[kelley4180]

Hi, had a guy over working on some gutters yesterday. I was out in the yard doing something else, but saw him scrape his high ladder against the power lines coming from the pole to our house (connects to our gable end of the house, only about 15 feet high).

I yelled to be careful, and he was thereon. But, I'm wondering, why did he not fry or at least receive a zap?

 

[k_buz]

Unless damaged, the hot wires are insulated from the pole to the home.

 

[joecaption]

Was it a fiberglass ladder?
Now if he tryed that on the main line on the pole he would have been toast.

 

[mpoulton]

The wires coming into your house are 120V, and insulated. They pose no more of a shock hazard than any other wires in your house. The lines at the top of the utility pole are usually 7200V and uninsulated.

 

[chemman]

I work for a power company here in PA as an operator. I got a call one day about a contact with the overhead single phase primary that had occurred the day before. This fellow was taking down or putting up scaffolding on a house, I can't remember which, but in the course of doing so swung an end of a metal pipe into the primary. The other end of said pipe was in his hand. After doing this he apparently didn't feel so well, drove home, and showed up for work the next day, not feeling so hot. According to the crew I was talking to, he had an entrance wound on his hand and an exit wound on his chest, was pale and didn't feel well, and didn't see the need to go to a hospital. It took some convincing, but he eventually agreed to seek medical attention. Talk about one lucky, dumb, and tough SOB!

 

[frenchelectrican]

I work for a power company here in PA as an operator. I got a call one day about a contact with the overhead single phase primary that had occurred the day before. This fellow was taking down or putting up scaffolding on a house, I can't remember which, but in the course of doing so swung an end of a metal pipe into the primary. The other end of said pipe was in his hand. After doing this he apparently didn't feel so well, drove home, and showed up for work the next day, not feeling so hot. According to the crew I was talking to, he had an entrance wound on his hand and an exit wound on his chest, was pale and didn't feel well, and didn't see the need to go to a hospital. It took some convincing, but he eventually agreed to seek medical attention. Talk about one lucky, dumb, and tough SOB!

I wrote the underline part and that part I do denfentally agree with you after that dolt did hit the primary line., Anyone walk away from primary is either lucky SOB or have some kind of lucky charms with it.

Most case I know either USA side or European side anyone hit either primary or secondary drops useally are done for it.

That why we always have simple rules always look up for power lines no matter what voltage class it is.

Merci,
Marc

 

[mpoulton]

I work for a power company here in PA as an operator. I got a call one day about a contact with the overhead single phase primary that had occurred the day before. This fellow was taking down or putting up scaffolding on a house, I can't remember which, but in the course of doing so swung an end of a metal pipe into the primary. The other end of said pipe was in his hand. After doing this he apparently didn't feel so well, drove home, and showed up for work the next day, not feeling so hot. According to the crew I was talking to, he had an entrance wound on his hand and an exit wound on his chest, was pale and didn't feel well, and didn't see the need to go to a hospital. It took some convincing, but he eventually agreed to seek medical attention. Talk about one lucky, dumb, and tough SOB!

WHOA! That's insane!!! That usually results in amputations at the very best. Do you know if it was 7.2kV primary, or an older 2.4kV system? I had an old electrician on a job once who had an odd scar on top of his bald head from standing up in a transformer vault and contacting a 2.4kV bus bar. It happened way back before safety was a priority. Said he remembered the whole thing and was mostly OK afterward, but he considered himself super lucky.

 

[chemman]

WHOA! That's insane!!! That usually results in amputations at the very best. Do you know if it was 7.2kV primary, or an older 2.4kV system? I had an old electrician on a job once who had an odd scar on top of his bald head from standing up in a transformer vault and contacting a 2.4kV bus bar. It happened way back before safety was a priority. Said he remembered the whole thing and was mostly OK afterward, but he considered himself super lucky.

It was 7.2kV. And I don't know how he survived it, but he did. And showed up for work the next day! Friggin' crazy.