What wood is used for power lines?

For Tree Farmers, utility poles have the potential to provide an excellent return on investment. Southern yellow pines and Douglas fir are the most popular trees due to their size, but Northeastern red pine, Western red cedar and other softwoods that grow tall and straight are also used.

What kind of wood is a light pole made of?

Most poles are made from southern yellow pine, Douglas fir or western red cedar, though other conifers are also used. According to the North American Wood Poles Council, only 7 percent of the trees in a typical plantation will have the length, straightness, taper and other characteristics necessary for a utility pole.

Why do they use wood for power lines?

Most utility poles are made of wood, pressure-treated with some type of preservative for protection against rot, fungi and insects.

How long do wooden power lines last?

Wood poles offer an opportunity for atmospheric carbon sequestration not provided by other materials. An Electric Power Research Institute study suggested that wood poles lasted 50 years. Most utilities assume that their poles provide 30 to 40 years of service life.

How long does a creosote pole last?

Creosote is an excellent wood preservative, typically giving a pole life of 40 years or more.

Why don't birds get electrocuted on power lines?

Which pole has longer life?

poles are used in 11 KV and 400/230 volt system to a large scale, apart from this, we also use PCC poles in 33KV H.T. Line. This type of poles is costlier than a wooden pole but cheaper than a steel pole. This kind of poles has a longer life, and the maintenance cost is negligible.

What is Powerline made of?

The most common conductor in use for transmission today is aluminum conductor steel reinforced (ACSR). Also seeing much use is all-aluminum-alloy conductor (AAAC). Aluminum is used because it has about half the weight and lower cost of a comparable resistance copper cable.

Why are power lines on wooden poles?

History of Wood Poles

The success with telegraph wires led to the use of poles for wires to distribute electricity. With the development of electricity generation and the need to carry that electricity to homes and factories increased demand for wood poles to carry the wires, insulators and other items required.

How long does it take to grow a utility pole?

Growing a larger tree for poles typically requires a longer rotation (10–15 years). Longer rotations increase the time a landowner must carry establishment costs and increase the risk of severe weather damage to standing timber.

How do you treat wooden poles?

Chemical treating of wood poles is one of the last remaining uses of penta and creosote – 43% of all poles are treated with penta; 42% of all poles are treated with arsenic; and 13% are still treated with creosote. The use of penta is prohibited in 26 countries around the world, but not in the United States.

How much does a utility pole cost?

With an average installed cost per pole of $3000, the total installed cost is $63 million per 1000 miles. Typically around 12% of these poles are inspected every ten years at an inspection cost of approximately $100 per pole using third-party inspectors.

How deep should a pole be in the ground?

Calculating the Depth of the Pole

Poles are typically set into the ground: 10% of the overall height + 2 feet, except in questionable soil conditions. Example: Overall pole height: 30 feet, the pole should be buried: 3 feet + 2 feet = 5 feet below grade, and 25 feet above grade.

Do pine trees have any value?

The value of pine trees in the forest or in a plantation can be appraised by a Consulting Forester. Pine timber generally sells for less than ten cents per board foot. So, a big pine tree might be worth $30. However, on a big well-managed plantation, that could add up to significant value on a per-acre basis.

What type of ground wire is typically used to ground a wood pole?

The pole may be grounded with a heavy bare copper or copper-clad steel wire running down the pole, attached to the metal pin supporting each insulator, and at the bottom connected to a metal rod.

What is the diameter of a wooden utility pole?

Class 1 poles range from 35 to 125 feet in length and have a minimum 27-inch circumference at the tip. Their horizontal load-bearing capacity is 4,500 lbs. The sizes drop incrementally down to Class 5, which are 20 to 50 feet in length and a minimum of 19 inches in circumference.

What is wooden pole?

Wooden pole means the stem of a tree which has the proper natural characteris- tics to meet the engineering and design standards to support a utility line; and has been harvested, shaped, treated, and certified to meet that need.

Can a human hang from a power line?

Hanging off of power lines is a very effective way to get yourself killed a lot. Assuming the dude in question was in contact with exactly one wire, and absolutely nothing else, and wasn't even close to touching anything else, and that the wire didn't snap, then he'd be fine.

Can humans touch power lines?

Misconception #2: Power lines are insulated, so they're safe to touch. This is a common misconception that many people have about power lines. Power lines are not insulated and you should always avoid contact with them. It is quite possible for people to get electrocuted if you touch power lines.

How thick are power lines?

They are usually about one or two inches in diameter. There is also a smaller wire at the top of the structure, called a shield wire. The shield wire is designed to protect the power line from lightning and may also contain fiber optic communication cables.

What is an H pole?

Definition of H pole

: a telegraph pole built up of two parallel poles braced together.

How many holes does a lattice steel pole have?

c-1 Each of the (9&11 m) lattice steel poles shall have an earthing hole (18 mm dia.) located at the center of the lower plate for earthing purposes. c-2 Every steel lattice pole shall be supplied with (11 Nos.)

How deep should a 35 foot pole be buried?

Set any pole with energized conductor 10% + 2 feet deep, i.e. a 35 ft pole should be set 5.5 feet deep.

How deep do you bury a 20 foot pole?

In your case, if the poles are 20' above ground, you'd want to be 4-5 feet down. If your poles are 20' in length (16-17' above ground), 3-4' may be adequate.