What is this wire for?

[bmxdad]

Had a tree come down and now there is wire all over the place. Called the phone company and they didn't do anything, so wondering what it could be.

Its flat 2-wire, about 12 gauge. Doesn't seem to be energized, but not happy with it being around.

Any ideas?

 

[Norcal]

Except for the wire size it looks like OH telephone line.

 

[nehog]

Looks like (old) phone wire to me as well. Perhaps it is steel wire that is copper covered (called 'copper clad') so it can be run overhead?

 

[bmxdad]

Phone line? I thought that would be four stranded wires?

I was thinking it was some two-wire plastic-sheathed cable, before the grounded wire was used. Like I said, this is 12 gauge solid wire. The barn it's hooked to was built in the 40's or 50's.

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Phone line? I thought that would be four stranded wires?

I was thinking it was some two-wire plastic-sheathed cable, before the grounded wire was used. Like I said, this is 12 gauge solid wire. The barn it's hooked to was built in the 40's or 50's.

Thats very old phone wire. Not used anymore.

Phone wire was never stranded.

And two-wire sheathed cable such UF-B or UF would have color coded wires.

Thats definitely phone wire. My moms house had it before it was upgraded to twisted pair.

 

[gungatim]

Phone line? I thought that would be four stranded wires?

I was thinking it was some two-wire plastic-sheathed cable, before the grounded wire was used. Like I said, this is 12 gauge solid wire. The barn it's hooked to was built in the 40's or 50's.

they haven't used 4-wire phone line in a very long time...at least since '80's, probably even longer than that...

 

[LXCam]

Looks like heat trace cable. Is it buried next to a water line?

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Looks like heat trace cable. Is it buried next to a water line?

If u wouldve read the first post u wouldve seen that the OP said this wire was taken down by falling trees...

 

[justsam]

How was this wire terminated at the two end points?

Sounds like one end was attached to an old barn. How was it attached, a clamp, an insulator, weather head, drip loop, etc?

Did the other end come from a utility pole? What services were on the pole? Did it come from the lower level of the pole?

Just to be sure you might strip the wire carefully and check for voltage. If Telco, and still connected you will find about 48 VDC.

 

[Bigbandguy]

Definitely old style phone drop. Since it went to an old barn it could well have a been a private "house to barn" intercom type setup... a lot of guys with commo experience used a setup like this after the war with surplus field telephones since they knew how to set them up. If it is an old Ma Bell setup there might be a large old style connecting block at the barn. 3 connectors going to set on top fuses down each side, carbon blocks in middle and the two wires entering it at at bottom. This is 40's 50's style phone wire.

 

[Mustang51js]

Looks like the wires we took down in my town that were part of a pull box fire alarms. Except it was red in color

 

[bmxdad]

Well, whatever it is ... I'm checking to see if its hot, then taking care of it. Garbage and postal won't cross it ... which explains why trash wasn't picked up and no mail.

I've called power and phone and they both say call the other.

Thanks guys ...

 

[jeffmoss26]

Phone wire for sure. Single line drop wire.

 

[WarDamnEagle]

No, it doesn't. The cross sectional shape is similar to heat trace, but that's it. Inside, heat trace doesn't look anything like this.

This is POSITIVELY phone wire. OLD stuff at that. Probably copper plated steel.

LOL. Pretty sure he was just making a joke.

 

[Alchymist]

Phone wire, old style, seen a lot of it, as in pic 1, usually accompanied by the lightening protector block at the building entrance, pic 2.

 

[alfredeneuman]

The wire is hard drawn pure copper aerial phone drop wire. It's very stiff.

 

[thewatusi]

The phone company had their chance. Cut it up, burn off the insulation and scrap it.

 

[CNGsaves]

Curious OP what connections you've found on either end ???

Did it come down from YOUR house/barn ??

Any phone / ringer service not working now ??

 

[bmxdad]

One end is connected to an old barn, the other end is unknown. Checked for power and nothing. Looks like someone looped a bunch up at one time and simply hung it up on the lowest group of lines. Trees have overgrown the line since. I saw two cut ends in the looped wire.

Nobody is complaining of power or phone going out, just no mail and garbage ... but that has been taken care of.

More pictures ...

 

[Alchymist]

One end is connected to an old barn, the other end is unknown. Checked for power and nothing. Looks like someone looped a bunch up at one time and simply hung it up on the lowest group of lines. Trees have overgrown the line since. I saw two cut ends in the looped wire.

Nobody is complaining of power or phone going out, just no mail and garbage ... but that has been taken care of.

More pictures ...

Yep, overhead phone cable.

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Still looks like heat trace azzwipe

The joke is on u.

The OP said it was aerial and taken down by trees and U asked if it was buried.... wned: wned2:

 

[ddawg16]

It's spy wire....used by the NSA to spy on you.

 

[bmxdad]

Makes you wonder how much unused copper is hanging from some of these poles ...

 

[malibu101]

Makes you wonder how much unused copper is hanging from some of these poles ...

Many years ago some young guys pulled down a bunch of wire from the poles along an old abandoned railroad line. The tracks were long gone, it was more of wide overgrown path through the woods.
The wire was greenish like old copper would be. They saw it as gold.
The guys took it to the scrapyard and were shown the the jumbled mess they pushed off the pickup was picked up by the yard magnet.
It was copper coated steel.
They didn't even get enough money out of it for a case of beer.

 

[G_P]

Makes you wonder how much unused copper is hanging from some of these poles ...

I see huge coils of CATV coax hanging from poles all the time. But that stuff is basically worthless as scrap so nobody touches it.
Tree took out the power poles on my street years ago and I still have some thick (about 1/4" diameter) solid copper wire from it. POCO left about a 40 foot coil of the old wire leaning against my mailbox and when called about it they said keep it!

 

[TractorJeff]

Telephone wire! My parents had that as a line for years. When they upgraded the valley, they left that stuff laying all over. We as kids went around picking up the rolls. We wired our cabins and forts with it and car lights from the cars in the farmers back lot, we even had old car heaters for the fans! Little red wagon full of old car batteries hooked in parallel would last us a couple of days. Then drag it home and put it on the battery charger till ready to go back to our cabin. Old car generators rewired to run as motors. We powered lots of stuff like that!
Sorry, I digress!
Its still is and was phone wire!

 

[NUTTSGT]

We had some come down behind the courthouse about 2 weeks ago. We wrapped it back up around the pole and cut off the end. I thought it was phone wire until I had one of the guys cut the loose end off. It was stiff and harder to cut than regular copper wire.

 

[Alan Douglas]

Get a magnet and test it. It's copper-clad steel, and as noted, worthless as scrap. However it's great for stringing around the garden for plants to climb on or to hold wire fencing up. Rubber covered, will last forever.

 

[HunterDan]

Definitely old phone line.

I work for the power company here. On average, I go on about 10 calls a week about "down powerlines", which in reality are these phone lines.

 

[bmxdad]

Where is here?

 

[HunterDan]

Maryland

 

[Phase-Craft]

Phone drop, for sure. I hung a lot of it back in the late sixties. You probably don't want to attempt burning the insulation off, as it's rubber.