Power Lines: Dangerous or not?

myself | 2/21/05 | me

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

Dynamo Hum? (Cf. Frank Zappa.)

[fanfan]

The government wouldn't let anything bad happen to you, and most of the power transmission equipment in the US has been fully licensed by the government. What's to worry about?

ROFLOL. Bhahahaaa....( some people in Canada actually believe stuff like that) !

[nmh]

I'd play it safe and NOT buy the house.

What I do know about a glob of power lines it that there is an audible buzz and you may have problems with your appliances etc..

[Petronski]

I don't know about safety, but I do know they're ugly.

[fanfan]

I try to listen to Rush on AM radio in eastern Ontario.

Every time I travel under a power line I get interference.

We have magnetism in our bodies. I think these lines must have an effect. I would not live under more magnetism than is necessary.

[SE Mom]

Normally I am skeptical of this-and-that causes cancer theories (Remember when drinking cranberry juice was linked to cancer?!)...but in the case of living beneath high voltage lines- I'm more cautious. I base this more on my gut than on science.

[Quix]

Granted. But they can still be a pretty significant clue about where to look for causes.

[fanfan]

Folks who want to fear "electricity" can do so. They ought to fear the sun as a source ...

The difference is that we can control the electricity.

[Quix]

HMMMMMMMMMMM.

[xm177e2]

Since this is on your mind, every time you get a cold, you'll think --- power lines.

And what if you start thinking weird thoughts???

LOL. Good one.

[Deguello]

I never could get your picture to open in post #49.

[fanfan]

Sorry to hear that. God bless her.

[dennisw]

Houses near and under power lines are always less expensive. I would never buy one due to the EMF. Aesthetics are also ruined.

[Former Proud Canadian]

I have no knowledge of scientific "proof" either way. You don't say how close the power lines are or what the voltage is. These could be factors to consider.

Your primary concern, however, should be resale value. What will the market's perception be of the proximity of the power lines when you want to sell?

[Graycliff]

(I'm not going to use it as a bargaining tool)???

Are you kidding me?
Thats a great bargaining tool. How long do plan on living there?

[CharlieOK1]

something just seems disgusting about saying "Well, I'm afraid it might give my family cancer, so that oughta be worth about $5000, doncha think?"

Dunno, maybe that's just me.

[the OlLine Rebel]

"I am finding lots of conflicting info. Some sources say that there is "definitely" a link and other say "definitely no link"."


Let's put it this way, as with all these scares:

Who do you even know OF who was ever actually hurt by this?

Didn't think so!

[KC_for_Freedom]

Power lines fields drop of as 1/r as you point out because the long power line radiates from each element out to infinity. A point source radiator will drop at 1/r squared.

Radiation fields are all around us and power lines are not any worse than electric blankets. The effect on the human body is almost too small to be measured and so cannot be shown to be harmful. We bought next door to a train, and got used to it, but when we were looking for buyers we found the train was a bit of a problem. Our house had asbestos siding, not really a hazard either unless you sand it or saw it, but to up our resale value we changed it out over the years. Its really how much you like the location, neighbors, schools, nearness to work, etc. Let all these other factors weigh much more than the power lines.

[MontanaBeth]

Thanks, Quix I don't know if the power lines (huge, buzzing things) did any of this but I do know they are convinced of it. I just wouldn't take the chance.

[CharlieOK1]

doh! can you copy the properties for the picture into your address bar? I don't know where else to host it...