AL advantage: Weight (especially in long overhead runs). Theft factor (less attractive than CU to thieves at the moment).
CU advantage: Smaller conductors for a given current. CU-friendly lugs are readily found on the shelf. Ease of attachment to hardware. Less brittle/more flexible than AL. Commonly available in a variety of gauges. Common to both: Both metals corrode if improperly protected. AL/CU recognized splice blocks alleviate dissimilar metals issues. Likely there are many more. There's a wealth of experience in this group. Dan --- On Mon, 2/13/12, James Rudolph <jamesrudolp...@gmail.com> wrote: From: James Rudolph <jamesrudolp...@gmail.com> Subject: [RE-wrenches] AL vs CU To: "RE-wrenches" <re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org> Date: Monday, February 13, 2012, 10:35 AM Gurus, Other than the cost and increased labor what else could be a factor in determining whether or not to use copper or aluminum in long output circuits? -- James B Rudolph NABCEP Certified PV Installer California Certified Journeyman Electrician Don't get me wrong: I love nuclear energy! It's just that I prefer fusion to fission. And it just so happens that there's an enormous fusion reactor safely banked a few million miles from us. It delivers more than we could ever use in just about 8 minutes. And it's wireless! - William McDonough
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