Condos and Apartments, What does the NEC code say about...

[jlack]

Good afternoon,

The insurance industry is questioning "should we insure an apartment or condo complex that has aluminum wiring. I would appreciate any wisdom on these questions.
Can Aluminum wiring be used between the meter pedestal feeding the panel? Code #?
Can Aluminum wiring be used between the main panel feeding the subpanel? Code#?
Can aluminum wire be used in 120 volt branch circuits? Code#?
Is pig tailing acceptable?
Can COPALUM connectors be used?
Can AlumiConn be used?
Is there any method that should not be used?

Thank you,
John

 

[tortuga]

Good afternoon,

The insurance industry is questioning "should we insure an apartment or condo complex that has aluminum wiring. I would appreciate any wisdom on these questions.
Can Aluminum wiring be used between the meter pedestal feeding the panel? Code #?
Can Aluminum wiring be used between the main panel feeding the subpanel? Code#?
Can aluminum wire be used in 120 volt branch circuits? Code#?
Is pig tailing acceptable?
Can COPALUM connectors be used?
Can AlumiConn be used?
Is there any method that should not be used?

Thank you,
John

See NEC section 110.5 & 310.3 (B)
EDIT and 406.3

 

[dkidd]

Here is a good article on aluminum,

Aluminum Wiring - Complete Guide

Aluminum wiring often refers to the single-strand solid aluminum wiring used in homes from the late 1960s through the 1970s

ahouseonarock.com

 

[tortuga]

Is there any method that should not be used?

Copper is required for some low voltage applications like cat5 / 6 & fire alarm , see 760.49, 760.176(A), 725.144, 800.179 and so on...
IT people tend to adapt cheap non-listed copper clad cat5 office wiring for hi wattage PoE cameras and even PoE office lighting. Even in new construction class 2 wiring never gets inspected. I went out to service a magnetic door lock in a hotel that 'smelled like burning plastic' it was wired with cheap CCA cat5 to a 24V transformer, no OCPD. I have also seen many PoE cameras installed with non-listed CCA. That stuff seems like way more of a problem than larger AL wire.

 

[jaggedben]

To be clear...

...
Can Aluminum wiring be used between the meter pedestal feeding the panel?

This is generally absolutely fine and everyone does it.

Can Aluminum wiring be used between the main panel feeding the subpanel?

This is generally absolutely fine and everyone does it.

Can aluminum wire be used in 120 volt branch circuits?

This would be usual nowadays especially for circuits lower than about 50A, regardless of voltage. It probably is or can be made code compliant but also is reasonable grounds for extra scrutiny. See other replies.

Is pig tailing acceptable?

Generally speaking yes.