Wire we buy / THHN and THWN
THHN and THWN wire buyers in Virginia
THHN is the wire almost every Virginia contractor has too much of: a dozen half-used 500 ft spools in six colours, plus three unopened 1,000 ft reels from a job that finished early. It is also the easiest lot to document properly.
Sell your surplus wire — request a quote Call +1 (614) 715-3047
THHN, THWN and THWN-2 are 600 V thermoplastic-insulated, nylon-jacketed building wires used for conduit, gutters and dry or wet locations depending on the suffix. Because the same reel can be sold into almost any commercial job, a well-documented THHN lot moves faster than most other wire families — which is why the tag and the colour count are worth the effort.
What makes a THHN lot reviewable
- Size: #14 through 1,000 kcmil, with #12, #10, #8 and #6 the most common contractor overage.
- Colour: black, white, red, blue, green, brown, orange, yellow, purple and grey, plus striped and numbered control conductors.
- Put-up: 500 ft and 1,000 ft spools and reels, 2,500 ft and 5,000 ft master reels, and small 100 ft coils.
- Condition: sealed factory reels, opened reels with the tail still tied, and partial spools with a recorded remaining length.
The footage problem, honestly
Nobody wants to unspool 900 feet of #10 to prove a length. The practical answer is to separate the lot into three buckets before you send anything: factory-sealed reels whose footage is printed on the tag, opened reels where the factory length is known and the remaining wire is visibly most of the spool, and genuinely unknown partials. That split is what a review can work with; a single line saying "approximately 8,000 ft, mixed" cannot be verified by anyone.
| Put-up | Usual sizes | Note on the submission |
|---|---|---|
| 500 ft spool | #14 to #6 | Sealed or opened, colour, tag photo |
| 1,000 ft reel | #14 to 2/0 | Factory band intact? Footage printed? |
| 2,500 ft reel | #8 to 250 kcmil | Reel diameter helps estimate the remainder |
| 5,000 ft master | #12 to #10 | Partial master reels need a measured or counted length |
Mixed colours are fine — mixed labels are not
A pallet with eleven colours of #12 is normal warehouse surplus. A pallet where the tags have fallen off and three different manufacturers' wire is coiled together is much harder to value. Keep manufacturer groups separate, keep the tags with the reels, and photograph each group rather than the pallet from across the aisle.
What to send
Per size and colour: put-up, reel count, whether sealed or opened, and approximate footage. Then the city or ZIP, loading access, and photos of a representative reel tag plus the jacket print. If the lot sits on racking, one wide photograph showing the scale of the inventory is useful alongside the close-ups.
Questions sellers ask
Questions about this material
What is the difference between THHN, THWN and THWN-2 for a seller?
The print usually reads something like THHN or THWN-2 on the same jacket, meaning the wire is dual-rated. THWN-2 carries a 90 degrees C wet rating, which is why modern reels are more useful than older THWN-only stock. Photograph the full print and the review will classify it.
Do you buy small quantities, like ten partial spools?
Small lots are reviewed as one submission rather than as ten separate enquiries. Group them by size and colour, note approximate remainders, and send one wide photograph with a couple of close-ups of tags.
Can opened reels with cut ends be included?
Yes. Opened reels are normal surplus. The review needs to know how much is left and whether the exposed end has been damaged, wet or taped back properly.
Keep reading
Quote request
Sell your surplus wire — request a quote
Describe the lot as it actually sits. Photos of the reel tag and jacket print do more than any description, and mixed or unidentified cable can still be submitted for review.
Submitting THHN and THWN wire in Virginia for review.