Scrap Reclamation

Part of Wire Drawing

Recovering and recycling wire from scavenged sources in a post-collapse environment.

Why This Matters

In the aftermath of civilization’s collapse, the most accessible source of wire is not ore in the ground but the remnants of the old world. Every building, vehicle, appliance, and power line contains wire — often in quantities and purities that would take months to produce from raw materials. A single automobile contains 1-2 kilometers of copper wire in its wiring harness. A residential home has 100-300 meters of copper electrical wire. Downed power lines can provide aluminum or copper conductor by the kilometer.

The challenge is not finding wire but processing it. Most salvaged wire is insulated with plastic, rubber, or enamel. It may be corroded, kinked, or alloyed in unknown ways. Some wire is too thin for direct reuse and needs to be melted and re-drawn. Other wire is perfectly usable once stripped and straightened. Knowing which is which — and having efficient methods for each — can save your community thousands of hours of smelting and drawing.

Scrap reclamation is also the fastest path to electrical capability. If your community needs copper wire for a generator, telegraph, or electric motor, stripping and reprocessing salvaged wire is orders of magnitude faster than mining copper ore, smelting it, casting rods, and drawing fresh wire.

Identifying Wire Sources

High-Value Salvage Targets

Source	Wire Type	Typical Gauge	Estimated Quantity	Difficulty
Residential wiring (Romex)	Solid copper, 12-14 AWG	1.6-2.0 mm	100-300 m per house	Easy
Automotive wiring harness	Stranded copper, various	0.5-2.5 mm	1-2 km per vehicle	Moderate
Electric motors	Enameled copper magnet wire	0.3-1.5 mm	50-500 m per motor	Moderate
Transformers	Enameled copper, layered	0.2-2.0 mm	100-1000 m per unit	Moderate
Power lines (overhead)	Solid or stranded aluminum/copper	4-12 mm	Kilometers	Hard (height)
Telephone/data cable	Solid copper pairs	0.4-0.6 mm	50-200 m per run	Easy
Extension cords	Stranded copper	1.0-1.5 mm	5-30 m each	Easy
Appliance power cords	Stranded copper	0.75-1.5 mm	1-3 m each	Easy
Coaxial cable	Solid copper center, copper braid	0.5-1.0 mm	Variable	Easy
Barbed wire/fencing	Galvanized steel	2.0-2.5 mm	100-500 m per roll	Easy

Priority Assessment

Not all wire is worth reclaiming. Evaluate based on:

1. Metal value: Copper is worth the most effort. Aluminum is useful but harder to work. Steel wire is abundant but less versatile.
2. Condition: Heavily corroded wire may not be worth stripping — better to melt it down.
3. Gauge: Wire that matches a gauge you need can be reused directly. Very thin wire is often only worth melting.
4. Accessibility: Wire inside walls requires demolition. Power lines require climbing. Prioritize easy-access sources first.

The Motor Goldmine

Electric motors — from washing machines, fans, pumps, power tools — contain densely wound copper magnet wire. A single large motor (1-5 HP) can yield 500 grams to 2 kilograms of pure copper. Prioritize motor salvage for copper recovery.

Stripping Insulation

Manual Stripping

For small quantities and larger gauge wire (above 1.5 mm):

1. Score and peel: Use a sharp knife to score the insulation lengthwise, then peel it off
2. Wire strippers: If salvaged, adjustable wire strippers are the ideal tool
3. Two-knife method: Fix two knife blades in a wooden block at the wire’s diameter apart, pull the wire through to score both sides simultaneously

Thermal Stripping

Burning Plastic Insulation

Burning PVC insulation releases hydrochloric acid gas and dioxins. Never burn wire insulation indoors. Even outdoors, stand upwind and limit exposure. This method should be a last resort for large quantities where manual stripping is impractical.

Controlled heating method (preferred over open burning):

1. Build a small fire in a well-ventilated outdoor area, upwind of living spaces
2. Heat the wire until the insulation softens and begins to char — do not let it fully ignite
3. Pull the wire from the heat and wipe the softened insulation off with heavy leather gloves or pliers
4. Residual carbon can be scrubbed off with sand or a wire brush

Oven method (for magnet wire enamel):

1. Build a clay or brick oven that can reach 400-500 C
2. Place coils of enameled wire inside
3. Heat slowly to 400 C and hold for 30-60 minutes
4. The enamel decomposes to ash
5. Remove and brush clean
6. This method preserves wire integrity better than open flame

Chemical Stripping

For very fine wire where mechanical methods damage the conductor:

1. Soak in a lye solution (sodium hydroxide from wood ash) — dissolves some insulation types
2. Soak in hot vinegar — softens rubber insulation for easier peeling
3. Neither method works on PVC — thermal stripping is required for PVC

Assessing Reclaimed Wire

Conductivity Test

For electrical applications, conductivity is critical. A simple test:

1. Cut a 1-meter length of reclaimed wire and a 1-meter length of known-good wire of the same gauge
2. Connect each to a battery and a small load (a lamp or LED) using identical circuits
3. Compare brightness — dimmer means higher resistance (lower conductivity)
4. Alternatively, if you have a galvanometer, measure resistance directly

Strength Test

1. Clamp one end of a 30 cm sample in a vise
2. Hang progressively heavier weights from the other end
3. Record the weight at which the wire breaks
4. Compare to expected values for the metal and gauge

Metal	Approximate Breaking Strength (per mm2 cross-section)
Annealed copper	200-250 MPa (roughly 2-2.5 kg per mm2)
Hard-drawn copper	350-400 MPa
Annealed iron	250-350 MPa
Steel wire	400-800 MPa depending on carbon
Aluminum	70-150 MPa

Corrosion Assessment

Condition	Assessment	Action
Clean, shiny surface	Excellent — use as-is	Strip, straighten, coil
Light tarnish/patina	Good — surface oxidation only	Sand lightly, use
Green verdigris (copper)	Fair — surface corrosion	Sand or pickle in vinegar, then test
Red/brown rust (iron)	Fair to poor — depends on depth	Wire brush, test strength
Deep pitting	Poor — structural compromise	Melt and re-cast
Flaking/crumbling	Failed — metal is consumed	Melt if enough remains

Straightening and Recoiling

Removing Kinks

Salvaged wire is rarely straight. Kinks concentrate stress and create weak points.

Progressive straightening:

1. Uncoil the wire and lay it flat on the ground
2. Walk the length, stepping on kinks to flatten them against a hard surface
3. Pull the wire through two hardwood blocks bolted to a bench (a simple wire straightener)
4. For stubborn kinks, anneal the kinked section first, then straighten

Roller straightener (worth building for production work):

1. Mount 5-7 smooth hardwood or metal rollers in a staggered pattern on a board
2. Space them so wire must zigzag through
3. Pull wire through — the alternating bends remove the coil memory
4. Adjust roller spacing for different wire sizes

Joining Short Lengths

Salvaged wire often comes in short, inconvenient lengths. Joining methods:

Mechanical splice (for non-electrical use):

1. Overlap two wire ends by 5-8 cm
2. Twist tightly together (minimum 5 full twists)
3. Flatten the joint with pliers
4. The joint will be thicker than the wire and cannot pass through a die

Forge weld (iron and steel only):

1. Heat both ends to welding temperature (bright yellow-white)
2. Overlap and hammer together on the anvil
3. The joint, if properly welded, is as strong as the parent wire
4. File smooth to the original diameter

Fusion weld (copper):

1. Clean both ends thoroughly
2. Twist together and apply borax flux
3. Heat to just below melting point with a focused flame
4. The copper fuses at the interface
5. File smooth

Joined Wire Limitations

Spliced wire cannot be drawn through a die — the joint will catch or break. Only use splicing for finished wire going directly into service. If you need continuous lengths, melt short pieces and re-cast as rod stock.

Melting and Recasting

When to Melt

Melt salvaged wire when:

• It is too thin for your needs (many fine wires become one thick rod)
• It is too corroded or damaged for direct reuse
• You have many short pieces that cannot be spliced usefully
• You need to change the alloy (adding tin to copper for bronze, etc.)

Copper Melting Procedure

1. Sort rigorously — separate copper from brass, bronze, and plated metals
2. Cut into small pieces — 2-5 cm lengths melt faster than long coils
3. Load the crucible loosely — do not pack tight, air must circulate
4. Cover with charcoal — reduces oxidation during melting
5. Apply borax flux — a pinch on top to float impurities
6. Heat to 1100-1200 C — the copper should be fully liquid and fluid
7. Skim slag from the surface with a dry stick
8. Pour into rod molds immediately (see Rod Stock)

Iron and Steel Recasting

Cast iron can be melted in a cupola furnace, but wrought iron and steel require welding-temperature forging rather than true melting in a primitive setup. The practical approach:

1. Bundle short wire pieces together
2. Wire-wrap the bundle tightly
3. Heat the bundle to welding temperature in the forge
4. Hammer to consolidate into a solid billet
5. Continue forging into rod stock

Yield Expectations

Expect material losses during reclamation:

Process	Typical Yield
Stripping insulated wire	60-70% by weight (rest is insulation)
Melting clean copper scrap	90-95% recovery
Melting corroded copper scrap	75-85% recovery
Forge-welding iron bundles	85-90% recovery
Overall (salvage to finished wire)	50-65% of salvaged weight

Organizing a Salvage Operation

Systematic Approach

For a community-scale operation, organize wire salvage systematically:

1. Survey phase: Map buildings, vehicles, and infrastructure in your area. Estimate wire quantities.
2. Collection phase: Assign teams to strip wire from prioritized sources. Bring it to a central processing point.
3. Sorting phase: Separate by metal type, gauge, and condition. Label everything.
4. Processing phase: Strip insulation, straighten, test, and grade reusable wire. Melt and re-cast the rest.
5. Storage phase: Coil, label, and store processed wire (see Quality & Storage)

Safety Considerations

• Electrical hazards: Before stripping wire from buildings, verify all power is disconnected. Even in a post-collapse world, battery banks, solar panels, and generators may still be energizing circuits.
• Structural collapse: Pulling wire from damaged buildings risks triggering collapse. Assess structural integrity before entering.
• Chemical exposure: Avoid prolonged skin contact with corroded metals, especially lead-soldered connections. Wash hands after handling.
• Sharp edges: Cut wire ends are needles. Wear heavy gloves and eye protection when cutting and handling.