the best choice.

For larger aluminum wire sizes sizes (stranded aluminum wiring such as found at air conditioning compressor circuits, electric range circuits, clothes dryer circuits and other high-amp devices), any of the (UL listed for Aluminum) setscrew type connectors in combination with the inhibitor/abrasion installation technique should suffice.

Since we've seen frequent field reports of overheating at multi-strand high-amp aluminum wired devices such as air conditioning compressors, it is important to address these cases by proper repair methods. [Note: some air conditioning equipment manufacturers currently recommend use of only copper wiring to feed their equipment - DJF June 2007]

  • Photo of the 3M Scotchlok wiring connector which can be used for aluminum wiring repairs, has tested successfully but has not been recommended by the US CPSC Scotchlok 3M Special Method [- superceded by new alternate repair as of June 2007 -]: this ""Scotchlok 3M Special Method was previously recommended as independent tests showed that it performed acceptably. While this repair method has been superceded by new alternate repair as of June 2007, we have kept this description available to aid home buyers, electricians and home inspectors who may discover or need to be able to recognize this aluminum wire repair method if it was previously used in the building. A summary of this method is at "Scotchlok 3M connector" and details of this method are at Aluminum Wire alternative repair: Special Aluminum Wire Repair Method

  • Photo of the Ideal 65 purple twister aluminum wire connector which is NOT RECOMMENDED Other methods - not recommended: Warnings regarding other "repair" methods which are not recommended are discussed at OTHER REPAIR PRODUCTS, such as the Ideal 65 purple "Twister" aluminum wire splice connector shown in the photo at left (12 connectors cost $49. to $79.)
  • Other methods - also not recommended: include attempts to repair aluminum wiring using receptacles and outlets marked "COALR" (even if these worked, which has not been demonstrated, what about all of the other electrical connections and splices in the building?). COALR and CU/AL devices as a "repair" for aluminum wiring is discussed at OTHER REPAIR PRODUCTS.
  • Photographs for recognizing aluminum electrical wiring hazards are provided at How to Recognize or Identify Aluminum Electrical Wiring in Buildings
  • Reducing the Fire Hazards in Aluminum-Wired Homes - 2007 Update, [large .PDF document], Jess Aronstein, Ph.D., 21 May 2007. This document answers most technical questions about the hazards and remedies of aluminum electrical wiring and includes a report on independent test results of alternative products and methods for repairing aluminum wiring.
  • WANTED: Aluminum Wiring Field Reports, Photographs, Samples, & Failure Cases & Data for ongoing study on frequency and severity of occurrence of problems. If you have experienced any problem, or symptom of possible problem with aluminum electrical wiring, or have repaired or replaced it, please contact Daniel Friedman. All information is confidential. Study results will be provided to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and to the electrical industry. Real life aluminum wiring field failure reports can be seen at Aluminum Wiring Failures in Residential Properties: Field Reports & Pictures.

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    ALUMINUM WIRING HAZARDS & REPAIRS
    ALUMINUM WIRE RISK
    HOW TO RECOGNIZE ALUMINUM WIRING
    HOW TO REDUCE THE RISK
    REPAIR ELECTRICIANS
    OTHER REPAIR PRODUCTS
    COALR & CU-AL DEVICES
    DETAILED EXPLANATION
    More Information

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    Contact Us

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