I was talking to a friend of mine who works for a utility company in Florida. He told that he was planning to build something (post and beam) in his backyard with utility poles. According to him, they are free and all you have to do is sign a release to pick them up. These poles are the ones people hit while driving. When the pole breaks, they just take it to a yard somewhere. Sort of like the airplane cementery in Arizona (?).
Has anybody ever done this before?
I was thinking about investigating this new ‘resource’ as I plan to re-build the deck in my house and I could certainly use sections of these poles as footers.
If I am correct, these poles are pressure treated and are not the banned creosote ladden poles.
Any opinions, experiences, etc? I am in the Northern Virginia/Washington DC area.
Replies
Local power company sells them (replacements) for 20 bucks a pole in my area. Cresote?... maybe. Hadn't thought of it as a deck post system. Beats the tar out of buying 4x4x8's at 9 bucks a pop. Nice idea. Seems like you might earn the savings wrestling them to cut and digging a bigger hole though.
Seattle city light was a source of free 'butts' when I did a long fence and built a cabin a few years back. (ref Great Momemts, FHB fall 1990). Don't know if they still do, but could get loaded then with all the 6- 8 ft butt pieces you could haul off. Never saw anything over about 15 ft long.
Call your utility and ask, like the lady said, all I can say is no <G>
I get them occasionally, usually the butts as someone mentioned; on rare occasion a longer length.
All the ones I've seen have heavy creosote (but so do railroad ties). They work great for footings and gate posts/corner posts, or landscape cribbing.
Beware, however, that some of the older ones may be REALLY splintery from years of linemen climbing with spurs or just weather battering, and getting creosote injected via wood sliver is not good.
And while they make good gate posts, if you are fencing horses that are into "cribbing" or chewing wood, croesoted posts are not a good idea.
Jules Quaver for President 2004
I've helped put up a pole barn that had telephone poles instead of 6X6s. Lotsa fun setting 20' poles 18" in diameter.
Around here, you an get 'em for nothing if you know the right people.
A gossip is someone with a great sense of rumor.
If you get the city poles, you will be picking out staples forever.
Women and men of wit are dangerous tools,
And ever fatal to admiring fools.
- John Wilmot second Earl of Rochester