Since finishing my basement, I'm left with odds and ends of Romex 12/2. My feeling is to toss them out, none of them are really all that long, but it leaves me wondering - what's the minimum length of Romex that you'd keep for another job (if the opportunity presented itself)? I think for me, 10 feet would be tempting - it would be a stretch, but it would/could bridge the gap between two outlets.
I don't even entertain the idea of splicing Romex together.
"Eigenvector" wrote in news:9pWdnRlBiplRiufYnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:
Guess it depends on just how cheap u-are!!!
Shorties can be used for pigtails. Saving them while you're doing a job is one thing. Saving them for months...just in case...errrr, squeak. :-)
I have found over many years rehabing my house and in others that Murphy's law applies:
The longest scrap of Romex you have will always be 6" too short. :)
Yes, I save the cut-offs.
Harry K
theres $$$$ in scrap copper:)
Yeah I was thinking about that too. But my assumption is that I'd have to clean it up before selling it - and I have a lot of Romex left. The old
1960's stuff that I replaced plus the scraps. That's a lot of sheathing and plastic to remove. Almost easier and cheaper (from my time's worth) just to toss it all.Eh I guess I'll toss it, so long as it isn't over 10', which is just the end-piece.
I haven't checked prices this week but awhile back (within the last month) it was near $3/lb for clean copper. You can always burn the cover off and then pull the wire out after the fire's out.
Think the scrape price for copper is pretty high. Are you pigtailing your outlets, then keep some dump the rest.
RV
Naw I'm not pigtailing. The old stuff is all copper Romex with 18(?) gauge ground conductor - so it isn't useful in my eyes.
I used a two foot piece once iirc.
After I put a switch in a wire going to an outside light.
The neighborhood electrician, with my acquiescence, put a light on the side of my end-of-group townhouse, which faces the woods. I could tell when the special bulb needed replacement because it would interfere with weak AM radio stations. Later they changed the fixture to one that was motion activated, but it seemed that the light on a low setting ALL the time, and bumped up to Full when I walked by.
That means it interfered with weak AM stations all the time at night.
I didn't want the electrician coming out when the ground was wet, stomping on the grass and putting the ladder legs inches into the ground (extension ladder, it's about 17 feet up.) So I put a switch into the line. To turn off the light until the yard dried out.
Putting a switch in would actually lessen the amount of wire needed, if it weren't for needing to run both pieces into the box. Even taking up any slack I could find, the wire that was already there was about 2 inches short. !! So I just needed a piece to go from the new switch to where the old wire was attached. I think that was just enough to span the space between adjacent rafters, 16 inches, plus a little extra at each end.
I had just the right piece.
Good. A violation of code, even when done in a box, at least in NYC.
BTW, for me it would be the other way around. If I gave away ten feet, I could buy a ten foot piece later. What I would hate to have to do is to buy 10 feet when I only need 2 feet.
Of course I have a basement, and three liquor boxes (after itemizing below, it was more than 3) and one and a half dresser drawers just devoted to wire. 1) Heavy duty cords, 2) Wire with ends (special ends, not counting AC plugs or outlets), 3) Coaxial cable, which I will need soon to run cable to my computer (and maybe to run cable from the DVD in the computer to the VCR in the bedroom?) 4) Heater wire and non-electric wire, such as picture wire, piano wire, etc. 5) non-heavy-duty cords with plugs on the end. 6) And maybe one could count: functioning extension cords. 7) Two high tensile strength, waterproof, maybe heavy duty extension cords I made long ago from a 3 foot diameter spool of wire, 100 feet and maybe 150 feet iirc. 8) Single conductor and more-than-2 conductor wire. 9) A still-in the original package 12" roll of 12 gauge single conductor solid blue wire, and a package of 4-conductor phone wire. 10) miscellaneous, including some flat antenna wire.
I almost always have the wire I need without having to go to the store. I like it that way.
Copper with insulation on is fetching a decent price these days at scrap metal yards. In my area it's about 50 cents a pound. Before the price of copper went through the roof, that's what they were giving for #1 copper!
they buy copper scrap 2 ways:) Clean no insulation $$$$$ for awhile near 2 bucks a pound
also with plastic insulation at about 1/2 the clean price. they have slitting machines that remove the insulation.
they buy copper scrap 2 ways:) Clean no insulation $$$$$ for awhile near 2 bucks a pound
also with plastic insulation at about 1/2 the clean price. they have slitting machines that remove the insulation.
.......................................................................................................... Well if you have to ask it may be that you are not a dedicated 'ongoing' do it yourselfer?
Gee 10 feet! Done whole jobs with that length! I keep shorter than that and when time permits roughly measure it (3 times the diameter of the coil times number of turns in the coil.)
You keep 'some' of it anyway
BTW: There are it seems various rules about keeping 'stuff'.
Rule 1. Either keep everything or nothing. This means place will nice and tidy. But next time you need a washer/nut of just such and such a size or screws with such and such a head configuration and just 1/4 inch shorter, to fix the storm door, you know you will have to get in the vehicle, drive 3-5 miles spending at least a gallon of gas visiting three different hardware outlets. None of which will have exactly what you need.
This can be a good excuse to SWMBO that 'The stores didn't have what was needed. Maybe you'll try again next week', according to your whim. Then go golfing or whatever.
In the meantime your irritating 'Mr Fixit' know-it-all brother in law will drop by and fix it in a jiffy or say he'll be back with junk from his shed later and will repair in return for supper. Right?
BTW I have a neighbour with a 'clean freak' wife. She has thrown out dozens of items that were being saved (for good reason) including such things as replacement brake parts ($75 worth!) a towing chain, etc. When my neighbour needs something he comes over here to look for it!Standard joke now is "If she's throwing anything out tell her to throw throw it over here".
I'm fixing up some used fluorescent fixtures for him. But am scared to give them until we can actually get them screwed to his garage ceiling! They might be too dusty or something and get thrown out!
Rule 2. a) If you DO 'keep', expect to be able to 'fix' most small jobs from (provided you can find where you put it)!
Rule 2 b) Stock up on small items when in the hardware/building supply store. Especially if you are in the 'dollar-discount'; cheaply made, low quality maybe, but no point running out of, glue or or those very useful gadgets for hanging pictures? (For 50 cents!) Got a big bag of those wiring staples for 35 cents at a flea market recently!
Also maybe 10 years ago bought a box of brown and black shoe laces at a parish sale for 50 cents; used the last brown set recently. Gee I wonder what shoelaces really cost these days? Although come to think; .......... I've got a few used ones out of old shoes.
Rule 3. A 'project' (= big JOB) requires planning. Do NOT normally expect expect to have 53 stainless screws of certain length, 15 pieces of clean 2 by 4 etc. three quarters of a sheet of slightly damaged but usable plywood, or special clamps. Unless you have been squirreling away/accumulating materials with just 'that' project in mind.
Rule 4. You can keep something for 14 years, on the off chance it might be, a) Useful. b) Too good to throw away. But see Rule 5.
For example we needed some Al. of a certain gauge, to make a bracket. It came from the blade of an old snow shovel that I had almost chucked out, several times. Just like that maple that I had almost pulled up twice, some 15-20 years ago. My neighbor and I now enjoy that nice tree with double trunk some 20+ ft high!
Rule 5. Chuck something out and you and/or a neighbour will be looking for it in less than 3 months!
Now I gotta go and fix that $%^&* ornament that is supposed to light up; for a friend of my daughter! It's already burnt out one wal wart.
But got plenty of those. Somewhere! I seem to remember a big jar with ....................... Hmmm! Now where did I ....................................
But not even (cheapskate) I would contemplate 'splicing' romex!!!!!!
Call some local scrap yards. Around here they take jacketed cable and just pay less for the weight.
RToss something and it will be important before you know it!
I have a business and once put a ton of machine side covers out for garbage.
Well it rained snowed and froze the stuff in place, so it didnt get to curb.
A day later I needed one of those covers sold it for 80 bucks after first digging it out of muck it was frozen in.........
Cleaned up great customer was never the wiser:)
Hmm from what Haller and yourself indicate, I'm glad I did save the old stuff instead of tossing it with the old drywall and building scraps.
I don't have a ton right now, but when the house is re-wired finally I'll have miles of old 3 wire Romex. I'm sure by then the price of copper will have bottomed out and I'll have to pay them 50cents a pound.
Maybe it won't be so bad, the wire + about 100 lbs of old 30-06 and 8mm shell casings, might be a profitable spring cleaning.
Our house was built in 1917, and was all K&T, of course. When I remodeled the dining room, I found that the ceiling fixture had the hot wire covered with a type of slip-on sheathing. When I removed the sheathing, I saw what they did with all their cut-off ends. I had a 12ft length of copper wire made up of pieces ranging from 6" to 12" long, all spliced and carefully soldered together. They used everything back in them days!
BTW, all the framing in this place is full dimension.
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