Utility Poles are installed in the ground and their main purpose is to support utility equipment which includes telephone wires, communication cables, electricity distribution equipment, power line along with a lot of other things. The poles should be able to go to a decent height the material should be good enough to withhold whatever equipment it is being attached with. Sometimes more than one public utility equipment is attached with a single utility pole. Based on the uses and material there are various types of Utility Poles.
Transmission Utility poles
Substations are the places where the high voltage electricity is converted to low voltage electricity and it is then supplied to the customers from a source, such as a power plant, to a substation, where voltage is then reduced and supplied to customers through lower voltage lines. The distribution poles carry out the supply of electricity through lower voltage lines. Transmission poles are higher than distribution poles because they carry electricity with higher voltage, their height can range from 60 feet to 150 feet, and in order to make sure that such huge poles remain intact in their places, a concrete base is required. These poles can be made up of steel or wood.
Distribution Poles
The distribution poles make sure that the low voltage electricity is distributed in the lines. They get their electricity from the substation. They can be divided into three types namely; Tangent distribution poles, guyed distribution poles, and self-supporting distribution poles.
- Tangent utility poles are the usual ones they are sequenced in a straight line with all other poles. They do not need any angled support or external support and are generally made up of wood.
- Guyed poles need an angled support cable that is attached to the guyed poles. The angled support cable is anchored in the ground. This guy wire cable gives additional support to the pole in order to make sure that the pole is able to withstand the load of the equipment on it.
- The self-supporting utility pole is quite independent of those angled support cables; such poles are built when the guy-wires are not enough to handle the additional load on the pole. This type of utility poles is built when overhead lines from additional equipment like a transformer are placed on the pole. Such poles are made up of concrete or steel.
Safety Features
The utility poles carry a lot of electricity and a lot of power surges through them continuously. In case of a short circuit, lightning or any other mishap there should be a backup plan. The utility poles are hence provided with the system of grounding. The static wire that runs above every utility pole is connected to the grounding device and this is what prevents damage to the pole and whole of the power grid in any casualty or dangerous event. If the electric pole is overloaded with electricity then the static wire directs the whole power surge to the grounding conducting wire which is connected to a grounding pole at the bottom and that pole is inserted deep inside the earth hence the entire power surge is sent straight to the core of the earth.