Red Seal Electrician Practice
Wiring and componentsQuestion 798 of 1506

For every three steps down the AWG scale (for example from 10 to 7), what happens to the area of the wire?

  1. It approximately halves
  2. It approximately doubles
  3. It stays the same
  4. It approximately triples
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Correct answer: It approximately doubles

The area, and the weight per length, doubles for each three gauge numbers smaller.

Source: Lessons in Electric Circuits I: DC (Kuphaldt), 12.2: Conductor Size

Practice wiring and components

Questions last reviewed: 18 October 2026