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Utility guy says transformer needs replacing due to high use

Mr.Sparky

Member
Are you not legal? If you are able to get legal do it. Med state? Rec state?

I am an electrical and have seen many poles blow in my time, your 5k grow is not enough to blow a transformer unless you wired it incorrectly.
 

Space Toker

Active member
Veteran
recent med state, don't qualify I do not think. Please understand, under the circumstances I am not confirming or denying anything. What do you meanwhen you say wired incorrectly? I know the electrician that wired the house wired like 2 rooms and part of another on one 15 amp circuit on more than one occasion but no major use takes place where that is the case. I have not heard anything else yet.
 
I've blown 2 of them. They know EXACTLY what your doing by the spikes in your juice your using. Then I almost blew up a third. PGE came out and told me to split my flower garden to use less at one time. I have a 200 amp service. The distance to my house reduced my service to 160 amps. My house takes roughly 90 amps so the rest can be used in my garden. They told me if I blow up another I will be required to put in a 400 amp service before they turn it back on. I'm in Oregon and legal so that helps. PGE cares about safety and proper usage and wiring out here, and they get overtime and pay raises cause we are their best customers. The line guys tell me about all these electrical horror stories. They don't care out here, I was paranoid at first until I realized they came out to educate me. Oh and I lost my neutral 3 times on top of blowing up my juice cans. If your legal don't worry, get the guys card and call him to get suggestions if needed. Lastly if you do have your transformer changed out and your not legal, depending on smell, get a generator and tie your filters into it for discretionary purposes.
 

Space Toker

Active member
Veteran
thanks.... well no news from the supposed utility guy in a $70,000 SUV, but things are getting stranger and stranger, prob reading too much into things as usual but... my bro was talking to a guy who says $100 bills now have the ability to be tracked through those spy towers we all heard about, paranoia or some extraordinary technology I do not know... but then as always there seem to be an unbelievable string of coincidences that seem too far out to believe... an FBI agent (others have already confirmed he is) talked to my bro later this day.. very friendly and my bro, being the total opposite of my paranoid self, thinks he's a wonderful guy and everything's fine. But he's talking with my bro about how $20 bills are the most common bills used in drug deals now for small transactions, but the big guys use $100's and how 5 of every 6 bills has cocaine residue on it. Ok yeah just smalltalk and I am a nut, lay all that on me, but this is very strange indeed!
(edit: why does this thread not show up in my user cp or threads I started or new posts? It's as if it doesn't exist and it clearly does!)
 

FlowerFarmer

Well-known member
Veteran
put down the bong and step away from the herb.. haha..

New hundos I've heard are detectable, but not via tower or long range. It could however through RFID emit a passive signal when you pass through toll booths, customs, security checkpoints, etc. This could potentially identify those carrying large sums of cash.

I'm not sure if this is a certainty, but nabbing cash headed back west is definitely big business for them. I know of a few who've been popped both bringing herb east and cash west in small cowboy counties where the local LEO are seemingly making very accurate stops to ultimately seize product and cash. Small cops, same MO.. they've figured out how to supplement their lousy income very easily and it's not just random/visual profiling.

RFID emitters, high density scanners to detect filled voids in vehicles. This stuff is being used in certain parts of the country/world.


[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]But he's talking with my bro about how $20 bills are the most common bills used in drug deals now for small transactions, but the big guys use $100's[/FONT]
Well.. yea. That's the point of different denomination bills, not exclusive to drug deals certainly. If I buy a Big Mac Meal I use a $20. If I buy a set of tires I use $100s. What a silly conversation your buddy must have had.

Cash however is becoming less and less common place. I bought a TV back when 42" LCD were large and paid with all 100s. The cashier reacted as if I had horns growing out of my head when she had to count all 12 bills. Bizarre, but that's the world we live in now I suppose. We will eventually run on a cashless society if "they" have it their way.


What's with this FED? Your bro and his company knowingly interact with an FBI agent in their daily lives? What is he doing? What does he claim his purpose amongst you is?


Are you growing some nice sativas? haha..
There is a move about this you know? Where a DEA agent crawls up the ass of some local farmers who've turned to growing cannabis in hard times. (Cash Crop 1999)
 

rives

Inveterate Tinkerer
Mentor
ICMag Donor
Veteran
Transformers do not "wear out" - they have no moving parts. They can have insulation breakdown from running too hot, or the oil can get contaminated and/or start breaking down, but these symptoms have specific tests. Oil can normally be sampled without shutting the power off, but insulation testing requires the transformer to be disconnected from the incoming/outgoing power. It's easily possible that the transformer is running too hot from higher loads being connected than were anticipated when it was installed and the utility wants to install a larger one - they are frequently so undersized that it is a miracle that they actually work. Also, the "pictures" that he was taking may have been infrared thermography - it is commonly used for measuring heat on pole-top gear.

The BMW sounds very odd.
 

Chunkypigs

passing the gas
Veteran
blowing a transformer in my past meant that a lineman had to climb the pole and reset the "breaker" on the side of the transformer.
they did that twice before putting a larger unit up the pole to handle the businesses refrigeration load.
nothing actually exploded the power just cut out at the transformer.
they have a device on the end of a pole that they can use to reset it.

they were cool about it and If you share with neighbors all the better they just want your money.
they don't size those trannys based on every house using their maximum potential load every day except on Thanksgiving.

some growers max out 12 hours a day, some 24.

don't sweat the electric company unless you are stealing from them.
If you got neighbors bypassing this might get their chain pulled.
I think they can figure that out really quick once they start looking.

if you are in a med state the workers are used to it and you pay for their overtime.
they like you.
 

Jhhnn

Active member
Veteran
In the US, utilities will replace a failing transformer (if they can catch it before it burns). They are quit spectacular when the do burn and blow. The warning was probably to give you a heads up of losing power for 15-45 min and for you to shut down sensitive electronics.
Transforms wear out. Some transformers are for area stepping up/down in the distribution service. Most houses do have a dedicated transformer for each home. Those are close and only have wires feeding from it to that property.

Here in the city, a single transformer feeds more than one home. In more sparsely populated areas, a single transformer feeds one home or a few homes clustered together.
 

Jhhnn

Active member
Veteran
Transformers do not "wear out" - they have no moving parts. They can have insulation breakdown from running too hot, or the oil can get contaminated and/or start breaking down, but these symptoms have specific tests. Oil can normally be sampled without shutting the power off, but insulation testing requires the transformer to be disconnected from the incoming/outgoing power. It's easily possible that the transformer is running too hot from higher loads being connected than were anticipated when it was installed and the utility wants to install a larger one - they are frequently so undersized that it is a miracle that they actually work. Also, the "pictures" that he was taking may have been infrared thermography - it is commonly used for measuring heat on pole-top gear.

The BMW sounds very odd.

Yeh, the BMW seems odd, but companies subcontract all kinds of services.

Due to your training & experience, I'm sure that you can readily identify many transformers at a glance, know their I/O voltages & capacities. It would be helpful to growers if there were easily identifiable sources to provide them with such information & avoid issues. That's particularly important for people running more than a light or few & for people contemplating warehouse grows. I'm confident that there are people who rented a warehouse here in the metro area & got screwed because of inadequate power to their pole. Yeh, sure, the power company will deliver whatever you'll pay for, but if the infrastructure isn't there then they'll want you to pay for that, too. Years ago, a friend built a home outside Central City. One major expense was getting power from the main line to his place, about 1/4 mile away, He had to pay for it all- poles, wire, transformer. Years later, he made money letting a new neighbor tap into his line, selling them the right to use his infrastructure & an easement across his property. The new guy also had to pay the power co to do it, but it was a lot cheaper & easier than bringing power all the way from the main line. Lots of places they'll want you to pay for it & yet have no rights to it, I'm sure.
 

FlowerFarmer

Well-known member
Veteran
Some places are the opposite as well, or so I hear.

If they believe you erecting a building (say for storage purposes) in which very little power will be generated out of it such as a few overhead lights only, they'll want you to fit the bill..


If they are under the impression that it will be used for business purposes, welding shop/garage, or otherwise result in a high draw users a lot of times they'll connect at no or little cost to you.

I believe it all depends... they likely also take into consideration pole span, etc.
 

TheOutlawTree

Active member
I wouldn't worry about it brother. Not sure what your running but it sounds like your not going overboard. Try not to get so paranoid- Just remember there is a lot of real crime going on. Are you really a bad guy because your growing a cancer curing plant? Fuck no!

Whenever I get overly paranoid about the law I think about what Cannabis really is and how dumb these laws really are. You are doing what's morally right providing cannabis and more and more people in this country are realizing it.
 

Space Toker

Active member
Veteran
There was a National Guard chopper making a couple of passes the other day after a long period of peacefulness, and really loud trains seem to have been absent for some time until recently too. Don't want to get into too many specifics, but someone needed help and although any I could offer would be very limited due to my complete lack of knowledge, I was willing to try. But along came an undercover (well unmarked vehicle with insignia on plate) and I got him to do something useful for a change actually! :D Bizarre!
 

Space Toker

Active member
Veteran
Thanks TOT, yeah unless they think I am up to something I am not up to, I have most likely have nothing to worry about, thanks for the kind words!
 

Space Toker

Active member
Veteran
Yesterday a small modest car with plates from a neighboring state (but 40+ miles to border) drove up and a middle age woman was taking pictures of the pole. My bro talked with her and she was from a phone/internet company we had former dealings with. She said it was common for these things to be subcontracted out and for people to use their personal vehicles as she and the dude did. The electric utility company wants them to replace the pole before they replace the transformer, but when she heard we are no longer customers, she said they wouldn't do it and that she will tell them that. She said this was part of a state-wide campaign to renovate/modernize the whole system and make it more efficient. I hope they do not try to push a smart meter on us! Other than that, it seems like nothing to be too concerned with.
 

Rotel

Member
In illegal states, poco guys have been known to get significant rewards for reporting suspected grows.

if the meter suddenly changes from an old platter style to digital one, they can determine how much and when you use power. So they can easily see multi kilowatt 12/12 cycles...

Used as evidence to obtain warrant
 

Space Toker

Active member
Veteran
As far as I know, no meter replacement, just threw that out there as a possibility since they seem to be adding things to the menu. They sent a letter saying that there will be a town hearing on the subject of putting up a new pole on the road behind me. Same phone/internet company. So while the paranoid part of me wants to say this all smells fishy, they seem to be going to great lengths to to be reassuring and official about it. Not one of the 4 or so legal states, but a med state. So, I don't know what to think. To drastically alter my pattern at this point may do more harm than good. What do you mean reporting? If they claim they smell something? Off the main road by quite a good distance... other than this latest round of activity seen the utility guys 3 times tops in 35 years (other than the old days when they used to manually read meters). So, well I guess we'll just wait and see and hope for the best!

Edit: After a fairly long pause for the most part, chopper activity was intense after that woman left and for the next day or 2 after. Other than a low fast flyer last night, dwindling down again.
 

Space Toker

Active member
Veteran
Just now a guy claiming to be with a solar company (I recognize the name) was up and said the police allow him to trespass on private property to promote solar, and according to my brother was pushing hard and heavy, saying a guy down the road we know of agreed to have solar put in. He wanted my bro to commit to a date to have it done. A new meter would have to be put in, and having anyone in the house is out of the question. I like the idea of solar big time, but didn't appreciate the door to door pedaling and pushy tactics and wonder if there is more to this.
 

rives

Inveterate Tinkerer
Mentor
ICMag Donor
Veteran
"said the police allow him to trespass on private property to promote solar"

Umm....
 

Treetroit City

Moderately Super
Veteran
With all due respect it wasn't that long ago that you found a dead bird on your property and thought that it could lead to your downfall...

Just something to think about.
 
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