Putting in Power Poles

[davemhughes]

In order to get power to our build site we are going to have to put in 7 power poles @ a cost of $8k plus. I was wondering if anyone who has had power poles put in knows of anyway to get the Utility company to lower the cost? I was once told that if you were planning on and tell them you are going to install alternative power (wind/solar) they would cut you a break not to.....anyone ever heard of this or any other options? Plus figuring a 10kw wind turbine is around $22k installed and an average annual electricity cost of $2200 and turbine would break even in under a 15yrs.

 

[schmism]

depends if the poles are on your private property

if they are running along an easment and other property in MO you only pay 50% of the cost to run that power as your neighbor can come in and tie into it for "free" in the future.

My friend had the power compnay extend power about 2000 ft and cost him 5K

i bid to have the power company set a new pole, and run 10kV underground (in my conduit) to a padmount transformer next to my machine shop some 500' away. All told it was $2K

 

[Jimbrown]

Don’t even think about going to solar or wind if you can do it for that cost. I put in a mile of power when I built three years ago. It cost about what you are paying. There is lots of hidden cost in the solar/wind systems. For sure the batteries are not going to last 15 yrs and the inverters will probably fail also. I never heard of the power company giving a break if you threaten them. Mine would just laugh and probably up the price. Some of my neighbors tried some kind of protest as to pricing and every time they did the price went up. My well is all solar and for sure did not affect my price. The power company also sells solar systems and if anything they would probably just try to sell you one of those if you tried the solar/wind argument. My closest neighbor had to add a mile of power to my line in order to get power and he already was on solar and he paid more than I did. The company here dos not give a hoot about other people tying into the power. You pay what they think your share is to your house and if some one else taps in its between you and them the company does not care.

 

[davemhughes]

Well probably true that they don't care so in the end I'll write the check. I do know if anyone wanted to they could tie in to the lines I will run at no cost to that point. I guess its just the way it is.

 

[DUMBDOG]

When I built my shed several years ago, they ran the power underground, close to a thousand feet and did not charge anything for the line. The minimum monthly charge was $15.50 if any electricity was used or not.

A couple of years later when I put in some irrigation wells, they again ran the line underground close to the same distance, and I had my choice, for irrigation wells, pay for running the line and pay for the usage, or in my case I planned on putting up a building there in the future so pay the minimum of $15.50 if using the electricity or not.

 

[EddieWalker]

when I brought power in to my place, I had to bring it three poles, or 800 feet along the highway. Then another 800 feet to the meter with another 4 poles for a total of 1,600 feet and 7 poles. My cost was under $800.

Before they put it in, they measured it all out and told me what trees to clear. Then they asked for a demand sheet and wanted to know what I would be powering off the meter. He said to put everything I would ever use on it, regardless of when I build everything. The more power I was planning on useing, the less it would cost me to have it installed.

I put down my shop and all it's tools with the home. I put down another house I plan to build next to the shop sometime in the future with all it's apliances and projected needs. I also included the store for my RV Park that will be a massive electrical draw.

I don't remember what my final numbers were, but it made a huge difference in my install price.

If you don't have a welder, or anything else, be sure to include it in your demand sheet. Put down the larges HVAC system you can get for the square footage of the house you will build. Be sure to include your barn, workshop and exterior lighting. If you need a well, or might want one in the future, put that down too. You only get one chance to figure this out, so you need to think of everything.

Good luck,
Eddie