Transmission tower facts for kids
A transmission tower or pylon (also known as an ironman in Australia and a hydro tower in parts of Canada) is a tall tower used for electric power transmission. It carries the electrical conductors (wires) of high-voltage overhead power lines. The tower is high for a safe distance for people, animals or things below the wires.
Most big transmission towers are lattice steel structures. Smaller ones may be wood, concrete or steel poles.
Contents
Types
Most transmission towers are built as suspension towers. They only hold up the wires, not pull them. Their insulators are used vertically.
Tension towers (also known as anchor towers) pull on the wires. Their insulators are used horizontally. They work as terminal towers at the end of a power line. They work as branch towers where power lines split and run in different directions.
Transposition towers are relatively rare. They allow the wires to change their position on the tower.
Related pages
Images for kids
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Transmission tower in Toronto, ON
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Single-circuit three-phase transmission line
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HVDC distance tower near the terminus of the Nelson River Bipole adjacent to Dorsey Converter Station near Rosser, Manitoba, Canada — August 2005
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Tension tower with phase transposition of a powerline for single-phase AC traction current (110 kV, 16.67 Hz) near Bartholomä, Germany
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Pylon in Sweden about 1918.
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Guyed "Delta" transmission tower (a combination of guyed "V" and "Y") in Nevada.
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Typical T-shaped 110 kV tower from the former GDR.
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A close up of the wires attached to the pylon, showing the various parts annotated.
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Danube pole for 110 kV in Germany, built in the 1930s
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Steel tube tower next to older lattice tower near Wagga Wagga, Australia
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Wood and metal crossbar
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Simple wooden transmission tower in Mongolia
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A reinforced concrete pole in Germany
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Cable riggers atop a pylon engaged in adding a fiber optic data cable wound around the top tower stay cable. The cable (SkyWrap) is wound on by a traveling machine, which rotates a cable drum around the support cable as it goes. This travels under its own power from tower to tower, where it is dismantled and hoisted across to the opposite side. In the picture, the motor unit has been moved across but the cable drum is still on the arrival side.
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A typical tower identification tag
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Three-phase alternating current transmission towers over water, near Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia
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A high voltage insulator in the UK. Arcing horns are also in place.
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Arcing horns. Designs may vary.
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Temporary guyed pylon next to a commenced new tower
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128 meters high Hyperboloid pylon in Russia
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River Elbe Crossing 2 in Germany
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Colorful "designer" tower titled Steps of Antti in Finland
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Wintrack pylons in the Netherlands
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The Mickey Pylon in Florida, U.S.
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See also
In Spanish: Torre eléctrica para niños
