Copper theft

[Dave A]

Our electrical division gets a fair amount of work replacing stolen electrical copper wiring.

This morning it was our turn to feel the burn.



2 metres of the main water feed to our unit got the "redistribution of wealth" treatment last night. Right now we're operating on the bucket system.

I wonder when they'll be back for the electrical wiring?

[IanF]

Dave
Sorry for the pain in the butt this is.
The print shops in the US are also having it. Some of them have had the copper tubing in the HVAC systems stolen. So copper theft is a worldwide problem. I hope this wasn't too inconvenient.

[AmithS]

I know the feeling we had no water at our fast food store some time last year, real pain in the ****

Hope its repaired soon!

[murdock]

welcome to my world

i know how you feel...just that i havent had my pipes stolen.

the job i finised 2 weeks ago also had the entire site copper piping stolen...this is very common if you sell your property and leave it vacant for a couple of days...unless you have security your copper piping will be gone by the time ownership is changed...most people are replacing it with that white water pipe which is a little more expensive but they dont steal it

when it comes to your electrical cables...its not the cable on your property you have to worry about its the big cable they cut at the sub...it surges voltages thru the system and destroys all your electronics in the building...the one property i went to...even the light fittings caught on fire...you can install a device called a trip connect to prevent this from happening...i have installed one of these at an it company and it has saved tham on numerous occasions...only problem now is the voltage in the area is so unstable that it trips when the voltage drops below 190 volts and above 250 volts and it does on both...it records the last 100 trips so we can see it.

[Dave A]

i know how you feel...just that i havent had my pipes stolen.

Yep - I had a hunch you could relate given your water supply problems of late

So copper theft is a worldwide problem.

Second most abundant metal on earth - who'd have thought it would become precious enough to attract the theft problems it does.

[murdock]

the good news is i have decided after 8 months to stop being so stubbon...i will be having my lights switched back on shortly...the water...i am gona leave the flow restrictor in place for now and i have made up a unit which can be installed again if i have a problem which connected directly to the supply and bypasses all mechanical parts which could be a problem in the future...300 litres is enough water per day...plus i have the addtional water on site...i just need to get a preapid electricity meter fitted for now...and make sure it stays at around 65 kw which is free "what ever it takes"..so i can recharge batteries when i need to without having to outlay the money for solar panels for now...

the last thing now is to collect my dump slips...and apply to have the refuse removal part of my bill discontinued...then all i pay is rates...and if i dont bad luck for metro...thay cannot switch off my water...i will be on a preapid meter so even if they try take it from my free 65 kw i believe this could be a challenge

if only there were more stubbon people like me...unfortunalty others have the internet and emails...which by the way doesnt make any diffrence no matter how many millions you send to metro...we could make a difference and put an end to being ripped off.

and as the NHI and tolls kick into effect you and i will be expected to carry the bill by higher taxes and levies through rates...water electricity you name it...everthing will go up and we will just pay...and send more petition emails

all i see is more debt...more credit cards...over drafts and more whining about the cost of living...but no action.

[johnwarner75]

My grandfather used to live in Durban North, and he was so fed up of people breaking into his garage (down the drive) that he wired the copper door handle to the ring main. needless to say he didn’t experience any further intruders

[AndyD]

My grandfather used to live in Durban North, and he was so fed up of people breaking into his garage (down the drive) that he wired the copper door handle to the ring main. needless to say he didn’t experience any further intruders

I can imagine, most people break out of jails, not into them

[Dave A]

With the Gautrain service being disrupted twice in the last few days due to cable theft, any chance of copper theft being upgraded to treason?

After all, it's attacking infrastructure and ultimately it's stripping SA resources and exporting them to a foreign country (seeing as most of our scrap copper ends up on ships to China).