Operating near high voltage power lines

[High Snaps]

Hi all,

Looking for some advice or general information regarding any tips or thi g's to be aware of when operating near high voltage power lines. I fly the P4RTK and I have an operation to map some large stock piles. Running to the side of the stock piles are a run of power lines, thought I would reach out and see if there is any advice people could offer?

Many thanks,
Ryan

 

[wa5tef]

I frequently fly 200 feet above high power lines near my home with no problems. However during one previous flight, my Phantom 4 did a RTH and flew almost in between the cables coming home. I had my RTH altitude set too low and didn't realize it until I watched the video showing how close I came to the wires. I don't know the voltage involved but these are long distant transmission lines supported with towers, not simple utility poles.

By not experiencing any negative effects, I would assume that the Phantom's on board receiver is pretty much immune to interference from these 60 Hz lines.

Good luck,
Jim
WA5TEF

 

[High Snaps]

Thanks Jim, that's good to know.

 

[Starz]

I’ve had a p4p within 100 feet of 130 kv several times without incident.
But I’m not the zap expert.

 

[BigAl07]

Ryan what exactly do you mean when you stated
"near high voltage power lines"

How near and which type of lines are you talking about?

 

[Trackerputnam]

While flying a recent job, I was right under and over a major power distribution line. No problem at all except when rising up under a line, I would get a compass error. Maybe 30’ distance. I just got the pictures I needed for the client and used caution. So the lines did cause some nterference with the drone but it was still controllable. But if you are flying a mission and you are over the lines I don’t think you will have a problem.

 

[ryanza]

I flew recently at a wedding venue and my Mavic Pro wouldn't start up when I was under a single power line that was running up along a road. It was a single line about 3-4m above the ground. My Mavic was fine away from the lines, 30ft+, both before and after the problem flight attempt. It was the first time I have experienced something like this and I'm happy it happened before the flight rather than during the flight.

I will keep this in mind whenever operating near power lines in the future.

 

[loyal]

I flew recently at a wedding venue and my Mavic Pro wouldn't start up when I was under a single power line that was running up along a road. It was a single line about 3-4m above the ground. My Mavic was fine away from the lines, 30ft+, both before and after the problem flight attempt. It was the first time I have experienced something like this and I'm happy it happened before the flight rather than during the flight.

I will keep this in mind whenever operating near power lines in the future.

Just wondering when ur drone wouldn’t start up near the power lines did it give any type of error on the app

 

[High Snaps]

Thanks all for the comments and advice, very much appreciated. I am happy to report I flew the mission and was a complete success, I maintained a 20m height above the high voltage lines and there was no interruptions or interference. Saying that the only interference were some rather bullish crows!

Thanks again

 

[u000gbk]

I frequently fly 200 feet above high power lines near my home with no problems. However during one previous flight, my Phantom 4 did a RTH and flew almost in between the cables coming home. I had my RTH altitude set too low and didn't realize it until I watched the video showing how close I came to the wires. I don't know the voltage involved but these are long distant transmission lines supported with towers, not simple utility poles.

By not experiencing any negative effects, I would assume that the Phantom's on board receiver is pretty much immune to interference from these 60 Hz lines.

Good luck,
Jim
WA5TEF

If they are => 128 KV (typical for long distance transmission) the strength of the electric field surrounding the lines is sufficient to cause RF interference between the RC and AC when any closer than 50 ft. ... just a heads up.

 

[Nelson1049]

If they are => 128 KV (typical for long distance transmission) the strength of the electric field surrounding the lines is sufficient to cause RF interference between the RC and AC when any closer than 50 ft. ... just a heads up.

Many transmission lines are 230 KV or 500 KV so a safe distance may correspondingly increase.

Nelson

 

[bdooley]

Many transmission lines are 230 KV or 500 KV so a safe distance may correspondingly increase.

Nelson

Both of you are spot on here.

 

[Harleydude]

Hi all,

Looking for some advice or general information regarding any tips or thi g's to be aware of when operating near high voltage power lines. I fly the P4RTK and I have an operation to map some large stock piles. Running to the side of the stock piles are a run of power lines, thought I would reach out and see if there is any advice people could offer?

Many thanks,
Ryan

Watch the wires....<;^) There's no interference. I fly near them all the time.

D

 

[Propsontop]

I'm sure there's a formula somewhere that will let you know the approximate arc distance. I've seen helicopter linemen use a Faraday suit and a grounding wand. Usually a 500kv line will arc 6-12 feet (guessing at the distance due to the relative sizes in the video) so I'd say stay clear enough from the lines to avoid that, whatever that means. I've been pretty close to 230's (around 60 feet) and had no issue.

 

[dnacho7]

The RTK version, will give you less problems than the regular version. But stay atleast 30m away, also take in mind that high power lines are not always at their most capacity so one moment you could fly without problems and the next you could have compass error

 

[Harleydude]

The RTK version, will give you less problems than the regular version. But stay atleast 30m away, also take in mind that high power lines are not always at their most capacity so one moment you could fly without problems and the next you could have compass error

Back in 2014, I flew my Phantom 1 drones within a few feet of power lines for inspection purposes.

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I also did the same for cell tower inspections.

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Even a drone as unsophisticated as the Phantom 1 was able to fly near power and cell without too much trouble.

Disclaimer: My Phantom 1's were all rigged with a 900Mhz control systems, so my results may not be typical.

I don't do inspections any more and haven't for years (no money in it). Anyone else fly close to power lines?

D

 

[Jorge Vergara L]

Hola todos,

Buscando algún consejo o información general con respecto a cualquier consejo o cosa que deba tener en cuenta al operar cerca de líneas eléctricas de alto voltaje. Vuelo el P4RTK y tengo una operación para mapear algunos montones de existencias grandes. Corriendo hacia el costado de las pilas de existencias hay una serie de líneas eléctricas, ¿pensé que podría extender la mano y ver si hay algún consejo que la gente pueda ofrecer?

Muchas gracias,
Ryan

Hi all,

Looking for some advice or general information regarding any tips or thi g's to be aware of when operating near high voltage power lines. I fly the P4RTK and I have an operation to map some large stock piles. Running to the side of the stock piles are a run of power lines, thought I would reach out and see if there is any advice people could offer?

Many thanks,
Ryan

Hello: Regarding your query, I tell you that although the Phantom itself as a drone has metal components in its structure such as the motors, the Gimbal and the camera. Metals are susceptible to electricity and in the case of high voltage power lines, an electrical phenomenon called "induction field" occurs. If we could see it, it would be concentric circles around each power line, like when you throw a stone into the water. and rings are formed that move away from the center where the stone fell. These rings or induction fields, as their name says, "induce electricity" through the air and if an object is very close to this field, an electric current can be discharged on that object, sometimes birds ? when passing very close or perching on these lines and take flight are electrocuted by induction. My advice is to go as far away from power lines as possible. As data so that you have it in consideration; the safety distance for high voltage power lines is: per 1,000 Volts = 1 centimeter. Example: if the power line is 23,000 Volts, the minimum safety distance would be 23 cm, but we must consider atmospheric factors, humidity in the environment, airborne dust, cold, heat, that also affects what these "safety distances" may vary. You should also consider the fact that electric waves also affect RC radio waves so the closer you are to the overhead power lines, the more likely you are to have signal losses. I hope this information serves as a reference for you to take the corresponding precautions. Greetings.

 

[assemblysolutions@outlook]

Hi all,

Looking for some advice or general information regarding any tips or thi g's to be aware of when operating near high voltage power lines. I fly the P4RTK and I have an operation to map some large stock piles. Running to the side of the stock piles are a run of power lines, thought I would reach out and see if there is any advice people could offer?

Many thanks,
Ryan

Yes, don't do it why would you risk a loss of signal because of RF. are you flying commercially? If not don't do it!

 

[Meta4]

Yes, don't do it why would you risk a loss of signal because of RF. are you flying commercially? If not don't do it!

Loss of signal?
That's not a problem that power lines cause.