If you’re looking for an insurance provider for your home, it looks like CNA covers every state in the US and Canada, too. Click here to contact a local CNA Insurance provider.

Well, they just released an update to the publication and the AlumiConn is front and center… LITERALLY! Check out the front page of the document:

You can read the entire revised publication on The Consumer Product Safety Commission’s website by clicking here.

Specifically, they were told by the underwriting depart that, “Any home with existing aluminum wiring needs to have a certificate from a licensed electrician showing that it has been repaired using methods approved by the United States Consumer Products Safety Commission.”

And since the Consumer Product Safety Commission has approved the AlumiConn, we believe State Farm insurers are now covered and can keep and/or lower their insurance premiums.

So, if you use State Farm as your insurer, please contact your agent and ask them about it.

Conversely, please contact us if your agent says otherwise as we want to be sure to have the most up to date information.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has recently updated their list of approved methods for repairing aluminum wire to include the AlumiConn connector!

This comes on top of recent news that Citizen’s Insurance also publicly added the AlumiConn as an approved aluminum wire repair method.

The official Consumer Product Safety Commission document (which you can read here), states:

“The Commission voted unanimously (5-0) to approve republication of CPSC Publication No. 516, Repairing Aluminum Wiring, with the explicit recognition that the COPALUM and AlumiConn connectors currently are the only products that meet the agency’s standards to prevent aluminum wire fire hazards.”

The CPSC also notified the public through their official Twitter account (see below). You can view the original tweet here.

The article from PNJ.com states,

“Citizens has approved two types of electrical wire connectors — known as AlumiConn and Copalum — as acceptable methods to avoid rewiring, Citizens spokeswoman Christine Ashburn said.”

So, homeowners in Florida who have aluminum wire in their homes can breath a sigh of relief as they’re now able to use the AlumiConn connector as an approved device to mitigate the potential danger associated with aluminum wire while maintaining insurance coverage.

This is a pretty big deal for homeowners with aluminum wire because previously, most insurance companies distanced themselves from writing policies on aluminum-wired homes because there really weren’t many affordable solutions available. This left homeowners with a choice between bad and worse – Repair the aluminum wire in your home using current approved methods, with costs starting around $5,000 or completely rewire your home with copper which can potentially run into the tens of thousands.

Thankfully for Floridians, that’s now a thing of the past.

What is an Affiliate Program?

An affiliate program is a web-based pay-for-performance program designed to compensate “affiliate” partners for driving sales to a “merchant” web site.

How Does it Work?

It’s very simple – First, register to become an AlCopStore affiliate and then click on the confirmation email. Once confirmed, you’ll receive access to our affiliate portal where you’ll get a unique link, banner ads, articles and more. You can then use these materials to promote AlCopStore. When someone clicks on your link or ad, our system will track it and if they end up purchasing, you’ll get compensated!

How Much Commission Do I Make Per Sale?

Many sales programs only offer 2-5% commission. But, with AlCopStore, you’ll earn double to triple that! With each successful referral, you’ll earn 10% of the entire order!

How Much Can I Make Overall?

It depends on how much work you want to put into it, but even a simple email to your neighbors (or advertisement in your association’s newsletter or website) can earn you hundreds if not thousands! In this economy, every little bit helps and the best part is, you’ll be helping your neighbors protect their homes and families, too.

Get started now by filling out the AlCopStore Affiliate Form!

The answer is that you do not need to add any antioxidant to the AlumiConn connector because they already come pre-filled with a proprietary antioxidant sealant that coats the wires as you insert them into the connector!

This proprietary antioxidant helps to dramatically reduce oxidation – one of the primary problems with aluminum wiring. Oxidation occurs when oxygen comes into contact with metal and is particularly problematic with aluminum as the oxidation occurs faster than with copper. As this oxidation builds up on the wire, it causes more resistance for any electrical current to run through it, which results in heat build up and can possibly cause a fire.

So, it’s extremely important that you use antioxidant when dealing with aluminum wire! And since the AlumiConn connector comes pre-filled with the antioxidant, you can save time and money since you won’t need to buy any additional antioxidant or take the time to install it!

In the meantime, customers should use a breaker or bus bar that is dual rated for both aluminum and copper wire.

If you have more questions, please visit our support page or you can contact us.

An Overview of Aluminum Wire

In the mid to late ’60s and early ’70s, the price of copper increased dramatically. Subsequently, new home builders began seeking a more economic solution to their electrical wire needs. Because of its cheaper price point, aluminum wire became the short term standard.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission Gets Involved

During these few years, approximately 1.5 million homes in the United States and an estimated 450,000 in Canada were built using aluminum wire. Subsequent fires that occurred in these homes were attributed to faulty aluminum wire connections. This got the attention of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Together they conducted a study and found that homes built with aluminum wire manufactured before 1972 (also known as “old technology” aluminum wire)“are 55 times more likely to have one or more electrical connections reach ‘Fire Hazard Conditions’ than is a home wired with copper”. The aluminum wire connections that fail tend to deteriorate over time and can reach very high temperatures.

For more information regarding the risks associated with aluminum wire, please visit this page.

So, What’s Wrong with Aluminum Wire Anyway?

According to Cornerstone Inspection, LLC “There is no problem with the aluminum wire itself within the walls; the problem is at the connection points. First, aluminum expands and contracts more than copper when it heats and cools. This can cause fasteners to loosen. More importantly, aluminum oxidizes easily and the oxide is a poor conductor. This causes overheating at the connection points (the main source of trouble).”

How Can I Tell if I Have a Problem?

You’re going to want to look for signs that suggest a problem and address them immediately. These can consist of things found in the list below.

• Sparking
• Outlets that don’t work
• Flickering lights
• Warm-to-the-touch electrical face plates on outlets or switches
• Funny odor resembling burnt plastic
• Discoloration
• Deterioration
• Smoke

However, you may still have a problem even if these signs are not apparent, so please always hire a licensed electrician to evaluate the aluminum wire in your home.

For more information on how to reduce the risk associated with aluminum wire, please read Dr. Jesse Aaronstein’s article entitled, “Reducing the Fire Hazards in Aluminum-Wired Homes” found at: http://www.inspect-ny.com/aluminum/alreduce.pdf or go to this page.

Solutions

There are ways to fix this problem, however. The Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends the best solution would be to replace the aluminum wire with copper wire. But, due to the cost to do this, it’s just not practical for many homeowners. AlumiConn is the only viable, economic solution.

Do you have flickering lights in your house? There are several possible reasons why this could be occurring.

One possible such reason could be the result of aluminum wire in your home. If your home was built around mid 1960 through the early 1970s, it’s very possible it has aluminum wire instead of the more popular copper wire.

AlumiConn Aluminum to Copper connector

Problems can occur when you splice copper wire (found on devices and fixtures like ceiling fans and switches) to your existing aluminum branch wire. This is because copper and aluminum wire expand and contract at different rates when current is run through them. Over time, this differing expansion and contraction causes twist-on connectors to loosen. Once loosened, you can get arcing, which is when the current jumps between the two wires that aren’t touching anymore. This might be the cause of your flickering lights.

Bigger problems than Flickering Lights?

But flickering lights might be the least of your problems. A loose twist-on connector can result in all sorts of trouble. Oxidation can occur causing greater resistance and resulting in heat build up. Over time, this could even lead to fire as seen in the highly publicized case that brought the Consumer Product Safety Commission and National Fire Protection Association to study the effects of aluminum wire in homes. Their study found that homes built with aluminum wire manufactured before 1972″are 55 times more likely to have one or more electrical connections reach ‘Fire Hazard Conditions’ than is a home wired with copper” AlumiConn Aluminum to Copper connector

For more information regarding the risks associated with aluminum wire, please visit our aluminum wire info page or go to this page.

For more information on how to reduce the risk associated with aluminum wire, please read Dr. Jesse Aaronstein’s report entitled, Reducing the Fire Hazards in Aluminum-Wired Homes.

Solutions

There are ways to fix this problem, however. The Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends the best solution would be to replace the aluminum wire with copper wire. But, due to the cost to do this, it’s just not practical for many homeowners. Thankfully with AlumiConn you don’t need to. AlumiConn provides acomplete and permanent repair that’s listed by UL and recommended by independent tester Dr Jesse Aronstein.So, if you have flickering lights in your house, order AlumiConn today for a complete and permanent solution!