Insulated copper wire is one of the most common types of scrap that electricians, contractors, and homeowners bring to scrap yards — and it is also one of the most frequently misgraded. The wire grade you receive payment for is determined by the copper recovery percentage: what fraction of the wire's total weight is actually recoverable copper. Here is how each grade is defined and how to identify it in your load.
Unlike bare copper, which is priced based on visible purity and condition, insulated wire is priced based on estimated copper content. A thick, clean wire with a thin jacket contains mostly copper by weight. A thin extension cord is mostly plastic insulation. The yard applies the rate for each grade to the total weight you bring in — so accurate grading on your end means accurate payment.
What it looks like: Clean, heavy-gauge wire with a thick, solid copper conductor and a relatively thin insulation jacket. The wire is stiff, heavy, and you can feel the conductor inside. Single-conductor THHN wire, Romex (NM-B cable), BX cable (with insulation stripped off), and similar building wire.
Common sources: New construction electrical wire, renovation electrical strips, THHN in conduit pulled from commercial projects.
Copper recovery: Approximately 65% to 80% copper by weight, depending on gauge. This is why it pays the highest insulated wire rate — you are buying closer to bare copper value per pound.
What qualifies: 10 gauge THHN and heavier, clean Romex, clean multi-conductor building wire, clean welding cable.
What it looks like: Mixed wire with varied gauge, some multi-conductor cables with thicker insulation, wire with connectors attached, or loads that include a mix of heavy and medium gauge wire without full separation. Computer cables (CAT-5/6 ethernet), some appliance cords, HVAC wiring bundles, and automotive wire harness material often fall here.
Common sources: Appliance wiring, mixed job site wire, telecom cable (CAT5/6), light HVAC wire, automotive harness wire.
Copper recovery: Approximately 45% to 65% copper by weight.
What qualifies: Any wire load that is clean but not heavy-gauge building wire. Mixed loads where you cannot fully separate #1 from lighter wire, or where connectors are attached.
What it looks like: Thin gauge wire with proportionally thick plastic insulation. The wire feels light for its volume. Extension cords, lamp cord (zip cord), Christmas lights, phone charger cables, and very thin appliance cords all fall here.
Common sources: Extension cords, Christmas and holiday lighting, lamp cords, phone and device charging cables, speaker wire.
Copper recovery: Approximately 15% to 45% copper by weight. The insulation accounts for most of the total weight.
What qualifies: Extension cords of any gauge, Christmas light strings, any very thin wire where the insulation clearly dominates the weight.
Take a piece of wire and hold it in your hand. Bend it. Is it stiff and heavy, with a conductor you can feel? That is likely #1 or strippable to bare bright. Does it bend easily and feel light and flexible? That is probably #2 or #3. For any wire, you can cut an end off and look at the cross-section: how thick is the copper conductor relative to the insulation? Thick conductor, thin jacket = #1. Thin conductor, thick jacket = #3.
Bring it in. Our team grades wire at the scale and will explain what we are seeing and why it grades where it does. We would rather have a quick conversation at the yard than have you guess wrong and end up paid at a lower rate than your material deserves.
Stripping heavy wire (10 gauge and heavier) from an insulated wire #1 rate to a bare bright rate is usually worth it if you have the time. The per-pound difference multiplied by a significant load weight often justifies 20 to 30 minutes of stripping work. For #2 and #3 wire, stripping is rarely practical — the wire is too thin, the insulation too bonded, and the additional copper exposed too little to justify the time.
Check today's difference between bare bright copper and #1 insulated wire on our price calculator — that gap tells you exactly how much additional value stripping generates per pound.
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