The following is from the Electrical section of the Washington State, Standards of Practice, for home inspectors. It states that the inspector will:
“(d) Report, if present, solid conductor aluminum branch circuits. Include a statement in the report that solid conductor aluminum wiring may be hazardous and a licensed electrician should inspect the system to ensure its safe.”
I am quite sure that the framers of the Standards thought that this statement would cover all the bases for this problematic type of wiring that was popular between 1964 and 1976.
What they did not count on was that it would be back.
Three times now, I have found instances of solid conductor aluminum wiring present in homes. The first instance I found was #8, solid conductor aluminum wiring to an air conditioner. The other two instances was the flexible conduit wiring from the furnace to the switch/panel for the furnace. In the furnace wiring, it was just the ground wire that was aluminum, while the conductors were copper.
As solid conductor aluminum wiring finds its way back into our lives, it poses a difficulty for an inspector required to report it as problematic.
In my reports I merely state that it is present but that it is not the material the Standards is talking about. Perhaps the Standards should have had some dates in there—then again perhaps this newer aluminum will develop similar problems and the Standards will be accurate again.
PS. For those of you with sharp eyes, the flex conduit has the wrong connector and the ground wire should not be connected where it is–but those things are not what the post is about.
Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle
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Charlie,
Solid conductor aluminum wiring never left – it’s always been here. The alloy formulation for aluminum wiring changed in the mid 1970’s. That new generation wiring is not problematic; however, by then the insurance companies had already been burnt and as far as they are concerned aluminum wiring is an issue until an expert says it isn’t. The average home inspector can’t usually tell one generation of aluminum wiring from another. The requirement is for the inspector to report that there may be a hazard and to have it checked out by an electrician – in other words, the family doctor notes that there may be an issue of concern and recommends the patient see a specialist. It isn’t a blanket condemnation of aluminum wiring. The “framers” knew that insurance companies are still making an issue of aluminum wiring. Leaving the client unaware of that fact is sure to get an inspector in trouble one of these days; the framers were erring on the side of the consumer and the inspector by requiring that the inspector take an additional sixty seconds out of his/her time to report the issue to the client. It’s not that big a deal.
Mike,
Where would I have gone between 1977 and 2010 to buy solid conductor aluminum wiring? Surely wiring made after 2010 is “newer generation” is it not? Why would it need further evaluation if it is technically wired properly?
The most recent update to the ASHI SoP removed reporting of aluminum wiring. It is recognized in the NEC and always has been. If you feel or find a hazardous condition, it then should be disclosed.
JD, I worried about ASHI’s change on this, but now find myself agreeing.