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Pylons/electric towers

Started by TheGrassGuy, March 06, 2020, 08:12:42 AM

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roadman65

There was a substation there at one time which is why.  Considering on the other side of Route 23 the wires become less heavy duty if you noticed.  It might be to convert the wiring, but what gets me is a transformer is needed to reduce voltage that is not there.
Every day is a winding road, you just got to get used to it.

Sheryl Crowe


US 89

Quote from: -- US 175 -- on March 06, 2020, 06:06:05 PM
Quote from: mrcmc888 on March 06, 2020, 12:34:37 PM
When I was a boy, I could remember seeing electric towers along TN-62 in Oak Ridge that hung orange and white colored round things that looked like fishing bobbers from their wires.  I don't believe they are there anymore.

I've seen those before.  They are warnings to aircraft if they are near/adjacent to an airfield or helipad.  IDK if they are used in newer installations these days as much as in the past.

They don't even necessarily have to be close to an airport. Ever since I can remember, these red balls have been on the power lines crossing I-80 in Parleys Canyon, Utah - nowhere near any sort of landing facility.

jmd41280

"Increase the Flash Gordon noise and put more science stuff around!"

thenetwork

I assume there are specific names for the different styles/shapes of these pylons/transmission towers.  Where would one find such a list?

-- US 175 --

Quote from: thenetwork on March 08, 2020, 10:42:21 AM
I assume there are specific names for the different styles/shapes of these pylons/transmission towers.  Where would one find such a list?

I did a Google search, and there are surprisingly several sites that come up regarding types, shapes, etc.  Here's the search result link:
https://www.google.com/search?source=hp&ei=NjFlXqeFKY6ItQX_tIzIBA&q=electric+transmission+tower+types&oq=electric+transmission+tower+types&gs_l=mobile-gws-wiz-hp.3...4350.28579..29600...0.0..0.204.4369.6j26j1......0....1.......8..41j0i131j0j46j46i131i275j46i131j0i22i30.qMKlmR-laF0

SectorZ

https://goo.gl/maps/zy1nEb89Ru69JmFk7

I've lived near this almost my entire life. Nothing is weird to me anymore in this department, given there are four sets of pylons (totaling 14 among them) spraying out from this.

roadman65

Why is it where wires up high on a pole can skip the poles that the wires under them?   Excuse me but how does height change the distance a wire can be supported?  If it works on top so could it on the bottom.
Every day is a winding road, you just got to get used to it.

Sheryl Crowe

lepidopteran

Quote from: roadman65 on March 10, 2020, 11:56:24 PM
Why is it where wires up high on a pole can skip the poles that the wires under them?
The wires can only sag so much, so the higher the wires are, the longer the possible span between poles.

More importantly, you might ask why are there higher and lower wires in the first place?  This is because the higher-voltage wires need to kept further away from the ground and other wires to prevent arcing.  So the higher the voltage, the larger the insulators, thus more space needed higher up in the air.   Meanwhile, the lower-voltage distribution lines can be closer to the ground; many times these wires will be attached to the taller pylons, but with supplemental poles between them to reduce sagging.  Note that the sag height will vary with different temperatures, so they have to be designed with the warmest weather in mind.

D-Dey65

Quote from: roadman65 on March 07, 2020, 10:17:28 AM
Quote from: lepidopteran on March 06, 2020, 05:35:00 PM
Along I-4, presumably on Disney property, is a power line structure in the shape of Mickey Mouse!  Honest.

Florida is one of the few places where (some older) double-circuit structures have the two circuits one atop the other, rather than side-by-side.  There are also a lot made of concrete, apparently because of the rainfall in the area, and perhaps resilience against hurricanes.  Older poles have a square cross-section; the newer ones appear to be round.

That has been there for ages.  It was there long before Celebration was built and was an icon.  Also the concrete poles are used on many span wire traffic lights and were the norm until the 1990's when each of the counties decided to go mast arms or use fat metal poles. 
Yes, but you have to admit that a thread like this can't possibly exclude that one.

adventurernumber1

I have always been fascinated with transmission towers (electricity pylons) since I was a young child (as well as cell towers, as mentioned in the other thread).

Here is some transmission towers in my area that look a little odd, but for good reason: https://www.google.com/maps/@34.7256541,-84.997994,3a,75y,4.12h,100.49t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1suaoB6GMI7nSIgtVHftBq4w!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

The reason presumably being that they are carrying a lot of wires that would usually require more space for the towers, but since it is parallel to a small road, it all has to fit on very large, tall poles with a lot on each.




There's a couple of sets of unique transmission towers near (and on) Missionary Ridge in nearby Chattanooga, Tennessee:

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.0219257,-85.2415502,3a,40.7y,63.62h,105.82t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sVvlhRWDsVTg6xtffGSSrKQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.0262162,-85.2670166,3a,59.7y,256.89h,106.12t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sMpFLvm1Syfc3m-FWJX-7HA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

The poles are colored green in both cases, and the pole is in the shape of a "Y" on the first set.




I saw some unusual transmission towers doing street-view somewhere in Florida recently (in the past week), but I cannot remember where it was or how to find it (even after trying to find it for the past hour or so). Sadly I don't remember enough about it to describe what it looked like either, but perhaps I may stumble upon it again sometime soon.  :biggrin:
Now alternating between different highway shields for my avatar - my previous highway shield avatar for the last few years was US 76.

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ErmineNotyours

For number of wires check this out: Terminal Island, California.  I saw this in the movie Terminator 2, and worried that the helicopter might crash into it.  At the end of the freeway chase scene, the fence they crash through is actually a fence to the power generation plant that feeds these wires.

cpzilliacus

Quote from: ErmineNotyours on March 14, 2020, 10:15:39 PM
For number of wires check this out: Terminal Island, California.  I saw this in the movie Terminator 2, and worried that the helicopter might crash into it.  At the end of the freeway chase scene, the fence they crash through is actually a fence to the power generation plant that feeds these wires.

There are more than a few places that have a large number of relatively low-voltage circuits similar to this in Southern California.  Here is one crossing CA-1 (Pacific Coast Highway) in El Segundo.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

TheGrassGuy

Quote from: cpzilliacus on March 21, 2020, 04:21:20 PM
Quote from: ErmineNotyours on March 14, 2020, 10:15:39 PM
For number of wires check this out: Terminal Island, California.  I saw this in the movie Terminator 2, and worried that the helicopter might crash into it.  At the end of the freeway chase scene, the fence they crash through is actually a fence to the power generation plant that feeds these wires.

There are more than a few places that have a large number of relatively low-voltage circuits similar to this in Southern California.  Here is one crossing CA-1 (Pacific Coast Highway) in El Segundo.
Well, certainly never seen anything like this on the east coast.
If you ever feel useless, remember that CR 504 exists.

Henry

From the OpenStreetMap Wiki, these are the various types of pylons depicted.

One-level:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Einebenenmast.jpg

Two-level:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Two-level-150kv-800.jpg

Donau (two conductors on top and four on bottom):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:IMG_3503-donau-mast-400kv-800.jpg

Three-level:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Pgetower.jpg

Barrel (same as three-level, but with the middle arm being longer than the other two):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Power_lines_with_fog,_Milan.jpg

Asymmetric (one conductor on top, two on bottom):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Electricity_pylon_DSCI0402.jpg

Triangle (all three conductors on different levels):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Tower-lattice-60kv.jpg
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Steel_pole_400_Hermosa_Duhat_Balintawak_transmission_line.jpg

Flag (all three conductors on same side):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:60kv-angle-tower.jpg
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:FvfNLExPampanga2280_21.JPG

Donau/one-level (combination of Donau and one-level designs, with latter setup on bottom):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Tannenbaummast.jpg

Four-/Six-/Nine-level:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Pylon_Shenzhen.jpg

Delta:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Delta-150kv-800.jpg

Delta, two-/three-level:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Veldstelling_Uitermeer_002.JPG

Y-frame (variant of delta, but with no cross-arm for middle conductor):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:IMG_3501-ymast-400kv-800.jpg

X-frame (same as y-frame, but with second arm for carrying lower-voltage wires):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:400kv-x-frame.jpg

H-frame, one-level:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Tower-60kv-h.jpg

H-frame, two-/three-level:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Power-tower-h-frame_two-level.jpeg

Guyed H-frame:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Guyed-h-frame-tower.jpg

Portal, one-level:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:IMG_4875-portal-800.jpg

Portal, two-/three-level:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Powertower-wide01.png

Guyed V-frame:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Pylônes_près_de_Chapais04.JPG

Bipole:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Wintrack-800.jpg

Monopolar:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Monopolar-400kv-800.jpg

Incomplete:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Incomplete-barrel-tower-800.jpg

Seven different types of towers are represented below.

Suspension (each conductor may have single vertical insulator or two diagonal insulators forming a V shape attached to its arm):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:French_power_tower_suspension.jpg

Anchor (each conductor has at least two horizontal insulators attached to its arm):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:FLMast-TK.jpg

Termination (each conductor has one horizontal insulator attached to its arm):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Endmast.jpg

Branch (usually with horizontal insulators for all conductors, and the second line may either continue or terminate):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Abzweigmast2.jpg

Transposing (at least two conductors switch positions):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Verdrillmast_Oberwoehr.jpg

Crossing:
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:154_kV_Bosphorous_crossing_foto_5.jpg

Transition (same as termination, but conductors transition to underground cables):
https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/File:Sindelfingen_Gesockelter_Mast_2007_by-RaBoe_03.jpg
Go Cubs Go! Go Cubs Go! Hey Chicago, what do you say? The Cubs are gonna win today!

ixnay

Quote from: TheGrassGuy on March 06, 2020, 08:12:42 AM
The weirdest ones I've seen are on the I-495 bridge in Wilmington Delaware, and the US 202 bridge between NJ and PA.

Thanks for leading off this thread with a mention of a landmark on my trips from Del. Co., PA to points south or southwest of Wilmington in my adolescence and early adulthood, before I moved to MD.

I wonder if those towers were there before I-495 was built in the mid-seventies?

ixnay
The Washington/Baltimore/Arlington CSA has two Key Bridges, a Minnesota Avenue, and a Mannasota Avenue.

ixnay

Quote from: Henry on March 06, 2020, 09:05:22 AM
Quote from: TheGrassGuy on March 06, 2020, 08:12:42 AM
The weirdest ones I've seen are on the I-495 bridge in Wilmington Delaware, and the US 202 bridge between NJ and PA.

You're most likely referring to these:

I-495 in Wilmington -- https://www.google.com/maps/@39.7245239,-75.5346276,3a,75y,44.47h,101.78t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1smEW6Ir9eZbYNK8K81CdxjA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

See my previous post.

QuoteUS 202 over the Delaware -- https://www.google.com/maps/@40.3797376,-74.9541964,3a,75y,356.03h,95.93t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sAsk00EYOGij3DO3S399vRA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

Unobtrusive, and IMO fitting into the rural setting.  The towers whose lines US 1 passes under in Chadds Ford, PA are of a similar construction (poles, not erector sets) and in a similar setting.

QuoteI nominate these unusual-looking towers on the Chicago Skyway:

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7265325,-87.5533252,3a,75y,338.69h,96.89t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sG8tsLUDruyAFToTqb6Md9Q!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

Portions of those towers look retrofit i.e. add-ons.

ixnay
The Washington/Baltimore/Arlington CSA has two Key Bridges, a Minnesota Avenue, and a Mannasota Avenue.

ixnay

Quote from: Mr_Northside on March 06, 2020, 10:00:48 AM
I'd probably go with the term "unique" over "weird" - But I don't think I've ever seen a design quite like some Duquesne Light transmission lines scattered about their territory.

https://goo.gl/maps/GSScn9JcNDmdYHwM7

I had the pleasure of following that line of towers through Plum on my way to the Pro Football and R&R Halls of Fame in 1999, when the PA Tpk was much cheaper.

ixnay
The Washington/Baltimore/Arlington CSA has two Key Bridges, a Minnesota Avenue, and a Mannasota Avenue.

ixnay

Quote from: D-Dey65 on March 06, 2020, 01:21:38 PM
There's another variety that I like to call "Indian Man" Power Lines, because they remind me of what we were all taught about Native American cave drawings back when we were kids in school.

In what way do they?  For me that era would've been mid-60s through early '70s.

ixnay
The Washington/Baltimore/Arlington CSA has two Key Bridges, a Minnesota Avenue, and a Mannasota Avenue.

ixnay

Quote from: lepidopteran on March 06, 2020, 05:35:00 PM
Along I-4, presumably on Disney property, is a power line structure in the shape of Mickey Mouse!  Honest.

Now *that's* Imagineering!

ixnay
The Washington/Baltimore/Arlington CSA has two Key Bridges, a Minnesota Avenue, and a Mannasota Avenue.

ixnay

Quote from: -- US 175 -- on March 06, 2020, 06:06:05 PM
Quote from: mrcmc888 on March 06, 2020, 12:34:37 PM
When I was a boy, I could remember seeing electric towers along TN-62 in Oak Ridge that hung orange and white colored round things that looked like fishing bobbers from their wires.  I don't believe they are there anymore.

I've seen those before.  They are warnings to aircraft if they are near/adjacent to an airfield or helipad.  IDK if they are used in newer installations these days as much as in the past.

Here's some balls across (Old) US 222 from the former airfield/gliderport in Kutztown, PA, now a medevac heliport. 

https://www.google.com/maps/@40.5069688,-75.7881223,3a,78.8y,358.53h,85.11t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s8LjaRdPYMWKCD4buTnq0rA!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo2.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D8LjaRdPYMWKCD4buTnq0rA%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D61.191452%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192?hl=en



ixnay
The Washington/Baltimore/Arlington CSA has two Key Bridges, a Minnesota Avenue, and a Mannasota Avenue.

ixnay

Quote from: Stephane Dumas on March 07, 2020, 09:43:06 AM
Hydro-Quebec also used red and white pylons when some important power lines cross a river like these 2 735 kv lines near Levis. https://goo.gl/maps/64QQdg5GBm4FmtXZ9

Can a layman tell just by looking at a tower how much voltage it's carrying?

ixnay
The Washington/Baltimore/Arlington CSA has two Key Bridges, a Minnesota Avenue, and a Mannasota Avenue.

ixnay

Quote from: lepidopteran on March 11, 2020, 08:30:29 PM
Note that the sag height will vary with different temperatures, so they have to be designed with the warmest weather in mind.

How does warm weather affect the sag?  Does warm weather make wires sag more or less?

ixnay
The Washington/Baltimore/Arlington CSA has two Key Bridges, a Minnesota Avenue, and a Mannasota Avenue.


TheGrassGuy

How common are Donaus in NJ? I doubt there's even one; the closest ones I can think of are along the QEW around St. Catherines in Ontario.

On the other hand, I've seen some elongated barrels. Too bad all the examples I know of have been replaced. https://www.google.com/maps/@40.539312,-74.3393446,3a,75y,85.89h,101.3t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s7BMjpr8dqlOeIarBClErxA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
If you ever feel useless, remember that CR 504 exists.

jmd41280

Quote from: ixnay on March 31, 2020, 05:06:33 PM
Quote from: Mr_Northside on March 06, 2020, 10:00:48 AM
I'd probably go with the term "unique" over "weird" - But I don't think I've ever seen a design quite like some Duquesne Light transmission lines scattered about their territory.

https://goo.gl/maps/GSScn9JcNDmdYHwM7

I had the pleasure of following that line of towers through Plum on my way to the Pro Football and R&R Halls of Fame in 1999, when the PA Tpk was much cheaper.


ixnay

The power lines w/ those towers actually form a complete circle around Pittsburgh.

I-79 near Carnegie
https://www.google.com/maps/@40.3846316,-80.0966674,3a,17.7y,349.43h,95.14t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1spi2oOhTIVNx3zKQD3reZ_w!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

PA 88 in Castle Shannon
https://www.google.com/maps/@40.3761719,-80.0045971,3a,75y,19.22h,98.04t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s-R5xi8jQl20O3GoIRB3vuQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Along US 19 Truck in Ross Township
https://www.google.com/maps/@40.53686,-80.0109144,3a,75y,329.36h,94.07t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sTDl5c14HN1RBrIJjLMOpqQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192
"Increase the Flash Gordon noise and put more science stuff around!"



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