Mike White
New member
- Location
- Lenexa, KS. Johnson County
Can you explain to me why the price for XHHW wire is 30% higher than THHN on 3/0, and only 12% higher on 500?
THHN VS XHHW
- Thread starter Mike White
- Start date
- Status
- Location
- Chapel Hill, NC
- Occupation
- Retired Electrical Contractor
I have no idea
John120/240
Senior Member
- Location
- Olathe, Kansas
My guess is it is the popularity of one product over another. Maybe THHN is considered more
versital than XHHW ? Itruthfully do not know, just a guess. Look at the cost of a 15A recptacle
(three prong) vs a 2 prong ungrounded one. They make a heckuva lot more 3 prong than
2 prong.
versital than XHHW ? Itruthfully do not know, just a guess. Look at the cost of a 15A recptacle
(three prong) vs a 2 prong ungrounded one. They make a heckuva lot more 3 prong than
2 prong.
- Location
- Chapel Hill, NC
- Occupation
- Retired Electrical Contractor
I think the question is why the %age difference is less for a larger size wire
eric9822
Senior Member
- Location
- Camarillo, CA
- Occupation
- Electrical and Instrumentation Tech
My guess would be that the bulk of the cost is the copper, bigger wire more copper. The amount of copper is the same regardless of the insulation type. I would expect the cost difference in percentage to go down as the wire size increases.
weressl
Esteemed Member
The cost of the raw material and the volume sold determines the price. So it would appear that people who specify XHHW do not use 3/0, but choose the next higher size. For years I've heard that 3/0 is NOT a readily available size in XHHW.
I think you've hit the nail on the head.
For #12, you probably have more insulation than copper in the wire.
For 500 KCM, there might be 10 times as much copper as insulation.
Cow
Senior Member
- Location
- Eastern Oregon
- Occupation
- Electrician
That's standard 200A wire size, so I highly doubt that.
- Status