Powerlines page

[Aldergirl]

So, Knifegill and I are looking to buy a house with some acreage for our future children to roam on, to have some sheep and chickens, and to grow lots of fruits and veggies. The problem is, we aren't raking in the money, so most properties in our price range have problems: there is car oil in the soil/water, the land is a swamp, or the whole property is a steep hill.

If it doesn't have one of the above problems, it's under a powerline. One property we're looking at starts about 500 feet away from the powerline, and the house is on the far end of the property (a total of 1,000 feet away). Now, Grok didn't have powerlines, and we'd rather not as well. But, is 1,000 feet (most of them forested) far enough away? What are your thoughts about powerlines?

[Nicator]

No problem with them. You'll get more EMF from your household appliances than the powerline (treadmills are really high).

Was thought that cancer rates were higher due to living in proximity to powerlines, was found that poorer people tended to live near powerlines and this is more likely to influence their health than EMF. Was it Fathead that pointed that out? In any case, utility linemen don't have higher incidence of cancer, and, well, they work on powerlines for a living...

[Aldergirl]

Thank you for your response, Nicator. I had not considered the poorer people live closer to power-lines, theory...

[Zophie]

I say, if you like the property, go for it!

We have power lines that run across the back of our property and they don't cause any problems. In fact let me just share that my Father in law has lived next to them his whole life. Now he is in his 80s and as healthy as most 20 year olds. (I just saw him repel off a cliff yesterday!)

[Tribal Rob]

We've been through this dilema, all the reseach I've read studies high voltage ones, IIRC 11K volts upwards - the big pylons, not the smaller local distribution.

The theroy is that the EM energy from the very high voltage charges pollution particals, making them more reative, these settle on your skin at night and can cause pre-cancerous changes.

So risk decreases with distance, and up-wind is far safer than downwind.

Pretty much anything can cause pre-cancerous changes, and the link is not massively compelling, but it does explain why workers on powerlines don't have higher instances than people who live close.

The trees will help sheild against the particals if you believe this theory, as will the distance, 1000 foot is quite a lot. I'm going out now, but if you want more info PM me and I'll see if I can find the studies - or actually ask the Mrs where she found them

[billp]

Doesn't explain why linesman are completely unaffected, does it Rob? Also if that were true you would get cancer from an electric toaster. Or car electrical systems. There isn't anything different about high voltage to low voltage, really. It is still the same charge, the same current It can just arc further because it is less attenuated by resistance.

[Uncephalized]

where do people with electricity live that do not have power lines?

They're talking about high-voltage transmission lines, not the regular kind that connect to a house I believe.

But yeah, "Grok didn't have electric power so I don't want it either" is not a good argument when you're talking about Grok on the freaking internet.

[Tribal Rob]

Doesn't explain why linesman are completely unaffected, does it Rob? Also if that were true you would get cancer from an electric toaster. Or car electrical systems. There isn't anything different about high voltage to low voltage, really. It is still the same charge, the same current It can just arc further because it is less attenuated by resistance.

the linesmen are not effected as they do not sleep in the proximity of the high voltage powerlines. I can't remember the exact process, but it was sleeping that was implicated in the reseach.

Maybe you can get cancer from a toaster, same as you can get cancer from one cigarette or one bbq steak that is a bit too crispy, it's not likely but possible, however 10000 smokes a week is far more likely to give you cancer, as you multiply the risk.