View Full Version : Power company linesmen
Thanks to the power company linesmen who work very hard in extreme circumstances to keep us connected to power supplies. Truly unsung heroes.
Truly unsung heroes.
No they're not.
http://youtu.be/K8kFGGOIl4c
Lol sids.
Have to agree when I've got my head buried under the pillow trying to block the wind noise, these guys are out there working, they deserve our respect.
orkneycadian
21-Dec-13, 03:06
If they buried the cables properly, they wouldn't need to be out in all weathers trying to fix their cheapskate bodge jobs. Sticking them on poles might be the cheap and nasty solution for them, but it blights the landscape far more than any windmills, and makes working in the fields a pain in the backside. If they spent a little more and buried the cables, there would be;
*No visual pollution or clutter
*No birds flying into lines and being killed
*Far less power cuts
*No bleeding poles or stays in fields
*Less accidents involving machinery that come into contact with bare wires
*No need for folk having to go out and try and fix them in bad weather
Windfarms bury their cables. And folk complain about their visual intrusion. Why can't the power company bury theirs? Cost. If they skimp on the costs, then its their loss to have to try and fix their "economical solutions" when the wind brings them down. No sympathy. If they are out there getting cold and wet, then thats their doing. If they had buried them in the first place, then they would be home and tucked up by the fire on cold, windy, snowy nights.
macadamia
21-Dec-13, 09:02
Blaming the linesmen - who do a brilliant job - for the planning shortcomings of their bosses is rather like blaming our brave lads in the Forces for having to carry out orders from extremely expletive deleted politicians. I might as well blame you for the stormy weather!
No they're not.http://youtu.be/K8kFGGOIl4cIs that song not about a telecoms tech?
billmoseley
21-Dec-13, 12:53
A few weeks agohere in kirtomy the power went out a 5 20am in the storm force winds the lines were out hunting for the fault within hours. Unfortunately they did not find it during day light hours. Next morning still no electric then i saw one of the linesmen checking the transformer by our house. i went and had a chat he told me he had worked 20 hours had 3 hours off and had come back in because he knew people had no electric. i offered him a hot drink he said no he had to get on. So yes they get my full respect
A few weeks agohere in kirtomy the power went out a 5 20am in the storm force winds the lines were out hunting for the fault within hours. Unfortunately they did not find it during day light hours. Next morning still no electric then i saw one of the linesmen checking the transformer by our house. i went and had a chat he told me he had worked 20 hours had 3 hours off and had come back in because he knew people had no electric. i offered him a hot drink he said no he had to get on. So yes they get my full respect20 hours straight, Ching Ching, Winner winner chicken dinnerA cracking earner
They have really been working in extremely difficult circumstances over here in outer hebrides, getting folk reconnected.
I would not fancy doing their job, bad enough just now getting blown off my feet when it is only breezy walking the dogs but to have to go out when it is very wild, no thanks.
Would have extreme difficulty burying cables here due to depth of soil required and the hardness of our rock (one of hardest in world)
They can get paid what they want as far as I am concerned, they are worth their pay.
Pussy Galore
21-Dec-13, 19:41
You have all got to get your tuppence worth in on something you know damn all about.:mad: My husband is one of these linesmen you have something to say about when behind a faceless forum site, big brave words when nobody knows who you are, you wouldnt be so free with your opinions if you were face to face with the lads if you had no power.
Listen to you spout off Orkneycadian, you sound to me as if you are nothing more than an ignoramus.
However macadamia, thank you, you are so right these lads have to do as they are told, not what they want to do. There are many times the lads disagree with the situation too, as they are looking at things from a commons sense point of view after all they are the guys on the ground having to do the job and face the customer. However they dont make the decisions it's the hierarchy that do and get paid the superstar wages for it mi16. Yeah Ching Ching my ar$e, I know what my husband gets paid to the very penny and it is not a bloody fortune as you would like to think; obviously mistaking the Hydro boys for some sort of employee out at Dounreay who works a 37hr week so hard he has to sleep on the bus coming home to his fancy house and top of the range car in the drive.
Anyway money aside which is just as well, cause these lads believe it or not are dedicated to the job and their first priority is to get the customers power back on, not the money as you would like to believe mi16. You have no idea over the last 38 years how many family occasions, Christmas Days, never mind a decent night sleep have been ruined in order to get supply back on to customers. In years gone by I could go for days without seeing him as he worked hours and days on end.
I for one am proud of my husband and all the Hydro boys, even if there are some ungrateful know it alls out there who like to hid behind a forum.
Well said PG, people often forget that those linesmen have families of their own that could be missing their daddy at Xmas because he's out making sure others have a good day.
Well said PG, people often forget that those linesmen have families of their own that could be missing their daddy at Xmas because he's out making sure others have a good day.
Here Here Jox, well said, I agree with Pussy Galore too.
i also agree the lines men do a great job and the ones that have moaned. perhaps they will give up thier family time and go out all weather and then they will see how hard it is. I hope pg and all the other people that have to be on call this christmas have a call free christmas and enjoy family time
mi16. Yeah Ching Ching my ar$e, I know what my husband gets paid to the very penny and it is not a bloody fortune as you would like to think; obviously mistaking the Hydro boys for some sort of employee out at Dounreay who works a 37hr week so hard he has to sleep on the bus coming home to his fancy house and top of the range car in the drive.Anyway money aside which is just as well, cause these lads believe it or not are dedicated to the job and their first priority is to get the customers power back on, not the money as you would like to believe mi16I trust he does work for some kind of financial recompense and not voluntary, I also presume he is rewarded in some way for working unsociable hours be it Toil, double bubble or built into the salary.I never suggested he would be on rock star money hence why an unexpected additional 20hrs pay would be a winner
orkneycadian
22-Dec-13, 10:55
You have all got to get your tuppence worth in on something you know damn all about
Well, this is after all a discussion forum. If we didn't discuss things, and express views, it would be a pretty quiet backwater of a place! Except of course for the postings on "Does anyone know when Tesco is open?"
I know what my husband gets paid to the very penny and it is not a bloody fortune as you would like to think
A bit I guess like the pittance landowners get paid for having poles on their land. I suspect however, that if your man gets called out to fix a pole, before he has even left the house, his call out money will have exceeded what we get for having the bloody thing in the field for 10 years.
You have no idea over the last 38 years how many family occasions, Christmas Days, never mind a decent night sleep have been ruined in order to get supply back on to customers. In years gone by I could go for days without seeing him as he worked hours and days on end.
Welcome to the real world. Its not just Hydro men who have the "inconvenience" of having to work unsocial hours. Try farming. No-one pays you a call out fee if you have to go out in the middle of the night to a calving. Beast still need fed and attending to on Christmas day, not just when it co-incides with bad weather, but each and every Christmas day. Silage and barley needs round the clock working to get it in when the weather is OK, so that the Tesco shoppers can find meat and milk on the shelves.
There is no doubt that trying to maintain wires on poles in exposed areas is hard work. But its needless hard work in this day and age. Our phone lines used to be on poles too, but BT have long since buried them all, with the odd exception of a single pole at someones house where they didn't want to dig up the garden / path. Since they did that, I can't remember the last time I saw a BT man up a pole at 2 in the morning, or on Christmas day. Scottish Water similarly have all their pipes underground, safely out of reach of bad weather, snow and frost. Again, whilst there is the odd time that there is a leak or other problem, most of their Christmas Days will be spent at home.
I have seen them laying cables and putting up poles here. The holes they dig for the poles are deeper than the ones they dig for the cables. So if you have hard rock, you'll have bigger problems with the depth of digging for the poles. And both BT and Scottish Water seem to have no problem digging in their wires and pipes.
I can look out here on all 4 sides, and there are Hydro Poles everywhere. There must be going on a hundred in very visible view. If those were windmills, there would be a government inquiry, and people would be telling us that their houses were all worthless. Unlike windmills which are grey and blend in with a typical Orkney sky (:D) these are varying shades of brown. Now, in all my time, I have seen many sky colours here, but never brown. I would rather have windmills, access roads and buried cables on my land than I would Hydro poles anyday. At least with them, you don't have Hydro Land Rovers chewing up your grass when they go in to fix things, and needing a pull out with a tractor when they get themselves stuck.
Horses for courses. But I guess your man should consider how much easier his life would be if his employers buried the wires in the first place, or were like BT and converted from having poles years ago to underground cables today. If I still tried to farm the old fashioned way, ploughing with horse or ox, threshing oats by hand, cutting grass for hay with a scythe, etc, and complained of the hard work involved, folk would just tell me to "get with it" and do things the modern way.
Bt cables can often be seen laying along a ditch, not exactly buried.It's not as simple to remove a transmission car from a pylon and digging a wee hole for it.
Tell us about your own job, Pussy Galore.
some sort of employee out at Dounreay who works a 37hr week so hard he has to sleep on the bus coming home to his fancy house and top of the range car in the drive.
.
37.90 hr week, if you don't mind!
Frankly, if Mr Galore is heading out in the middle of the night and no extra appears in his pay, I think you should discreetly follow him some night.
37.90 hr week, if you don't mind!
Frankly, if Mr Galore is heading out in the middle of the night and no extra appears in his pay, I think you should discreetly follow him some night.
:eek::eek::eek:
billmoseley
22-Dec-13, 17:44
I'm shocked at the Abuse sent Pussy Galores way in this forum. why can't people give respect where respect is due. Does it matter how much someone gets paid or What hours people work. We all do jobs that make the world go round and to be honest with out electricity we all suffer. So be grateful that someone is prepared to go out in all weathers 365 days a year.
I'm shocked at the Abuse sent Pussy Galores way in this forum. why can't people give respect where respect is due. Does it matter how much someone gets paid or What hours people work. We all do jobs that make the world go round and to be honest with out electricity we all suffer. So be grateful that someone is prepared to go out in all weathers 365 days a year.
Ms Galore was somewhat forthright herself on this thread. I'm sure she can handle it in good spirit (unlike you).
billmoseley
22-Dec-13, 17:59
o Sids if only you knew me.
o Sids if only you knew me.
I'll pay your opinion of yourself the attention it merits.
Well I am very grateful to them!
Our power went off late last night and we saw the hydro engineers arrive within a short time and it was back on within half an hour.
Yes they might get extra money but they flipping deserve it! They go out in the most awful weather and have to sacrifice time with their families over Christmas.
Merry Christmas to you all! :)
Yes they might get extra money but they flipping deserve it!
Which is the way it should be.
orkneycadian
26-Dec-13, 11:05
I suspect theres a lot more folk across the country who now wish their power came to them in underground cables.
Again a truly heartfelt thanks to these hard working linesmen working in the worst of conditions to keep us all connected to the grid.
Pity about the usual post hijackers proving themselves to be totally ignorant of the sterling work that these guys are doing and the sacrifices to their personal lives they make doing the work that they do. The linesmen are not responsible for the planning of the lines Orkneycadian. Why can you not just appreciate the very hard work that they (the linesmen) are doing to keep us connected without trying to make an issue out of it?
I suspect theres a lot more folk across the country who now wish their power came to them in underground cables. Perhaps, not really a feasible retrofit though is it?
Perhaps, not really a feasible retrofit though is it?
The alternative to lowering the cables would be to raise the ground level.
orkneycadian
27-Dec-13, 09:08
Perhaps, not really a feasible retrofit though is it?
BT seemed to manage it.
BT seemed to manage it.Did they?Looking out my window I can see telephone lines on poles, also across the road I can see a telephone cable laying in the ditch You cannot use such methods with transmission wires
BT seemed to manage it.Go to most towns and cities and their wires are pole mounted. Only New York & New England Exchange bothered (at huge cost) to underground wires.
orkneycadian
28-Dec-13, 10:52
When I was peedie, I mind (partly from looking at photos of when I was peedie! ;) ) there were phone wires ran along all the sides of the roads. And these were on the poles with all the cross bars like you stereotypically used to see at the side of a railway line. All gone now - Underground. With the exception, as mentioned above, in a few cases, where the last bit into a house is on a pole, as BT didn't want to dig up folks gardens. They must have dug in hundreds of miles of wires up here that used to be on poles.
Theres a few folk here as well now that have paid the Hydro to dig in cables that used to be on poles so they could site their house where they wanted, which would have been too close to the poles and wires otherwise.
So, BT can do it, housebuilders can do it, windfarms can do it. Just seems to be the Hydro that can't!
When I was peedie, I mind (partly from looking at photos of when I was peedie! ;) ) there were phone wires ran along all the sides of the roads. And these were on the poles with all the cross bars like you stereotypically used to see at the side of a railway line. All gone now - Underground. With the exception, as mentioned above, in a few cases, where the last bit into a house is on a pole, as BT didn't want to dig up folks gardens. They must have dug in hundreds of miles of wires up here that used to be on poles.Theres a few folk here as well now that have paid the Hydro to dig in cables that used to be on poles so they could site their house where they wanted, which would have been too close to the poles and wires otherwise.So, BT can do it, housebuilders can do it, windfarms can do it. Just seems to be the Hydro that can't!££££££££It all comes down to the pound, would be a massively expensive exercise for little gain
orkneycadian
28-Dec-13, 11:33
Hmmmm, looks like it. I see on the BBC News site that "as a gesture of goodwill", they are upping compensation to folk that have had no electricity since Monday, from £27 to £75.
That'll go down well!
BT offered to underground the cable to my neighbour, for £3500!
Most of the 'underground' BT cables around here are actually just dropped into drainage ditches.
For the hydro to connect us by pole & wire it cost just short of £20K, to underground them it would have cost many more times that. The option is mortgage to build a house or mortgage to nicely underground a leccy connection and live in a tent.
We fully accepted that living rurally miles from major conurbations came with the risk that the leccy would go off here and there, and we prepared for that in many ways.
In 5 years of living in a remote field the leccy was off far less often and for less time than it has in 12 months living in a major city.
edit: from a US site but I would imagine comparable;
The estimated cost for constructing underground transmission lines ranges from 4 to 14 times more expensive than overhead lines of the same voltage and same distance. A typical new 69 kV overhead single-circuit transmission line costs approximately $285,000 per mile as opposed to $1.5 million per mile for a new 69 kV underground line (without the terminals)
I've just had three leccy poles worth of cable put underground at SSEs suggestion and expense. They even paid me for digging up my field
(£ 37 over 6 years).
The new place we are building...no chance, so off grid for us. :D
orkneycadian
29-Dec-13, 13:39
They even paid me for digging up my field (£ 37 over 6 years).
Ah, I see now what they mean when they say that these underground cables are so expensive.
Did these underground cables suffer any damage in the recent high winds?
Ah, I see now what they mean when they say that these underground cables are so expensive.Did these underground cables suffer any damage in the recent high winds?Replacement of overhead transmission lines with underground ducts would be massively expensive
Ah, I see now what they mean when they say that these underground cables are so expensive.
Did these underground cables suffer any damage in the recent high winds?
Nope, they are not very deep though, I'm sure a determined farmer could plow them up. :eek:
orkneycadian
04-Jan-14, 11:19
Strewth! How deep do you think we plough? Its measurable in inches, not feet!
I see that the power companies are to get hauled in before a Commons select committee to explain themselves as to why so much power was off for so long. Not sure if "we were too miserable to spend some of our vast profits on burying cables like they do in the Netherlands" will quite cut it for them.
Underground cabling will not even be on the agenda
orkneycadian
05-Jan-14, 12:12
Oh well, yet another Commons Select Committee enquiry that fails to get to the root (no pun intended) of the problem.
billmoseley
05-Jan-14, 13:12
I think the root of the problem is the weather. simples
orkneycadian
05-Jan-14, 13:18
We atheists don't often quote from the Bible, but Matthew perhaps had a promising future (he just didn't know it) as a Power Company designer when he wrote 7:24-27 ;)
Really staunch atheists may prefer the 3 little pigs version
Mrs Bradey
05-Jan-14, 15:02
We atheists don't often quote from the Bible, but Matthew perhaps had a promising future (he just didn't know it) as a Power Company designer when he wrote 7:24-27 ;)Really staunch atheists may prefer the 3 little pigs version would think most houses on Orkney got good firm foundations! all the rock does make putting cables underground more expensive! having said that I heard last week that there are plans to run underground transmission cables across part of caithness and at the same time pylons overland, strange but true, apparently! yet to find it route of underground run??!!
Better Out Than In
20-Jan-14, 17:34
Caithness gets less power cuts than it used to. Remember when the main grid line kept breaking with weight of ice. Now power cuts are often more localised. Highland's local power distribution network has suffered from under investment for many years (an ex-SSE chairman told me this). With all the renewables coming on, often to a higher spec than grid itself, they are being forced to upgrade. I agree you can't blame linesman for other's fault - they do a grand job in sometimes terrible circumstances. The hydro board did once have a policy of back burying cables but gave up after two years as ran out of money. Actually it is not always more expensive to bury cables - you can plough them in. Trouble is getting land owners to agree as you also can plough through hidden field drains, open up artesian water etc. Finally spec for cable burial varies according to land use - so cable buried under a poughed field would be buried deeper than say cable under a car park.
orkneycadian
21-Jan-14, 22:58
No mincing of words going on here.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-25820927
Powered by vBulletin® Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.