In the fine newsgroup "alt.home.repair", "John Grabowski"
artfully composed this message within
.net on 03 Jun
2004:

Cheryl, I have a few questions. How old is your home?

15 years.

Is the
electrical service underground or overhead?

It may be a combination. Our whole neighborhood was knocked out
(downed power lines) after Hurricane Isobel and the overhead lines
and poles had to be replaced. But, a neighbor who has the same
problem (I just found out!) said the power company told them in
this neighborhood the power supplying homes is underground.

Can you correlate
the flickering lights with thunderstorms and lightning somewhere
in your area?

Nope. Nothing weird going on outdoors at all when this happens.
Though it does happen when there are storms, as well.

Do any of your neighbors have the same
experiences?

At least one does as I just found out. I'll ask around this
weekend.

What sort of major electric appliances do you have
(Air conditioning, stove, water heater, etc.)?

All electric home; no gas supply lines in the neighborhood, so all
of the major appliances are electric. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Do you have an
emergency generator connected to your home?

No, but I sure would like one.

Did you make any
changes to your home or install anything prior to the beginning
of the flickering problem?

No. New heat pump installed 3 years ago, but the timing doesn't
draw a parallel.

Do you have a battery back up system
for your home computer? Do you have a large copy machine or
printer that is left on most of the time?

I use a laptop, and I go to battery power when it acts up like it
did last night. Copier/printer only on when I need to use it with
an old desktop as a print server. They are on a surge suppressor.

How close is your home
to the power company's nearest substation? Has there been any
major construction in your area recently such as the opening of
a new office building, shopping center, or housing development?

I don't know about the substation; construction, YES, always in
this area. New homes are going up all the time. HUGE homes. Nearest
new developments are about a mile away in two separate directions.

The power company has instruments that can monitor the power
coming into your home. You can try and demand that they set
something up at your location. Otherwise, contact an
electrician who can rent the instruments and connect it to your
service. That might provide you with tangible evidence as to
the cause.

Thank you John. The new knowledge of at least one neighbor having
the same problem brought up something discouraging. They had
contacted the power company a while back (I forgot to ask how long
ago) and were told that the underground wires probably needed
replacing and they would wait until they "went". No good. I could
have a fire or lose major appliances in the meantime. I'm going to
follow up. But how? Have an electrician do what you wrote above and
present that to the power company? First, I will call them myself
and get them to come out and see what they say after a new
complaint. When I first bought this house almost 4 years ago, the
power used to go out with almost every storm. I can recall the
flickering occurring before Isobel, but the power doesn't go out at
the drop of a hat since they replaced the overheads. But, the
flickering has gotten worse.

John Grabowski
http://www.mrelectrician.tv



--
Cheryl