Lead content for Wire

[rebliss]

I was talking to an electrical contractor the other day, and asked him if he had ever worked with wire that had lead sheathing? He told me something very surprising to me: ALL wire has lead in its insulation. Apparently, it is somehow incorporated into the plastic that insulates the wire. SO, stripping wire with ones teeth and chewing on the insulation isn't the smartest thing to do, apparently. He said that even PVC conduit has lead content; if it didn't, it would deteriorate and become brittle within 2 years due to the current running through it.

Anyway, he said it's illegal to burn wire due to this lead content. That got me to wondering if it would be possible to somehow extract the lead? Also, I've heard of types of wire that fellows on here hit with a sledgehammer to get the lead out of--what kind of wire is that?

LOL. All this worry about running out of lead sources has got me thinking 'outside the box.'

[carpetman]

mighty interesting--they are using a conductor(lead is a conductor)in the insulatitor.

[Ricochet]

I remember reading somewhere that PVC had lead in it. I think it's a lead compound added as a catalyst for polymerization. Much as lead soaps or naphthenates used to be added as driers in boiled linseed oil. Nowadays it's been replaced in BLO by cobalt naphthenates, which don't work as well as lead did.

[imashooter2]

Possible? I'm sure it is... There is little that cannot be accomplished with unlimited time and money.

A better question is, "Would it be practical?"

[wills]

We have an article from Centers for Disease Control reporting the severe lead poisoning of adult electronics worker who had developed the habit of chewing on lead-stabilized PVC electric insulation.

http://www.turnertoys.com/PVC_framepage1.htm

Amazing the stuff you learn here.

(Ray pay more attention to your typing and less attention to your avatar.)

[454PB]

The wire that gets a sledge hammer applied is lead SHEATHED wire. It's usually in the larger sizes (500 MCM and up), and used to be used as power wiring in substations and power plants. The lead outer covering is kind of like the shielding on coax cable and is grounded to minimize induction.

I stripped a lot of it. I laid it on a concrete surface, straddled the wire, then as I walk down the wire, I'd strike it with the a 10 pound hammer. The blow splits the lead, then it's like skinning a rattlesnake. The down side is that the cable sheathing contains a dielectric grease that is very similar to STP and just as hard to wash off.

[schutzen]

Most lead sheathed cables are for waterproof installations. Don't forget the telephone company. The past 10 years they have been switching over to fiber optic trunk lines. Most of the old trunk lines in my area had a 1/4" pure lead sheath. Great for muzzle loader bullets, but a bit soft for modern rifle/pistol.

[TCLouis]

for a lead supply.

Last week the phone company were worrking under the street in fron of my office.
Left a big pile of solder glued to the asphalt.

Each day I check to see if it is coming loose!
This week should do it!

I can still spot a wheel weight across 4 lanes of traffic, but am getting too old and slow to fetch them. <LOL>