Aluminum to Copper Wire Conversion

[Michael Hooper]

I'm currently looking at a 32 unit apartment complex (all 1 bedrooms) in Cincinnati Ohio. We're in the middle of our due diligence process and we just found out the complex has all aluminum wiring. From what i understand banks won't loan on aluminum wiring, so seller financing is probably how were going to have to go. Also, I'm told insurance companies won't insure it until the wiring is replaced. Is that true? Does anyone have an estimate for how much it would cost to replace? Should we just walk away at this point or just figure this in to our offer?

[Account Closed]

The danger of aluminum wiring is mostly due to the fact that aluminum expands more than copper when current flows through it, and therefore can work connections between wires or devices loose over time. This leads to the overheating problem. 

The solution is either pigtailing with a variety of methods (nolox in wire nuts, the "purple" wire nuts, Alumiconn connectors) or using CO/ALR devices. 

There are countless buildings that contain aluminum wiring that are both financed and insured. You will need a plan to deal with it though. Your lender and insurance company will want to know what percentage of the devices are CO/ALR and it would be wise to have your electrician determine this.