Help choosing wire

Sweetfarm · May 30, 2020

Hi everyone. I’m hoping for a little advice. I am hiring a certified electrician to do this job for me but I’m looking to buy the wire today. I am trying to hook up an outlet for my 30 amp RV and 200 feet away from my house. I I’ve dug and 18 inch trench and plan on using PVC conduit. Here is the outlet that I have purchased. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Midwest-Electric-Products-70-Amp-Power-Outlet-Box-U041CP/202307106

I have a friend who has a couple of schools of this. Would this do the job?

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Southwire-500-ft-4-0-Black-Stranded-3E-AL-XHHW-Wire-11277115/202250399

Thanks

Megawatt · Jun 1, 2020

Cookie said:
I'm confused. AL is outlasting the life of most buildings.

The main reason the power company uses aluminum is the price since they have to probably buy maybe hundreds of thousands of feet a year and they can install smaller wire since it is in free air yes they use crimp lugs but I can’t count the times I’ve had to call them because of corrosion and not making a good connection. Obviously you haven’t had to fight much 4/0 aluminum in a small meter base. I use 2/0 copper because it’s half the size and you can easily terminate it. I wired my own home 25 years ago and still no problems. I guess it a personal choice and so much easier. Have you ever went behind another electrician who didn’t use nolox and the screws are all galded, it’s impossible to get the screws loose

Cookie · Jun 2, 2020

norcal said:
Copper is the conductor of choice, but properly installed aluminum alloy wiring is fine, and a good way to control costs, if it was so bad PoCo's would not be using aluminum alloy conductors almost exclusively, the PoCo's do use compression connectors for terminating AL, but proper torque is required by the NEC, and is the key to a proper installation, no matter what the conductor material is.

I agree. I still would like to know how AL lasts half as long. This is just not the case in the US.

Cookie · Jun 2, 2020

Megawatt said:
The main reason the power company uses aluminum is the price since they have to probably buy maybe hundreds of thousands of feet a year and they can install smaller wire since it is in free air yes they use crimp lugs but I can’t count the times I’ve had to call them because of corrosion and not making a good connection. Obviously you haven’t had to fight much 4/0 aluminum in a small meter base. I use 2/0 copper because it’s half the size and you can easily terminate it. I wired my own home 25 years ago and still no problems. I guess it a personal choice and so much easier. Have you ever went behind another electrician who didn’t use nolox and the screws are all galded, it’s impossible to get the screws loose

POCO wire is not the same alloy are modern 8000 series building wire. There are millions of services entrance and sub feeders wired in aluminum all doing fine, without issue most decades old.

Megawatt · Jun 2, 2020

Cookie said:
POCO wire is not the same alloy are modern 8000 series building wire. There are millions of services entrance and sub feeders wired in aluminum all doing fine, without issue most decades old.

I never said that aluminum does not last as long as copper I’m just saying that it’s a personal preference comparing copper versus aluminum. I’m assuming you get all your info from Mike Holt so just ask him

Cookie · Jun 2, 2020

I know, but Teletrix made a comment that has me confused. I can't find any evidence of Aluminum having a shorter lifespan or being inferior in any way.

I agree its a personal preference. Both do well when torqued correctly.

Megawatt · Jun 2, 2020

Cookie said:
I know, but Teletrix made a comment that has me confused. I can't find any evidence of Aluminum having a shorter lifespan or being inferior in any way.

I agree its a personal preference. Both do well when torqued correctly.

I will say this I’ve been doing electrical installations 30+ years and 4/0 aluminum is a b—— to bend in tight meter bases and is double the size of 2/0 copper which is allowed for single family dwellings and I’ve never had a corrosion problem with copper like I have seen on service calls that has aluminum wire. I work to hard to have to fight 4/0 aluminum in the middle of the night because the customer has lost a phase or the neutral which can cause a lot of damage when the neutral is open from corrosion. It’s legal but I don’t use it to build service installations