powering a new block of land

[me217]

A while back we had to pay $1800 for an assessment - not a quote - a bit like a pre-quote inspection. We had to fill out a detailed form stated what was there and what was nearby. The assessment came back - all it told us was what we had told them. A very irate husband was finally able to get the $1800 refunded.
From memory, Ergon would put in the first pole, after that it was about $24k per pole.
Just had a lady from work put in solar as the up front cost was similar - ongoing costs obviously a lot less. She is now having terrible trouble with banks as the house they moved to the block and need to finish/remodel is not connected to mains. Loans were preapproved and have now been cancelled. Something to check first. She is very stressed about the whole thing.

really? why would the bank loan be affected by whether the power comes from the sun or an overpriced company

[rockinj]

Don't know but it is causing grief for her that's for sure.

[wetduck]

my take on this is, the bank considers that if the loan goes pear shaped it is left with a property powered by solar. The subsequent mortgagee sale may then not appeal to the full spectrum of potential buyers.

[Pete79]

What about just getting power on to the block first if you're not planning on building ASAP?

When I built my place in SEQ about 8 years ago I had to supply the pole on my side of the boundary and Energex connected to it for free.

I put the power on about a year before I built and went with 3 phase because it didn't cost any more to get it brought into the property compared to single phase.

To start off with I just put a board on the pole with a safety switch, 1 breaker per phase and a hand full of GPOs in it.

Then I had power for when we camped on the block before we started building. We had power for construction and saved on the cost of supplying a temp board for the builders.

When the house was done I went underground with the mains from the pole to the house. Still got a GPO in the board on the pole just in case I need power for doing any work on the boundary line.

[me217]

What about just getting power on to the block first if you're not planning on building ASAP?

When I built my place in SEQ about 8 years ago I had to supply the pole on my side of the boundary and Energex connected to it for free.

I put the power on about a year before I built and went with 3 phase because it didn't cost any more to get it brought into the property compared to single phase.

To start off with I just put a board on the pole with a safety switch, 1 breaker per phase and a hand full of GPOs in it.

Then I had power for when we camped on the block before we started building. We had power for construction and saved on the cost of supplying a temp board for the builders.

When the house was done I went underground with the mains from the pole to the house. Still got a GPO in the board on the pole just in case I need power for doing any work on the boundary line.

the only problem i see with that is the pole is only about 20 m from the boundary. and the house will go about 600m past that, also we will be living on the property before the house is built.

[Pete79]

No worries. I got that you had a big run to the house pad.

I was more getting at the cheapest way of brining 3 phase onto the property and futureproofing your place.

Obviously there will be a big cost for the run up to your house pad and I missed the bit about living on the block before building the house.

My run from the pole to the house was much shorter then what you're looking at and for the cost of a backhoe on site for a couple of days, it was relatively cheap for me to go underground. Even if there was a few sections of sandstone to scratch through on the way.

[me217]

No worries. I got that you had a big run to the house pad.

I was more getting at the cheapest way of brining 3 phase onto the property and futureproofing your place.

Obviously there will be a big cost for the run up to your house pad and I missed the bit about living on the block before building the house.

My run from the pole to the house was much shorter then what you're looking at and for the cost of a backhoe on site for a couple of days, it was relatively cheap for me to go underground. Even if there was a few sections of sandstone to scratch through on the way.

how deep did you have to go? also who did the work. can i dig the trench and just have them run the wire?

[Pete79]

Must be minimum 700mm deep, all cables in conduit (I ran phone and power in the same trench). Sparky must lay the cables and must be there when backfilling to lay the plastic danger tape over at the 700mm level.

We dug about 800mm deep, put the cables/conduits on the bottom, then back filled 100mm and put the danger tape on that. Not that I plan I digging in that area, but at least I know there's a little safety factor between the warning and the shock.

If you can get an operator on site for a good price (my backhoe was $75 an hour for man and machine) your big expense is the sparky to pull the cables in the conduit.

I don't know if there are specific regs for the length of run you can do underground, but my understanding is as long as it's shown accurately on your plans your sweet.
Energex only care about their wires from their poles to your first pole. That's why I did the board on the pole first and get their BS out of the way.
The board on the pole is the same as if it was the board in your house, you just need a qualified sparky, no need to deal with the power supplier.

[Pete79]

Sorry, I just realized I didn't mention the meter is in the board on the pole at the boundary line.
That's why it's the same as the board on your house.
All cables and connections downstream from my first pole are the same as if I was wiring inside my house.

[me217]

Sorry, I just realized I didn't mention the meter is in the board on the pole at the boundary line.
That's why it's the same as the board on your house.
All cables and connections downstream from my first pole are the same as if I was wiring inside my house.

ok thanks for that. my uncle has an excavator and i got a mate who has a bobcat. and a cousin who is a sparky. so that may be an option.

[BaseCamp]

....  and underground conduit must be orange...  but no one minds if (for example) the 4mtr joins are not throughly sealed --  and the voltage in them is laying in water for years on end....   

Sent from my SM-N910G using Tapatalk

[Bird]

Apparently you can get a quote but you have to pay for this...and it isn't accurate.  ??

how awesome is that WTF?

[briann532]

After reading this thread again, I'd highly suggest going solar.
The technology now is great and getting more affordable, to the point of almost being cost effective.

Just keep well away from Tesla.....
I won't go there, but just stay well clear.......
Sonnenshcien are awesome and an all in one pack that's good is LG's Chem battery's
Wouldn't hurt to do the maths.

Also just a comment on some previous posts in regards to the bank finance etc.
I agree totally at the moment, but the tide is rapidly turning and battery technology and solar is now become an attractive feature on properties.
I sold my house a year ago and the agent listed the solar as a feature. They said people are looking for it in a home now. Its even more attractive now.

Brian

[corndog]

You won't be running 240v or 415v to your property if it's 600 meters away. Maybe best you ring your energy supplier and talk to them.