In the electric industry, reliability of service has become paramount. As technology has progressed allowing for a dramatic increase in the reliability for customers, certain indelible threats still remain in the quest for consistent reliability. The majority of outages that threaten reliability are caused by nature. In many instances, solutions have been developed to thwart these naturally occurring problems. Lightning arrestors keep damage caused by lightning to a minimum and keep the fault isolated and contained. Wildlife protection devices keep wildlife from causing outages by containing the equipment and isolating the wildlife from it. Trees continue and will always be a challenge to reliability. However, through certified arborists and crews, right of way maintenance has become a necessity and the most efficient way of keeping trees from affecting reliability, again by containing and isolating. However, Kudzu and vines are a problem that has become more and more prevalent with no way to contain or isolate it; until now.
The Problem
Kudzu is an invasive species of vine that grows at a remarkable rate and has no natural enemies. Cutting it back only impedes its growth and within weeks it is thriving again. Cutting alone would take a full time crew designated only to that specific task in most electric service areas. No spray has been effective in killing it and the EPA has tightened the regulations on spraying in general. It simply cannot be controlled adequately or cost effectively enough to prevent it from causing outages and damaging equipment; until now.
The Solution
The Vine Cone by Line Outage Prevention Systems is a simple to install vine deterrent. In the other naturally occurring threats to reliability mentioned above, two methods of preventing outages are effective; isolation and containment. The Vine Cone acts as both an isolation and containment unit that prevents the growth of vines on guy wires. However, the Vine Cone also has an added weapon in its arsenal to prevent vine growth.
The Vine Cone is UV blocking, so the vine as it grows and stops at the top of the cone, is stunted by the lack of sunlight which is an extreme necessity for the growth of Kudzu.
The Vine Cone is designed to deflect the vine and stunt its growth. Because of the lack of tendrils, Kudzu can only support its weight for approximately 8 inches. So, if it grows outside the cone in search of sunlight, the cone is too large for the kudzu to wrap around. Then the vine succumbs to gravity.
Product Info
The Vine Cone
by Line Outage Prevention Systems
Features
- Simple to Install
- Vine Deterrent
- Provides Isolation & Containment
- Prevents Vine Growth on Guy Wires
- Blocks UV Light (necessity for the growth of Kudzu)
- Made in the U.S.A.
- HMDPE Plastic
Measurements
Cone Radius: 35 inches
Cone Height: 21 inches
Description
The Vine Cone is designed to deflect the vine and stunt its growth. Because of the lack of tendrils, Kudzu can only support its weight for approximately 8 inches. So, if it grows outside the cone in search of sunlight, the cone is too large for the kudzu to wrap around. Then the vine succumbs to gravity.
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