5 Important Reasons to Evaluate a City's Wooden Power Poles

A common component that almost all cities have in common is their electric power distribution system. Many cities rely on wooden power poles to transport electricity to their customers. However, there are many important reasons why your city’s wooden power poles should be evaluated regularly.

1- Prone to Rot

While wood can be an extremely strong, supportive structure, it’s always very susceptible to rotting whenever it comes into contact with moisture. Wooden utility poles that weren’t properly treated before being put into commissions can be susceptible to rotting. Evaluating older wooden utility poles is a necessity to ensure you catch any symptoms of rot early on.

2- Critter Damage

Another great reason that your city’s wooden power poles should be evaluated regularly is due to critters. Over time, animals like woodpeckers and even termites can wreak havoc on wooden poles. Once these animals break the rot-protective barrier established on newer wood poles, it leaves the poles open to moisture and rot damage. If there’s any sign of damage from critters, the problem should be remedied quickly to preserve the integrity of the pole.

3- Other Environmental Damage

Apart from wood rot and critter damage, wooden power poles are susceptible to other damage from their various environmental factors. From falling tree branches to vehicle crashes, these wooden poles can become physically damaged. Unfortunately, this damage may not always be reported to the power company. Having regular pole inspections in your city can help your team identify any physical damage and repair or replace the pole before it leads to an outage.

4- Catch Problems While They’re Small

As with most things in life, regular maintenance is a must to help catch any problems while they’re small. If you omit regular inspections, you won’t know about the problem until the pole is extensively damaged and the power likely goes out. It’s going to be much cheaper to treat a small termite problem than it will be to replace an entire wooden electricity pole.

5- Know the Remaining Lifespan

Wood has been a widely popular material for utility poles since the early 1900s. It’s very strong and readily available. Traditionally, posts were made of cedar, which has a long-lasting lifespan without needing any special preservative treatment. However, as the demand for utility poles has increased tremendously, the type of wood used has changed as well. Nowadays, you’ll find Douglas fir and southern yellow pine to be the two most popular woods used in the production of utility poles. Each has its own estimated lifespan, with and without preservation treatment.

It’s a good idea to have your city’s existing wooden utility poles evaluated to determine what material they’re made out of and if there was a preservative used. This will give your team a good idea of how long the pole is likely to last. Matching this with service records of when the pole was installed can help you determine the remaining estimated lifespan. This way, your city can prepare for when each pole will need to be replaced.