September 2018 Back Page – It Is The Growing Season!

Posted: September 1, 2018

During the long days of summer, it’s not just us humans who enjoy the warmth of the sun. Flower and vegetable gardens flourish, and trees and brush grow at a phenomenal rate. While the abundant green is always a welcome sight, there are dangers lurking around the electric wires that serve you and your neighbors.

Right-of-way clearing is an important part of AVEC’s goal of delivering safe, reliable, cost-effective electric service. Trees and brush that grow into the power lines can cause outages and system disturbances, especially when we have wet snow, ice or severe wind conditions. Tree and brush clearing helps reduce the number and length of outages. By keeping the brush and shrubbery out of the right-of-way, emergency repairs can be completed faster, reducing the length of outages.

AVEC strives to maintain an adequate level of reliability and to ensure a high standard of quality service to our members. We periodically engage local labor to help our technicians with removal of trees and brush. You can help as well. Keep an eye on your electric service and help us by removing new growth that may threaten your service. Notify your power plant operator if you are aware of any plant growth in or near contact with electric lines. Do not attempt to trim vegetation near high-voltage electric lines. Notify us and we will arrange to have qualified technicians take care of the problem.

While you are working outdoors this summer, take a look at your electric service entrance and make sure your system is up to code. Hundreds of homeowners and businesses received letters this year regarding National Electric Code violations that needed to be remedied. The vast majority of NEC code violations are fairly minor and can easily be addressed by the service owner. Loose mastheads, ground-rod connections, pounding ground rods back to grade—all are easy fixes. Some may require the services of an electrician. The regional corporations have generally been willing to assist with arranging for service repairs for their shareholders.

Remember that electricity is an enormous benefit for all of us, but it also can be dangerous if not treated with the care and respect it deserves. Keep your home safe by taking care of minor problems before they become major issues. And keep your eye on brush and trees that could cause outages in your community.