Back when I was a telco lineman, the Oregon PUC gave us the clearances and they
would actually send out an inspector to measure them once in a while.
We had to cross all roadways at 16 feet. We had to be below the bottom of a
secondary drip loop by 18 inches. Sometimes that was tough to do. I remember
rail road tracks were something like 26 feet. Cannot remember the rest. That
was 38 years ago.
From: Jason McKemie
Sent: Saturday, June 24, 2017 12:57 PM
To: af@afmug.com
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Avoid 'make ready' by using my own poles
Code is 15'6" above most roads and driveways. It is a bit less over yards, I
can't remember off hand. Obviously the more clearance the better.
On Saturday, June 24, 2017, <ch...@wbmfg.com> wrote:
Well, with max truck height of 14 feet, you sure want to be above that.
From: Adam Moffett
Sent: Saturday, June 24, 2017 10:02 AM
To: af@afmug.com
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Avoid 'make ready' by using my own poles
I just saw some about that short yesterday with telephone drop cables on
them, so mabe. You also have to consider the terrain changes. Often the road
is slightly elevated for drainage, and the line may be running down hill for
instance. With a 35' pole we can maintain good clearance in most
circumstances, and it's not too expensive.
I need to be 16 feet above state roads. Other circumstances could allow as
low as 14'. So far I've given those numbers a wide margin because I don't want
to assume that the wire won't stretch or have something leaning on it to bring
it down.
------ Original Message ------
From: "Kurt Fankhauser" <lists.wavel...@gmail.com>
To: af@afmug.com
Sent: 6/24/2017 10:01:22 AM
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Avoid 'make ready' by using my own poles
What is minimal pole size and cost for a small pole for communications
wire? 25 foot pole? 5 foot in ground and 20 foot above ground? That would get
you roughly 5 feet of sag allowance between poles since I was told 15 feet is
the lowest your wire can be to the road.
Also is there any ROW laws that give a county/municipality the right to
deny you an application to set another row of poles on the opposite side of the
road from electric poles when you obviously could place more wires on the
electric poles?
On Sat, Jun 24, 2017 at 1:26 AM, Jason McKemie
<j.mcke...@veloxinetbroadband.com> wrote:
The NEC that the local power coop goes by is 40" below neutral for a
conductive cable, and 30" for non-conductive.
On Friday, June 23, 2017, Chuck McCown <ch...@wbmfg.com> wrote:
The zone around primary conductors that you have to keep out of. Rule
of thumb is 10 feet, but there are legal specs. Actually secondary too but
that is normally 12-18 inches.
From: Adam Moffett
Sent: Friday, June 23, 2017 11:43 AM
To: af@afmug.com
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Avoid 'make ready' by using my own poles
This is going to be an ignorant question, but what is the clearance
zone?
------ Original Message ------
From: ch...@wbmfg.com
To: af@afmug.com
Sent: 6/23/2017 1:16:21 PM
Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Avoid 'make ready' by using my own poles
You can’t force them to use your pole.
Your pole cannot encroach on the clearance zone.
You can always put your own poles in ROW that is clear from other
pole lines.
Across the street is probably fine depending on easements.
You can always go underground for a span or two. That will be less
expensive.
From: Adam Moffett
Sent: Friday, June 23, 2017 11:09 AM
To: af@afmug.com
Subject: [AFMUG] Avoid 'make ready' by using my own poles
So, our most common make ready issue so far has been old poles that
are relatively short and we can't stay the required distance from the power
equipment and also be far enough above the existing phone line. Sometimes we
can use a standoff or other solutions to avoid the issue, but sometimes the
pole needs to be replaced. It's never less than $5,000, could be as much as
$10,000.
What I'm wondering is this: We can get a new 35' pole for $800. We
can get a new 50' pole for $1500. Is there any reason I couldn't just avoid
make ready expense by setting our own pole instead of using theirs? Even with
guy wires, permit, and easements it's almost guaranteed to be less expensive.
Maybe I would put a 35 footer on the opposite side of the road, for example.
Or maybe we set the new 50 footer right next to theirs and even let them move
onto our pole if they want to. It seems too easy and I'm wondering if there's
a catch I'm not thinking of.
