close call with a tele.pole guide/support cable

GaryM · May 18, 2005

I'm a Ham radio operator and have a 70' guyed tower on my lot.

I have to be VERY careful whenever I operate the tractor in that part of the yard. I know that if I snag one of the guy wires the whole thing will come crashing down. And that will cost ME some money to get it fixed up.

I've put brightly colored plasic sleeves on the wires where they hook to the anchors so they'll be more visible.

LBrown59 · May 20, 2005

( I'm a Ham radio operator and have a 70' guyed tower on my lot.

I have to be VERY careful whenever I operate the tractor in that part of the yard. I know that if I snag one of the guy wires the whole thing will come crashing down. And that will cost ME some money to get it fixed up.
I've put brightly colored plasic sleeves on the wires where they hook to the anchors so they'll be more visible. )
= = = = = =
 I use the orange florescent tape to tie streamers to these guy wires to make them more visible.
 I also use it on stakes to make them easier to see.

LBrown59 · May 20, 2005

( Slightly off-topic: how do you remove an abandoned anchor?

I was transplanting a tree by trenching with a mattox then pulling a small steel cable under it - see attachment. A moment after this picture the root ball exploded. What the ****??

I discovered I had snagged an abandoned pole anchor, and when my cable slipped off it the rootball was flung back where it came from.

I tried unscrewing the anchor out of the ground with a crowbar but couldn't budge it. It will be a hazard to run the rotary mower over that spot.
 Any suggestions, short of digging a massive hole? 
** ** ** ** **
Any utility can unscrew it back out of the ground with the same tool that was used to screw it into the ground.
Get them out there and have them remove it. 

)

hbaird · May 20, 2005

I caught a guide wire yesterday and lifted the front end of my JM200LE off the ground. The fiberglass cover on my roll over bar is cracked on each side. I was running with the hand throttle and could not lift me fast enough to shut it down. I got the clutch in about the same time the fiberglass came loose from the cable. I was really shaken afterward. A littte grinding and some new fiberglass and polyester resin and it will be back in service. I had the solenoid fail that evening so I got over the event and got back to work.

Ozarker · May 21, 2005

I have a pole w/support cable in my yard. I turned that area into a flower garden with a small bush hiding the cable. No need to mow there anymore.

LBrown59 · May 21, 2005

( I have a pole w/support cable in my yard. I turned that area into a flower garden with a small bush hiding the cable. No need to mow there anymore. )
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What i don't under stand is why some poles have guy wires but others don't?

GaryM · May 23, 2005

If there is a line of poles in a straight line ----o------o----- there are usually no guys because the pull on the pole is balanced on both sides. In line with the wires that is. But if the line makes a turn, and I can't draw that too well, then the pull is not balanced and a guy wire and anchor are used to balance the pull of the lines (wires). They also often use a guy wire if there is a transformer (pole pig) mounted. This is to offset the unbalanced load at the top of the pole.

As you drive around take a look at the poles and wires and you'll see what I mean. OK, maybe it would be better to pull off the road first. This is the safety forum after all! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Ozarker · May 24, 2005

Now I understand it. I have one pole in my yard and didn't understand why it had the support. Now that you explained it, I remember that the support wire is positioned so that it can counter the pull of the wire.

burnetma · Jun 4, 2005

Another guide wire hazard...

About 20 years ago my best friend was mowing an overgrown field with an old Ford with a 6 foot bush hog. He ran over a downed guide wire that had been removed from the pole and left by the utility crew. The wire wrapped around the mower blades and swung up and around him. It wrapped around him several times with the loose end slapping him in the side of the head cutting off the bottom portion of his ear. With several wraps around the body the cable and brush cutter proceeded to drag him off of the machine. Fortunately, the seat kill switch shut down the machine before he landed on the PTO shaft. Darn lucky to be alive, let alone have only minor injuries (cut-off ear and some of the nastiest friction burns you ever want to see).

So, when mowing around known guide wires, be sure that they are all still intact and if maintenance has been done, make no assumption that the crew removed all of the debris. Same goes for high tensile wire fencing.

LBrown59 · Apr 4, 2006

( Ooooh, boy, I had a close call sunday. Was mowing with the 2210, listening to music on headphones and NOT paying attention. I circled around a telephone pole to mow, cutting under the 45 degree supportcable that was anchored in the ground. Clear the overhead cable easily, or so I thought, till the ROPS hit it hard, behind me. The guide-support cable vibrated and bounced and the entire telephone pole moved. I looked up and saw the live wires above me dancing. Really scared me.
It is so easy to forget and get into a very dangerous situation. )
Know what you mean.
I have an issue with charter cable on this very thing right now.
Seem like these outfits just slap one end of the wire on the pole and the other end to a screw anchor in the ground with no regard to the safety of the landowner or anyone else living around them.

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