Burying 20kv power lines

Vegeta

Hey folks, the site beside my house has recently got planning permission on it. Know my new neighbour and looking forward to the site being tidied up.

However there is a 20kv power line running diagonally through the site over where the new dwelling will go, there are no existing poles on his site. Two of the conditions of planning made me believe that the ESB would just bury the power lines. Needs to plant trees between our sites and the second condition states all services for the development throughout the site should be underground.

The ESB have proposed putting 3 poles, with associated stays and grounds between our sites. My preference would obviously be for them to be buried. There are a few services running through the site, telecoms and my own power connection etc. which would need to be navigated if burying the power.

Should I even bother trying to engage with them and attempt to get this changed or are their powers absolute and it's a waste of my time.

Luckysasha

More than likely the route of the underground option would match the what they are planning to do overground. The reason for the overhead option is simple. Could you imagine the hassle of getting to those cables if there was ever an underground fault ? The standards for 20kv ducts are 1050mm so try and imagine a cable crew and civils lads turning up in a mini digger , tracking across your lawn and probably destroying established plants and hedges to find and fix the fault. As apposed to 2 lads walking in to your garden climbing a pole and working away.

db

Typically, the electricity and comms lines for the development will be ducted underground to the nearest pole. It is not unusual for the ESB to install new poles to move wires away from where a house is to be built. It sounds like at least one of the poles will be on your land which is a bit of a pain but they usually try to be as unobtrusive as possible.

my3cents

Luckysasha wrote: »

More than likely the route of the underground option would match the what they are planning to do overground. The reason for the overhead option is simple. Could you imagine the hassle of getting to those cables if there was ever an underground fault ? The standards for 20kv ducts are 1050mm so try and imagine a cable crew and civils lads turning up in a mini digger , tracking across your lawn and probably destroying established plants and hedges to find and fix the fault. As apposed to 2 lads walking in to your garden climbing a pole and working away.

I've lived on many sites with buried cables and never once had to have any dug up. On the other hand I've had 3 poles replaced in the garden, great having a JCB followed by a cabling gang in working in your garden :rolleyes:

Its just plain cheaper to put the cables overhead. If however the OP's new neighbor wants to pay for the relevant ducting I'm sure ESB networks will be fine about running the cables underground.

Vegeta

Am I reading the above correctly, 1050mm or 1 meter in diameter? That's a serious duct for sure.

What's a little frustrating is that the underground option is being ruled out by the ESB guy who was calling to the site without any real reason stated. He alluded to the digging of the garden if there was an issue in the future and mentioned cost. However when asked for a cost there is no response.

Realistically I think I will just get myself wound up if I try and pursue it but just a little frustrated that the underground option doesn't seem to have been seriously considered.

Luckysasha

Sorry 1050mm deep is the spec for the ducting. It’s a 115mm pipe.

Vegeta

Luckysasha wrote: »

Sorry 1050mm deep is the spec for the ducting. It’s a 115mm pipe.

Ah ok that's not toooo bad then, the site is only around 100 meters front to back. I'd dig the bloody trench myself if I thought they'd bury it.

my3cents

Vegeta wrote: »

Ah ok that's not toooo bad then, the site is only around 100 meters front to back. I'd dig the bloody trench myself if I thought they'd bury it.

Thats exactly the way to go!

ht9zni1gs28crp

It can be done, I had a similar situation and wanted it underground. You need to open dialogue early on with the ESB. I projected the route away from hard groundworks such as patios etc. So if in case it ever needed to be dug up its the minimum disruption.

You will also need to grant a way leave to the ESB. Their solicitor will contact your Solicitor to sign documents.

Luckysasha

Just bear in mind that your new neighbors will have an end pole in their garden for the connection to their house so you could be only getting rid of 2 poles by getting the line buried. From what you described the underground option would also look unsightly when finished. At the start of the diversion you would have an end pole with stay wire, fixed on to the pole would be three black cables with red pole top terminations running down the length of the pole covered in a metal cable guard in to the ground and at the end of the diversion the same arrangement plus a pole mounted transformer and LV black box to supply your neighbor. I’m not defending ESB recommendations on this but I have seen it in the past trying to access these cables and also accidents caused by people digging in to the cables, driving fence posts through them etc etc

ht9zni1gs28crp

Luckysasha wrote: »

I have seen it in the past trying to access these cables and also accidents caused by people digging in to the cables, driving fence posts through them etc etc

Jeez they must have been some length of fence post to go through 1m+ , what were they keeping in or out with that fence?!!!! If they are positioned well out of reach on a site or future traffic then there shouldn't be a problem. If you hit the cables in future then you are to blame. Check before you dig, the information is easy to obtain. Anyways they now put an amount of light concrete mix to cover the pipe in these days for stability and to prevent accidental ingress.

my3cents

Taliyah Tiny Zipper wrote: »

Jeez they must have been some length of fence post to go through 1m+ , what were they keeping in or out with that fence?!!!! If they are positioned well out of reach on a site or future traffic then there shouldn't be a problem. If you hit the cables in future then you are to blame. Check before you dig, the information is easy to obtain. Anyways they now put an amount of light concrete mix to cover the pipe in these days for stability and to prevent accidental ingress.

I've had this twice with tree planting. Lad digs a deep hole so already about two foot down then uses a 5ft crowbar to make a pilot hole for a stake. Bang, they end up flying through the air and then flat on their back a good few yards away.

Didn't actually see it either time but heard the bang the yell each time and saw the crowbar afterwards a inch or so shorter with a burnt lump of metal at the end. No one actually hurt either time I think because the crowbar shorts the outer earth sheath of the cable armour to the live and thats a better path for the electric rather than up the crowbar and back down through a body.

Edit> See above, OK so these did have to be dug up to be fixed but these were building sites and not finished homes.

Lumen

I have an overhead power line across my garden and while initially it annoyed me, I grew to appreciate the squirrel superhighway. They love it.

Not sure it's 20KV though. Is that the normal size?

Luckysasha

Normally it would be 10kv but a lot of areas have been upgraded to 20kv in recent times

mickdw

I believe the esb spec says that 125mm esb ducts should have concrete around them with warning tape also when running through private land so the old crowbar through the wire is a bit nuts.

my3cents

mickdw wrote: »

I believe the esb spec says that 125mm esb ducts should have concrete around them with warning tape also when running through private land so the old crowbar through the wire is a bit nuts.

Housing association building sites in UK and I would guess probably 440V 3 phase but still a bit of a bang.

ht9zni1gs28crp

my3cents wrote: »

Housing association building sites in UK and I would guess probably 440V 3 phase but still a bit of a bang.

Nope, its here in Ireland too. I watched them fill ours with concrete and then tape on top of it too.

Luckysasha

Damaged still occurs now matter how well the cables are protected. Summer time usually sees an increase in home owners hiring mini diggers for the weekend and digging through service cables going to the meter box. The specifications for burying cables you must remember are for new cables there are plenty of cables buried in major towns and cities just covered in sand and timber marker boards. There was a famous incident a couple of years back of a nationwide drilling company boring a hole under a road in Dublin outside a famous nightclub and they drilled straight through a 220kv Oil filled cable. Luckily the cable was switched out at the time for maintenance but beside that cable was a live 220kv circuit.

Vegeta

Poles were erected over the last week, cables run and power put on yesterday. The rear of the gardens is quite tidy and no issues. The front however looks very poor, kinda gutted I didn't kick up more of a stink and do my best to make them bury them or remove the second pole across the road.

my3cents

Vegeta wrote: »

Poles were erected over the last week, cables run and power put on yesterday. The rear of the gardens is quite tidy and no issues. The front however looks very poor, kinda gutted I didn't kick up more of a stink and do my best to make them bury them or remove the second pole across the road.

If the garden is a mess get onto them about it. They offered to make good when they left track marks all down my lawn but at the time I didn't take them up on it because I was doing other work that might have messed it up anyway.

Luckysasha

Any chance of a picture to see the poling set up ?

Vegeta

my3cents wrote: »

If the garden is a mess get onto them about it. They offered to make good when they left track marks all down my lawn but at the time I didn't take them up on it because I was doing other work that might have messed it up anyway.

It's not the ground works which are the issue, just the view out of the front of the house is now a mass of poles, cables and stays. Just looks a mess compared to the old setup.

Yeager101

Hi all,
Interesting read on here. Im building in wicklow and have 2 big 20v poles crossing right through the main view about 30 ft from the front of the house where it is to be built. Does anyone know how much it costs to bury these lines if I was to ask ESB to either bury them OR redirect them to the roadside line?
Many thanks

Luckysasha

Can you post a picture