One problem faced by electrical power companies is maintaining an uninterrupted flow of electrical service to their customers. Power outages result in customer dissatisfaction as well as repair costs and lost revenue while meters are not running. Outages may be caused by weather, equipment failures, and various animals, particularly squirrels.
Squirrels, snakes, birds, and other animals are a leading cause of power disruptions in the United States. Substation power outages are a huge problem, and it’s not getting any better:
- Wildlife near power equipment is the most common cause of outages at public power utilities, according to the American Public Power Association.
- In 2015, squirrels caused 560 substation power outages…in Montana alone.
- Birds in substations cause expensive outages due to direct contact with sensitive components, “streamers” (conductive trails of bird droppings), and the attraction of predatory animals.
- On average, 13,000 people affected by an animal-caused outage
- A single substation outage can cost tens of thousands of dollars in equipment cost, man-hours, and more.
- Outages cost the U.S. economy an estimated $80-188 billion every year in lost commercial activity, lowered productivity, consumer dissatisfaction, and more.
A squirrel can disrupt a power system if its body becomes a current path between electrical conductors. Such incidents result in power outages and are not good for the squirrel either.
Squirrels damage electrical distribution facilities by tunneling, chewing through electrical insulation, or simultaneously coming into contact with two conductors at different electrical potentials.
Squirrels have four teeth in the front of their mouth that constantly grow throughout their lives. This ensures that their teeth don’t wear down to nubs from gnawing on nuts and other objects.
Birds are also a major problem for utilities. They collide with overhead structures and conductors, are electrocuted, and damage facilities leading to customer interruptions.
Their feces can cause buildup on power lines or insulators which may cause power disruption. Birds prefer utility poles to mate and raise their young’s which attracts the predators to climb over the top of the utility pole.
BEDFORDSHIRE FIELD FIRE WAS STARTED BY A SQUIRREL CHEWING THROUGH POWER LINES, SAYS FIRE SERVICE
A fire that raged across a field was sparked by a squirrel chewing through high-voltage cables near a pylon, a fire service has revealed.
An area measuring 250m by 150m in a Bedfordshire village was left charred and blackened by the blaze, which broke out on Monday afternoon.
Crews from Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service were called to the fields at Toddington Road in Westoning near Luton just after 4 pm.
It took firefighters more than three hours to get the fire under control, and the fire service said it was brought under control by 7.24 pm.
Squirrel causes power outage for over 10,000 Virginia Beach customers, Dominion Energy says
The outage started when a squirrel got into a substation, knocking out the power, according to a Dominion Energy spokesperson.
Author: Preston Steger
Published: 11:12 AM EDT September 7, 2022
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The power went nuts in Virginia Beach Wednesday morning after a squirrel caused an outage for over 10,000 customers across the city, including two schools.
Bonita Billingsley Harris, a spokesperson for Dominion Energy, tweeted about the outage around 10:15 a.m.
She said it started when a squirrel got into a Virginia Beach substation around 8:45 a.m.
“The squirrel got between a circuit breaker and a transformer causing a power surge that made the transformer fail,” Harris told 13News Now.
Kempsville High School and Fairfield Elementary School were the two schools affected by the outage.
Harris said the power was restored after an hour and nine minutes after the power company rerouted a majority of the customers to alternate circuits.
Dominion crews are working to repair the damaged equipment and further outages aren’t expected when service is restored to the normal power feed, according to Harris.
Bird blamed for power outage that left 14,000 without electricity in California
Officials said a power outage that affected more than 14,000 of their customers was caused by a bird flying into substation equipment in California, USA. According to San Diego Gas & Electric, over 14,000 customers lost electricity and remained without power for at least 90 minutes Wednesday morning when a bird struck electrical equipment.
Updated Aug 27, 2022
United States: Officials at a public utility company said a power outage that affected more than 14,000 of their customers was caused by a bird flying into substation equipment in San Diego county of California, USA.
According to San Diego Gas & Electric, over 14,000 customers lost electricity and remained without power for at least 90 minutes Wednesday morning when a bird struck electrical equipment at a substation in La Mesa.
It remains unknown whether the bird responsible for the power outage was identified by company staff.
Earlier in June, squirrels were blamed for power outages in two separate incidents in the US.
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Combirepel™ which is a rodent, animal, insect, and bird repellent aversive repellent can be used as a one-stop solution for these power outages.
RodrepelTM and Combirepel™ are available in the form of a masterbatch, liquid concentrate, lacquer, wood polish additives, and sprays.
The masterbatch can be incorporated in cable sheathing. The product in the form of liquid concentrate can be diluted in paints and organic solvents and applied to cables. The lacquer which is a topical application can be directly applied to the already installed wires and cables, cabinets, and transformer boxes. The wood polish additives can be mixed with the wood polish and applied on wooden surfaces.
Our spray product, Rodrepel™ Rodent Repellent Spray is an easy-to-use product that can be sprayed on wires and cables, electronic appliances, and cabinets, so as to avoid rodents from entering them.
Combirepel™ Bird repellent gel lacquer is specially designed to prevent birds from perching and roosting.
Our Bye-Bye Birdie spray is a ready-to-use spray and can be sprayed directly on wires and cables or transformer boxes where birds roost to prevent a power outage.
These products are cost-effective, inert, and thermally stable and does not degrade on exposure to heat and sunlight. They are RoHS, RoHS2, RoHS3, REACH, NEA, EU BPR, APVMA compliant and FIFRA exempted.
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