One for the HV guys / westie

[flyingsparks]

On holiday up near blackpool at the moment, and drove past this:

Those power lines look only to be about 12m ish from the ground, how can that be safe!? What are the regulations for HV power lines like that?

 

[westie101]

400kV minimum clearance is 7.3m so I would suggest they will be in compliance

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2002/2665/schedule/2/made

 

[flyingsparks]

A tractor and loader would easily hit 7.3m, are there restrictions about traffic underneath the lines then? Seems very low to me!

 

[Jackrae]

It's only an impression, but I feel the aesthetics of today's MV line installations are generally quite scrappy in comparison to what they were 30 or 40 years ago.

These days one can see really ugly/untidy fuses/switchgear/remote controls stuck up poles standing at all sorts of angles whereas at one time poles would be absolutely vertical, and pole-top gear would be really neat and tidy.

In fact I would say a lot of today's installations looks rather like what one used to see in the American films. We haven't quite got to the rat nests of 3rd world installations, but we're not far away.

Has Brit pride and workmanship gone out the window to the demands of profit motivated bean counters.

 

[westie101]

A tractor and loader would easily hit 7.3m, are there restrictions about traffic underneath the lines then?

Lots of documentation and advice about it! Ours are at 6m and very rarely get hit by farm machinery.
Is it safe? That's something for the likes of the HSE, who no doubt feel it is.

These days one can see really ugly/untidy fuses/switchgear/remote controls stuck up poles standing at all sorts of angles whereas at one time poles would be absolutely vertical, and pole-top gear would be really neat and tidy.

Yep there are lots of "christmas trees" around! We try to keep ours tidy in this patch where our own staff have worked on them

 

[Taylortwocities]

 

[mfarrow]

Ours are at 6m and very rarely get hit by farm machinery.

Railway road level crossings are at 5.6m at 25kV AC, or 5.5m at 1500V DC. 5.2m at any voltage for foot/bridleway crossings. There would be severe issues I imagine if this was a problem.

 

[Jackrae]

TTC
Bit of voltage swing on your system there !!
Fantastic graphic

 

[ban-all-sheds]

On holiday up near blackpool at the moment, and drove past this:

Were you alone when you decided to stop and take a photo of some pylons in a muddy field?

 

[plugwash]

There is only so far you can go in protecting idiots from their own stupidity. I would hope that when the pylons were constructed that all legitimate users of the land were warned about them.

As for railway level crossings iirc they have mechanisms in place to warn over-height vehicles.

 

[flyingsparks]

On holiday up near blackpool at the moment, and drove past this:

Were you alone when you decided to stop and take a photo of some pylons in a muddy field?

I stopped and asked mrs sparks to take the picture actually! She did think I was rather 'sad' too have done it tho!

 

[stillp]

I would hope that when the pylons were constructed that all legitimate users of the land were warned about them.

Why, in case they didn't notice them?

 

[wingcoax]

Hope the weather didn't put you off too much FS.

 

[Spark123]

You could take your mrs to the visitor centre at Heysham Power Station, she'll love it
I take it the OP pic is some sort of HV T junction?

 

[flyingsparks]

You could take your mrs to the visitor centre at Heysham Power Station, she'll love it
I take it the OP pic is some sort of HV T junction?

If only I knew! We're heading home tommorow!