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Price/Proximity to High Voltage Power Lines

moshimoshi52moshimoshi52
edited September 2008 in Seattle Real Estate
I am looking at homes in Kirkland, where high-voltage power lines run through a bunch of neighborhoods. How far should a home be from these power lines/towers to minimize the hit on prices should I try to resell? If a home is 50 yards away, is that still too close? 100 yards? 200 yards? Aesthetically, it still sucks to see power towers in the distance, but aside from that...will the home sell just as well?

Thanks!

Comments

  • ira sira s
    I think the power lines are a two edged sword. If you can't see the power lines from the property, even if they're close, it's not such a big deal, but visible power lines are not only going to make a property take longer to sell, they'll also mean you'd have to sell the place for about 15% less than comparable properties.
    That said, if you're a buyer, you can get more home for your money by living near a power line...personally, I could never live near one that crackled, but otherwise I can see some advantages, such as the fact that you might feel like you have more space than you really do ( because the adjacent power line property may give you that impression)
  • EastSiderEastSider
    I don't know if there's any scientific evidence that proves staying close to large power lines/towers is harmful to health, but I wouldn't want to take a chance.
  • perfectfireperfectfire
    I always thought that people were afraid of them falling or something. But I guess there are a lot of people that think electromagnetic radiation can give their cat AIDS.
  • EastSiderEastSider
    Electromagnetic radiation from a cell phone seems to impact one's health (check out a good article on practical ways to limit exposure at http://www.upci.upmc.edu/news/upci_news ... isory.html -- published by a cancer doc).

    Given this, even if there's a 10% chance that power-lines affect one's health -- I wouldn't risk it for saving 10-15% on my primary-home.
  • SeattleMooseSeattleMoose
    My wife forced me to buy a gauss meter to measure the strength of electrically induced magnetic fields. It cost me about $150. Anyway we would use it around the house to see where the electromagnetic "hot spots" were. Typically these include (approx):

    1) The circuit breaker box (goes to 0 about 6 feet away with just normal load...Fridge plus a few lights, etc)
    2) The analog clock on the stove (goes to 0 about 5 feet away)
    3) Hair dryers, vacuum cleaners, etc generate a HUGE EM field
    4) Outdoor A/C compressor (goes to 0 about 7 feet away)
    5) House air handler & fan (goes to 0 about 5 feet away)

    We even took the meter to the grocery store and could deduce that power lines ran underneath certain isles.

    Then one day we drove the car under those heavy duty high tower power lines. The field registered about 50 yards out and of course reached a peak directly underneath.

    The debate may rage on....but why risk ANYTHING when you don't have to?

    If you are interested in doing your own survey of your home or a potential home...get yourself a gauss meter.

    This article is also worth a read as a starting point http://www.inspect-ny.com/emf/emfproc.htm
  • SeattleMooseSeattleMoose
    This meter one looks pretty good.....
    http://www.amazon.com/TriField-Meter-Electromagnetic-Field/dp/B00050WQ1G/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1218828897&sr=1-3

    I would steer clear of any instrument with the word "paranormal" in the description. Believe me, they are out there. As an electrical engineer I can neither confirm nor deny the paranormal. But devices to "measure ghosts"?

    A famous PT Barnum quote comes to mind.....
  • ira sira s
    A famous PT Barnum quote comes to mind....

    " There's a sucker born every minute"?
  • EastSiderEastSider
    SeattleMoose wrote:
    My wife forced me to buy a gauss meter to measure the strength of electrically induced magnetic fields. It cost me about $150. Anyway we would use it around the house to see where the electromagnetic "hot spots" were. Typically these include (approx):

    1) The circuit breaker box (goes to 0 about 6 feet away with just normal load...Fridge plus a few lights, etc)
    2) The analog clock on the stove (goes to 0 about 5 feet away)
    3) Hair dryers, vacuum cleaners, etc generate a HUGE EM field
    4) Outdoor A/C compressor (goes to 0 about 7 feet away)
    5) House air handler & fan (goes to 0 about 5 feet away)

    We even took the meter to the grocery store and could deduce that power lines ran underneath certain isles.

    Then one day we drove the car under those heavy duty high tower power lines. The field registered about 50 yards out and of course reached a peak directly underneath.

    The debate may rage on....but why risk ANYTHING when you don't have to?

    If you are interested in doing your own survey of your home or a potential home...get yourself a gauss meter.

    This article is also worth a read as a starting point http://www.inspect-ny.com/emf/emfproc.htm

    Thanks -- this is useful info. Do you test it near a WiFi wireless home-router or a running microwave?
  • RobroyRobroy
    I have a few simple rules:

    1. Dont buy a house within a hundred yards or so of power lines.
    2. Don't buy a house on a road with a painted stripe down the middle (solid, double, or dashed).
    3. Don't buy a house on a street with speed bumps.
    4. Don't buy a house with a steep driveway.

    It's all about quiet enjoyment - and being able to sell the place if you ever do.

    I've lived on cul-de-sacs in my last two rentals and have learned the REAL meaning of "quiet enjoyment". It is priceless.
  • EastSiderEastSider
    edited August 2008
    Robroy wrote:
    I have a few simple rules:

    1. Dont buy a house within a hundred yards or so of power lines.
    2. Don't buy a house on a road with a painted stripe down the middle (solid, double, or dashed).
    3. Don't buy a house on a street with speed bumps.
    4. Don't buy a house with a steep driveway.

    It's all about quiet enjoyment - and being able to sell the place if you ever do.

    I've lived on cul-de-sacs in my last two rentals and have learned the REAL meaning of "quiet enjoyment". It is priceless.

    Good ones. Another obvious one -- don't buy a home that backs up to a freeway.
  • perfectfireperfectfire
    What's wrong with a steep driveway?
    And where can I buy a freeway? (And why would I?)

    I'm thinking about renting house just one house away from I-90. If the noise is tolerable what else might be a problem?
  • rudeboyrudeboy
    Living Near Freeways Hurts Kids' Lungs

    http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/health ... 01324.html
  • SeattleMooseSeattleMoose
    Eastsider

    Below is a link to the same meter that I referenced previously. Except, this link has some technical info so you determine if the operating frequency of your WIFI router, cell phone, microwave, etc. is within the detectable limits afforded by this device. Usually the "Technical Specifications" portion of the devices (the one you are trying to measure) user manual has operating frequencies.

    For low frequency electrically induced EM fields (electricity in walls and in outside lines, AC motor driven devices, etc.) this device should cover all your needs. Oh and remember that AC adapters (wall warts, bricks, etc.) ALL will generate some EM fields too as they transform line level AC into DC.

    Since typically the place where you spend the most time in one place is your bed, THAT is the place you want as "pure" as possible to reduce any potential risk from long term exposure to any type of EM radiation. Again, the health debate rages on.....but why be a "lab rat"?

    http://www.professionalequipment.com/alphalab-trifield-emf-meter-trifield-meter/emf-meter/
  • EastSiderEastSider
    SeattleMoose wrote:
    Eastsider

    Below is a link to the same meter that I referenced previously. Except, this link has some technical info so you determine if the operating frequency of your WIFI router, cell phone, microwave, etc. is within the detectable limits afforded by this device. Usually the "Technical Specifications" portion of the devices (the one you are trying to measure) user manual has operating frequencies.

    For low frequency electrically induced EM fields (electricity in walls and in outside lines, AC motor driven devices, etc.) this device should cover all your needs. Oh and remember that AC adapters (wall warts, bricks, etc.) ALL will generate some EM fields too as they transform line level AC into DC.

    Since typically the place where you spend the most time in one place is your bed, THAT is the place you want as "pure" as possible to reduce any potential risk from long term exposure to any type of EM radiation. Again, the health debate rages on.....but why be a "lab rat"?

    http://www.professionalequipment.com/alphalab-trifield-emf-meter-trifield-meter/emf-meter/

    Thanks for the detailed info.
  • redmondjpredmondjp
    I'm an EE who took a fair amount of courses in AC power. Battelle Labs (at the Pacific Northwest Labs or PNL in Richland) did a study a number of years back where they raised animals directly underneath high-voltage transmission lines (generally 100,000 VAC and above), compared to other animals in the same area but farther away from the power lines, with all other conditions being equal. The animals that were raised directly underneath the lines had stunted growth as I recall.

    Now whether there is any issue with fully-grown animals (including humans) being affected in the long-term, I'm not aware that there is any hard evidence. But if you have a choice, why take the chance?

    I suspect that you are talking about the transmission lines that run north-south along 124th Ave NE, correct?
  • RobroyRobroy
    perfectfire wrote:
    What's wrong with a steep driveway?
    And where can I buy a freeway? (And why would I?)

    I'm thinking about renting house just one house away from I-90. If the noise is tolerable what else might be a problem?
    Regarding the steep driveway, I've lived in homes with steep driveways, flat driveways, no garage, and two car garage and I can say this:

    A flat driveway is worth it's weight in gold. You don't know how nice it is compared to a steep one until you've experienced both. It is easy to wash your car, take groceries out, get in and out of cars, not worry about the parking brake, snow is not an issue, etc. It matters.

    Regarding the garage: It is worth MORE than it's weight in gold. Examples: Rainy days and taking groceries from your car to the house. A place to work on your bike, refinish furniture, rebuild that old radio - in the dead of winter during a blinding rainstorm while you listen to your favorite music and enjoy a cup of coffee/tea.

    Oh, and our 2001 Chrysler 300M still looks LITERALLY like a brand new car - and I have NEVER waxed it (We garage it at home and it is in a covered parking garage at work). And that includes the plastic headlights that still look as clear as the day we picked up the car - albeit with 130,000 miles of rock chips. And in case you haven't noticed, ANY brand of car with the new plastic headlights (I think it is actually lexan) ends up with VERY yellowed and foggy lenses after only a few years out in the elements. And it is IN the plastic, which absorbs the UV. You can't rub it out.

    Regarding the other question:
    If you are renting and can handle the noise, go for it. But if you are buying, just be aware that when you try to sell (or rent) it will affect both the price and ease of sale/rent. I just saw a spectacular home a few blocks from a pistol/rifle range. It was at around $500k but would have been worth $600K without the range. I personally have no problem with the range and would even find it convenient. My wife, on the other hand...
  • rose-colored-coolaidrose-colored-coolaid
    Robroy wrote:
    A flat driveway is worth it's weight in gold.
    ...
    Regarding the garage: It is worth MORE than it's weight in gold.

    Uh, both are nice to be sure, but when saying something is worth it's weight in gold I tend to shy away from major constructions. I mean, how many tons does a concrete driveway weigh? Gold is $900 an ounce. If my guestimate is right, that's nearly $30,000,000 a ton. Even in this overvalued market you can trivially find a house with a flat driveway and a garage for less than either of their weights in gold.

    8)

    I know it's just a phrase, but sometimes I feel like being snarky.
  • perfectfireperfectfire
    The reason I ask about the steep driveway is because we're renting a house right now with a steep driveway and there really isn't anything wrong with it. I suppose if you are in the habit of parking in your driveway instead of your garage it would be more annoying.
  • RobroyRobroy
    rose-colored-coolaid wrote:
    Robroy wrote:
    A flat driveway is worth it's weight in gold.
    ...
    Regarding the garage: It is worth MORE than it's weight in gold.

    Uh, both are nice to be sure, but when saying something is worth it's weight in gold I tend to shy away from major constructions. I mean, how many tons does a concrete driveway weigh? Gold is $900 an ounce. If my guestimate is right, that's nearly $30,000,000 a ton. Even in this overvalued market you can trivially find a house with a flat driveway and a garage for less than either of their weights in gold.

    8)

    I know it's just a phrase, but sometimes I feel like being snarky.
    Snarky? I'll give you snarky! I was talking about the AIR in the garage. regarding the driveway, I was assuming a graphite reinforced styrofoam surface. :wink:

    Your post really does crack me up because I was thinking exactly the sme thing when I wrote my original post... :D
  • AlanAlan
    I think you use the weight of the flatness to determine its value.
  • sorinsorin
    Given that you can stick one end of a fluorescent tube in the ground underneath a high voltage line and it will light up, not a place I would want to live. Except for the free lighting.

    http://www.richardbox.com/
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/bristol/somerset/3509651.stm
  • MarkorMarkor
    perfectfire wrote:
    The reason I ask about the steep driveway is because we're renting a house right now with a steep driveway and there really isn't anything wrong with it. I suppose if you are in the habit of parking in your driveway instead of your garage it would be more annoying.
    I had a house with a steep driveway. I liked it most of the time, because it raised the house to a view, and was more private. It was annoying in the winter of course; I had to monitor the forecast and, if snow, park at the bottom (just when I'd most like to park in the garage!). When I put it on the market, I got many comments about the driveway being a deal-breaker. All in all, I will probably not have a steep driveway again.
  • RobroyRobroy
    Markor wrote:
    perfectfire wrote:
    The reason I ask about the steep driveway is because we're renting a house right now with a steep driveway and there really isn't anything wrong with it. I suppose if you are in the habit of parking in your driveway instead of your garage it would be more annoying.
    I had a house with a steep driveway. I liked it most of the time, because it raised the house to a view, and was more private. It was annoying in the winter of course; I had to monitor the forecast and, if snow, park at the bottom (just when I'd most like to park in the garage!). When I put it on the market, I got many comments about the driveway being a deal-breaker. All in all, I will probably not have a steep driveway again.
    I've had homes with perfectly flat, somewhat steep, and very steep. I've tried to wash my car and carry in groceries from all three. The utter convenience of a flat driveway is one of those things you don't really appreciate until you no longer have one.

    In our current house, we really MUST pull our cars into the garage to load and unload the cars. The driveway isn't even that steep, but the convenience is amazing. And then there is washing the car on a flat driveway and stuff like that.

    I compare it to this: My wife used to say that a two story house is no less convenient than a one story, then I noticed that when cleaning house she sets piles of stuff at the bottom of the stairway for carrying up the stairs later. I asked her, "Gee, if this was a single story house would you pile up stuff at the end of the hallway in the same way? :lol:

    Of course not!
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