Education

Copper Facts

Copper In The Home

Building construction accounts for more than 40% of all copper use. Residential construction is about two-thirds of the building construction market. The average single-family home is about 2,100 sq .ft.; a multifamily unit averages about 1,000 sq .ft.

An average single-family home uses 439 pounds of copper.

In an average single-family home, you will find about:

195 pounds - building wire
151 pounds - plumbing tube, fillings, valves
24 pounds - plumbers' brass goods
47 pounds - built-in appliances
12 pounds - builders hardware
10 pounds - other wire and tube
An average multifamily unit uses 278 pounds of copper:

125 pounds - building wire
82 pounds - plumbing tube, fittings, valves
20 pounds - plumbers' brass goods
38 pounds - built-in appliances
6 pounds - builders hardware
7 pounds - other wire and tube
General levels of copper use in major appliances:

52 pounds - unitary air conditioner
48 pounds - unitary heat pump
5.0 pounds - dishwasher
4.8 pounds - refrigerator/freezer
4.4 pounds - clothes washer
2.7 pounds - dehumidifier
2.3 pounds - disposer
2.0 pounds - clothes dryer
1.3 pounds - range
Some 10,000 copper range hoods and 20,000 weather vanes are produced annually, using about 7 pounds of copper each.
The average house has 12 lockset's: 2½ are keyed, the rest are passage sets. The average multifamily unit has 6 lockset's - 1½ keyed, the remainder are passage sets.
There are probably about a billion doorknobs in the U.S., weighing in with about 500-600 million pounds of copper.
There is an average of 50-55 electrical outlets per home and some 15-20 switches. That translates to between 2½ and 3 pounds of copper alloy for these uses per house.

The information provided in this section has been collected from many varied sources and is true and accurate insofar as the Copper Development Association Inc. has been able to determine.

Additional Resources

The CDA web site provides many other resources for people interested in learning more about copper and its alloys.

Take a look at Innovations - our on-line magazine.

Please also check out Copper In Your Home - a section dedicated to consumers, with a special section just for kids!

If you need metallurgical or properties information, take a look at the Standards & Properties section.

Please also take a look at our application specific sections if you are looking for information regarding plumbing, electrical, architecture, and other copper alloy applications.