200A Pedestal meter with lever....war with poco

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jmoschetti45

Member
Location
Michigan
I intend to switch from (very dysfunctional [long story in itself]) overhead to underground service at home. My local utility WPPI says fine, not a problem, put on a pedestal and dig us a trench and we'll hook 'er up. Great. Come to find out, I'd only be the second one in town with UG service....probably for this exact scenario playing out....

Was told I need a meter box with UG capability (obviously....), 4 jaw, ringless, lever bypass. Should be easy....

Round 1. My thoughts were pedestals are ugly...why can't I get a UG or OH/UG meter box. Found a nice one...submitted....no dice. "We can't hook up to that, it doesn't have enough room for our 4/0 feeders"..... I don't have the sheet for it handy, but it clearly stated (and judging from the dimensions) that it could handle #6 - 350kcml wires... I asked a friend who works for a different poco, and they approve of those and he has personally hooked up several of exactly those with no problems....

Round 2. I found another meter box, this one was obnoxiously large, but still a better option than a pedestal... I'm pretty sure I could cram 6 350kcml in there and it'd still meet fill and bend radius requirements with flying colors.... I also asked what size conduit they would prefer going down, just in case it wasn't going to be the 2" norm... "We can't hook up to that, we can't use conduit, it has to be a pedestal for our interconnect"....

Round 3. I searched for 2 days.... A ringless pedestal with lever bypass and 4 jaws is virtually impossible to find. I can find them in 5 jaw, or 320A....

Round 3A. I checked with my buddy at the other poco, he's never had an issue with putting a 4 jaw meter in a 5 jaw socket...the jaw isn't in the way and poses no risk. "We can't put a 4 jaw meter in that, try again"

Round 3B. I submit the 320A model...exact specs met. "That's not going to work, you need a 200A model".

Round 4 (desperate times...) I request 320A service. I realize this is going to involve some labor, a can, spark gap, acsr, etc out of my pocket. I'm willing to write a blank check at this point..... "You have no need for 320A service, you're not going to get it"

Does anyone know of a pedestal meter that meets my needs?? I'm about to ask the one person in town who has one if I can investigate it and see if I can figure out what make/model it is....
 

Buck Parrish

Senior Member
Location
NC & IN
Do you have a supply house near by. They should no what the poco wants. I agree a pedestal is ugly unless you're in a camp ground. Plus they'll rust.
 

Hv&Lv

Senior Member
Location
-
Occupation
Engineer/Technician
I intend to switch from (very dysfunctional [long story in itself]) overhead to underground service at home. My local utility WPPI says fine, not a problem, put on a pedestal and dig us a trench and we'll hook 'er up. Great. Come to find out, I'd only be the second one in town with UG service....probably for this exact scenario playing out....

Was told I need a meter box with UG capability (obviously....), 4 jaw, ringless, lever bypass. Should be easy....

Round 1. My thoughts were pedestals are ugly...why can't I get a UG or OH/UG meter box. Found a nice one...submitted....no dice. "We can't hook up to that, it doesn't have enough room for our 4/0 feeders"..... I don't have the sheet for it handy, but it clearly stated (and judging from the dimensions) that it could handle #6 - 350kcml wires... I asked a friend who works for a different poco, and they approve of those and he has personally hooked up several of exactly those with no problems....

Round 2. I found another meter box, this one was obnoxiously large, but still a better option than a pedestal... I'm pretty sure I could cram 6 350kcml in there and it'd still meet fill and bend radius requirements with flying colors.... I also asked what size conduit they would prefer going down, just in case it wasn't going to be the 2" norm... "We can't hook up to that, we can't use conduit, it has to be a pedestal for our interconnect"....

Round 3. I searched for 2 days.... A ringless pedestal with lever bypass and 4 jaws is virtually impossible to find. I can find them in 5 jaw, or 320A....

Round 3A. I checked with my buddy at the other poco, he's never had an issue with putting a 4 jaw meter in a 5 jaw socket...the jaw isn't in the way and poses no risk. "We can't put a 4 jaw meter in that, try again"

Round 3B. I submit the 320A model...exact specs met. "That's not going to work, you need a 200A model".

Round 4 (desperate times...) I request 320A service. I realize this is going to involve some labor, a can, spark gap, acsr, etc out of my pocket. I'm willing to write a blank check at this point..... "You have no need for 320A service, you're not going to get it"

Does anyone know of a pedestal meter that meets my needs?? I'm about to ask the one person in town who has one if I can investigate it and see if I can figure out what make/model it is....
I believe the utility commission needs a call and let the commission call the poco and ask what they want there

I work for a utility and that is just plain stupid and pigheaded.
 

Peter Furrow

We’re not born humble, we’re born to be humbled
Location
Cape canaveral Fl
Occupation
Electrical contractor
I believe the utility commission needs a call and let the commission call the poco and ask what they want there

I work for a utility and that is just plain stupid and pigheaded.

I agree. Id get a letter/email and photos together.
Politely litigate.
12 years ago when I started as a contractor I installed five pedestals at a trailer park. I used 150 amp meter /main combination panels and FPL (Florida power and light )did not approve.
They had a list of selected pedestals for trailer parks that I had to pick from. I passed my inspection with AHJ but utility company refused to connect it. I emailed the project coordinator several times and sent photos and was able to get a reconnect on all 5.
I got lucky on that one


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jmoschetti45

Member
Location
Michigan
I believe the utility commission needs a call and let the commission call the poco and ask what they want there

I work for a utility and that is just plain stupid and pigheaded.

Probably my best bet. I get the feeling they only "approve" of things that are about as hard to find as a unicorn so they don't have to do anything.

The dysfunctional current "200A" service I have.... There are 7 houses on this end of the street. All serviced by a 50KVA can on what we'll call pole #2. Pole number #1 has 2 drops, I've been nosey and checked them out, both are 100A service. Pole #3 has one 200A drop. Pole #4 has one 100A drop. Pole #5 has a 100A drop. Pole #6 (my pole) has a 200A drop. Pole #7 has a 60A drop. The spacing on most of these is pretty much at the limit, the lines sag pretty good. So, not only am I way too far away from that rust bucket of a can (which is also missing a spark gap, and has no fuse on the 7.2kv side...), the wiring between the poles are 6awg for the hots, 8awg for the neutral.... It's copper at least, but come on.... My aluminum drop is 4awg with a 6awg neutral....

Just to throw some gas onto the fire, I've told the poco I'd be interested in putting up some solar.... Have yet to get a response to that.
 

SSDriver

Senior Member
Location
California
Occupation
Electrician
This is the closest I could find. Everything that is a ringless pad mount has 5 jaws or is the ring type



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jim dungar

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Wisconsin
Occupation
PE (Retired) - Power Systems
My local utility WPPI ....

What is the name, or city, of your POCO? I web searched 'WPPI' and found they are a co-op headquartered out of Sun Prairie Wisconsin. They say they have members from Iowa to the UP. It seems you are having trouble with the local member.
 

hillbilly1

Senior Member
Location
North Georgia mountains
Occupation
Owner/electrical contractor
At one time, our poco required Milbank meterbases, they would accept nothing else. Apparently someone sued them, and they lost. Apparently if only one manufacture was acceptable, they had to provide it free of charge. Previously you had to buy it from them. They still require you to pay for it, but you can install other brands you buy elsewhere now.
 

Electricmo

Senior Member
Location
Missouri
Occupation
Lineman
Your POCO only has 2 UG services? Sounds crazy to me. I don’t understand why their specs are so weird. I’m amazed milbank makes a 200amp bypass pedestal. I’ve only seen them here on 320 amp services. The transformer feeding your service sounds like a CSP that is missing the arrestor. Good Luck.
 
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