copper thefts

[electricalist]

Recently we have had 3 or more thefts where the service conductors were taken from the pad xfmr to the panel in the bldg.
I've only been to one bldg and the conductors were taken out from under lugs,not cut. I don't see why they would do it that way.
They are stupid to open a xfmr from the poco and take anything apart.
Without explaining how they are doing this.....what's going on.

 

[480sparky]

Is the transformer energized?

Perhaps the thieves are sophisticated enough to carry a hot stick and pull the transformer fuses.

 

[electricalist]

similar to this. This isn't the xfmr. Xfmr feeds it. Just so I'll know what is this called?

 

[electricalist]

Yes it was energized. We called them to kill the power.

 

[petersonra]

use aluminum next time

 

[electricalist]

We do

 

[stevebea]

View attachment 11490 similar to this. This isn't the xfmr. Xfmr feeds it. Just so I'll know what is this called?

My guess is it was a sectionalizing cabinet.

 

[kwired]

Recently we have had 3 or more thefts where the service conductors were taken from the pad xfmr to the panel in the bldg.
I've only been to one bldg and the conductors were taken out from under lugs,not cut. I don't see why they would do it that way.
They are stupid to open a xfmr from the poco and take anything apart.
Without explaining how they are doing this.....what's going on.

I take it they are stealing these from buildings under construction or major rennovation and they are not yet occupied?

Your suspects very well may be or are at least connected to some of those that are working on the project.

If this continues to be a problem, and if it had happened to me three times already I may not wait for it to happen again, maybe some kind of video monitoring needs to be utilized.

 

[480sparky]

Yes it was energized. We called them to kill the power.

If they have the ability to turn a transformer off, they also have the ability to turn it back on when they're done.

 

[ceb58]

Your suspects very well may be or are at least connected to some of those that are working on the project

We had the same happen on some communication sites that were being upgraded. Turns out 2 of the contract tower crew members were coming back at night and stealing the copper buss bars and ground straps. They would install them in the day steal them at night. They were caught one night stealing the bars by the Navy's shore patrol. Unfortunately for them the tower, building and property belonged to the Navy and they were just doing upgrades for us. So now they face prosecution by the State and Feds.

 

[electricalist]

These were building where tenants moved out and they were vacant. For too long. I figure some of you guys out there have seen this before.
Is there some type of alarm for the panels or a method to rebuilding a service that would make it harder for the thieves?
.

 

[Fulthrotl]

These were building where tenants moved out and they were vacant. For too long. I figure some of you guys out there have seen this before.
Is there some type of alarm for the panels or a method to rebuilding a service that would make it harder for the thieves?
.

if the conductors are energized, you could put a supervisory alarm on the service
to notify you when the power went off.

don't take this the wrong way....... but...... when troubleshooting any intermittent
circuit, and these seem to be intermittent, i look for common denominators.

the fact that you've had three hits on facilities you are associated with recently,
i'd look at what personnel that you know of have knowledge of all three facilities,
and have the capabilities to remove the conductors.

your employees, or any other companies people that have been onsite. the fact that
someone is stealing aluminum conductors, which normally aren't worth the bother,
indicates to me that the person stealing them isn't using them for scrap, they are using
them for feeders. long, multiple, large conductors. to pull aluminum out and strip it for
the scrap value is hardly worth it.

who do you know who needs feeders?

 

[Fulthrotl]

We do

i misunderstood..... this was copper that
you are repulling with aluminum? disregard
the earlier post.

 

[electricalist]

These were copper. Were going back wirh al. .
I agree look for xommob denominators.. somebody seems very comfortable taking their time

 

[ggunn]

There is a theatre here in town that was vacant for a while. When the new tenants came to move in they found that the overhead lines from the pole mounted transformer to the building were gone.

The thieves perpetrated their crime in broad daylight and a nearby convenience store clerk watched the whole thing go down. She said they showed up in a bucket truck in uniforms and hardhats; she had no reason to suspect that they were anything other than utility workers doing their job.

 

[kwired]

There is a theatre here in town that was vacant for a while. When the new tenants came to move in they found that the overhead lines from the pole mounted transformer to the building were gone.

The thieves perpetrated their crime in broad daylight and a nearby convenience store clerk watched the whole thing go down. She said they showed up in a bucket truck in uniforms and hardhats; she had no reason to suspect that they were anything other than utility workers doing their job.

What if they were legitimate contractors for the POCO, but somehow messed up the location of the job - and coincidentally it was for a place that was not occupied?

Bit of a long shot I know but I have heard of stranger things happening. Of course the location that was to be disconnected possibly calls after a no show wondering when they are coming as well.

We had a recent incident around here where a young (25ish) old couple sold a herd of cattle (got paid around $10K), took the buyers out to the pasture in broad daylight and they loaded them up and drove away. Buyers had no idea they were purchasing "stolen cattle", and were not from immediate area so they didn't know much about landowners of the area and other things like that. Loading these cattle up wouldn't be something you pull up and leave after a few minutes - could easily have taken an hour or longer to round them all up and get them into the truck. Any neighbors driving by that know the area very well would likely have questioned this activity had they seen it.

 

[ggunn]

What if they were legitimate contractors for the POCO, but somehow messed up the location of the job - and coincidentally it was for a place that was not occupied?

Bit of a long shot I know but I have heard of stranger things happening. Of course the location that was to be disconnected possibly calls after a no show wondering when they are coming as well.

That wasn't the case; it was thievery. The utility had nothing to do with the removal of the conductors. I am not sure who had to pay for their replacement.

The thieves (or possibly other thieves) also took the external HVAC equipment.

 

[kwired]

That wasn't the case; it was thievery. The utility had nothing to do with the removal of the conductors. I am not sure who had to pay for their replacement.

The thieves (or possibly other thieves) also took the external HVAC equipment.

You would have to catch the thieves before you can make them pay.

Outside of that I guess it depends on who owns the conductors in question. Service drop conductors are typically POCO owned so it is likely POCO's loss. Conductors and raceways on side of building often are the customer's responsibility, so if those were taken as well then that portion is likely up to customer to replace.

 

[electricalist]

Often these thefts ate done with enough intelligence that the customer look at the electrician there to fix it like , " Its one of your kind that did this not a crack head."
In one situation we replaced some feeders and it was stolen again. The second time we replaced it we were glared at and watched the whole time we were there. The thief came back. He had tied something to the dock leveler so he could release it from outside the bldg and crawl in .

 

[growler]

There is a theatre here in town that was vacant for a while. When the new tenants came to move in they found that the overhead lines from the pole mounted transformer to the building were gone.

The thieves perpetrated their crime in broad daylight and a nearby convenience store clerk watched the whole thing go down. She said they showed up in a bucket truck in uniforms and hardhats; she had no reason to suspect that they were anything other than utility workers doing their job.

I wonder how much money the thieves lost on that deal. You can't put gas in the truck for what that cable is worth. I wouldn't bother to take it down if they gave it to me.


Edit: what I mean to say is it's not worth anything as scrap but could be if needed at another location so Kwired may have a point.