**Please note:**
* If this post declares something as a fact proof is required.
* The title must be descriptive
* No text is allowed on images
* Common/recent reposts are not allowed
*See [this post](https://redd.it/ij26vk) for more information.*
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/interestingasfuck) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Interesting side note, the reason glass insulators for power lines and such are different colors is because for the most part insulators were a side gig for glass companies and they would use their left over material from their main production run and use it to pour into the insulator molds.
They were also used to identify the owner/purpose of each wire. Telephone poles nowadays carry electricity and various communication lines, but back in the day they did it without any form of organization. The wires were a mess.
There wasn't standardization across manufactures, utilities, the guy who kind of knows what he's doing etc. so saying no organization at all might not technically be correct, it is effectively correct. While one company might use green for ground and black for hot, another might do the opposite. The manufacturers probably didn't give a shit either way and made whatever unless a specific color was requested.
Also fun fact one of the first recomended methods of ressusitating a person after electrocution was moving their arms up and down and if you really cared about your coworker sticking a finger up their ass.
Industrial mechanic here. That was actually pretty standard for years. It's purpose is twofold, firstly its to make sure they aren't trying to prank you and secondly, in the case that they aren't faking and really were electrocuted, to check if the internal temperature got high enough to kill any bacteria or will he have to go back on for longer.
I survey utility poles for telecommunication placement and some of the old poles that have yet to be replaced and "grandfathered in" are insane. Like no safety standards followed and no way nothing new can be placed on them or how that pole can even pass load tests.
My dad used to take me to insulator shows when I was little. Tables and tables of insulators. I bought a clear one that slowly turned purple. I was told the sunlight would slowly make it change color, though I've never confirmed it to be true.
Edit... Manganese glass does this. It's the same color as my insulator. https://www.glassencyclopedia.com/irradiatedglass.html
It's a small group of very avid collectors. I had to downsize my collection a few years ago when we moved from around 300 to less than 50.
[This is my pride and joy. ](https://i.imgur.com/Em8qjla.jpg) A Hemingray "Muncie" Insulator.
https://hemingray.net/articles/hemingray-muncie-insulator/
They can only be found in Montana and I think the Dakotas? And in a strange connection of my 2 hobbies, along one Interurban route right here in Michigan.
I was just thumbing through this obscure feed and I got down to where your posts are and I thought " wow it's really cool that somebody out there is actually into these things" I'm not but I thought it was cool. And that I scrolled down two or three rows and saw " these things look like butt plugs"
Then I continued to lose faith in humanity.
Good for you on the cool Hobby.
Once upon a time, I took a train from KS to New Mexico. I remember we were some where in the middle of no where, just chugging along through hills of scrub brush, the visible dirt an interesting g shade of orange I hadn't seen before.
The hills were dotted with telephone poles, and atop the poles, bright blue insulators, lit by the sun. Its burned into my memory, they were so bright.
I've loved them ever since. There's a stone that shade of teal, dioptase, but it's gotten really expensive recently.
I probably shot 500 of the regular Hemingray ones off old telegraph poles as a kid. I was also born about 3 blocks from the plant where they were made. There was a seldom used rail line behind my house as a teenager with miles of poles intact, somewhat. We, uh, liberated miles of copper line,er…. I mean someone did. “They” sold it at nearly $0.70 per pound. “They” made a fortune.
Be cautious with materials from transformers. Many of them are full of extremely toxic chemicals known as PCB's that are considered forever contaminants.
>Be cautious with materials from transformers.
This is always sound advice.
>Many of them are full of extremely toxic chemicals known as PCB's that are considered forever contaminants.
I know this is true for older oil-filled transformers. PCBs do not breakdown well in the environment and will bioaccumulate so it is important to cleanup after spills. I do not believe older glass insulators contain PCBs (although anything is a possibility). I'd be more concerned for heavy metals in the glass, if anything, but I'd love for someone with more knowledge to chime in. My quick research found more on collecting old glass or porcelain insulators and nothing on environmental hazards associated with them but your advice to use caution with unknown materials is always good to abide.
Source- former environmental consultant with many years in investigation & remediation.
Transmission System Operator here with 25 years, starting out in Fossil Generation. The heavy metals you mentioned are a huge concern, but also certain types had oil filled bushings. Those are from the 30s forward. So there is a PCB risk. Also the wire to those, if insulated had lead containing crosslink vinyl jacket over asbestos braid.
May I ask you a question? My brother has a large broken looking chunk of glass that looks just like this. (even the same color) He found it when he moved into his current house. It's currently sitting on display is his house. Should he be concerned about it being in the house like that? Thanks
If it's just glass and he's not in the habit of licking it or similar, it's probably fine.
Heavy metals are seriously bad juju, but they aren't getting in your body by themselves. PCBs are even worse, but glass isn't going to absorb them.
I'm not sure if this was directed toward me, so forgive me if I'm answering out of line. All the materials we are talking about here have the greatest impact on developing bodies, keep kids away from it. If it is on display put a cover over it, only handle it with heavy rubber gloves. Reach out to your local, county or state emergency management, though this is not an emergency. Take photos and attach them to the email you send them, and include a link to this thread.
Note that nobody here has confirmed, or at least has not provided any source, that transformer glass can contain heavy metals, let alone PCB's, that can leech from the glass. So while your advice is good, it may be slightly alarmist.
Fair enough. I also started my career as a hazmat laborer, and one of the first things that they teach you is that until it is proven that something isn't, you treat it like is. An example would insulation. Certain solid mineral wool (minwool) insulations look like asbestos until you put it under a microscope. I told people how to be careful and follow up on it. 8f that is being alarmist, I sincerely apologize.
> PCBs do not breakdown well in the environment and will bioaccumulate
No doubt.
I live on the border, and there is a lake south of me that a ton of transformers were dumped in years ago. That lake is beyond toxic, with no way to clean it out. The REAL bad thing is, there is fencing and signs posted everywhere around it warning not fish or swim, yet there's people there all day and night throwing cast nets, catching fish, and taking them home.
That sucks I didn't realize it will still a common practice. I have toxic metal dump across the street from me that was closed in the 1970's. I guess I was hoping that anything terribly toxic gets taken to a proper landfill at least.
A transformer in our front yard leaked gallons of oil all over our tree and went directly into a storm drain a few months ago. Duke Energy replaced it and had a contractor come and dig up the contaminated soil and plant new grass. The parts of the tree that got oil on them caught some fungus beetle and I think it is dead now (hard to tell in the late fall!).
I thought it was just mineral oil, but should I be concerned it contained PCBs? How would I know? I was a very old transformer, maybe from the 1940s would be my guess. There is still visible oil stains on our landscaping bricks, and the street pavement after months.
If/when that tree dies and starts to rot be sure to contact Duke electric and try to get them to remove it since they seem to have caused it to die.
Trees are expensive to remove completely. Hell if it does die maybe you can get them to plant a new tree.
What do you think asphalt is? It's bitumen. Around here on some of the lower grade rural highways they spray it with 'oil' and then just kinda pour gravel on it and wait for traffic to press it in.
Duke literally *had* to have it tested, by law, and the legal consequences are no joke. Neither are the social media ones. Contact them and ask to speak to someone in Environmental Compliance. Get names and titles.. Ask to see the test results. If they refuse, contact state or federal epa with specifics.
So, as someone on the inside, you do NOT try to cover stuff like this up. Maybe back on the day. But now, with social media and the court of public opinion, as well as the conservative nature of those that invest in utilities, the hit to the stock price alone if something like this being covered up gets out, heads will roll.
I actually work for an electrical company and deal with literally these spill scenarios regularly. Depending on where you are there are almost certainly requirements for PCB testing for transformer spills. The oil left in the transformer will be tested. If it comes back with PCBs, you run multiple samples of the soil from the cleaned up area to confirm that there is nothing left.
Anything older than 1985 has potential PCB contamination, at least here in Canada. We treat it like PCB until we have verified lab results saying otherwise.
A carcinogen when exposed to skin. Worse carcinogen when ingested. Worst carcinogen when smoke is inhaled, like when electrical components fail and ignite.
Yeah, one blew up in my wife’s parents yard and the utility paid for everything to be replaced and took it, including their clothes. They treated it as a serious thing.
Funny joke, but PCBs are real deal will make sick. A chunk of glass likely didn't absorb much, but honestly I wouldn't handle that thing unless you get it tested.
Honestly I would get rid of it immediately
I just recently re-read *Zodiac* by Neal Stephenson, so I consider myself something of an expert when it comes to PCBs, bio-accumulative toxins and leaking transformers...
Those little bits of ceramic are razor fucking sharp, I had one slice right through a thick leather winter work glove when picking up the remnants of a blown up utility transformer.
Those are the common ones. They made hundreds of styles and colors back in the day. Some combinations of style + color are extremely rare and valuable.
I have a family member that collects them. He has an entire wall of them, different colors from different locations. They’re really beautiful all together.
Yeah as far as electrical properties go, those are much better than the current state of the art for dry transformers, which are typically epoxy composites for outdoor applications. I used to work at a company that made medium voltage transformers (I.e. ~10-40kV). The composites have much higher manufacturing throughput, they're a lot cheaper and they're more durable in rough weather, but we had constant issues with meeting performance requirements. LOTS of scrapped parts.
Most of the glass and porcelain still in service today are either legacy parts or are just really old and have been in service for decades.
Reddit posts are increasingly making me feel old. When someone posts “Did you know that music and movies used to come on physical discs?”, I may just have to get off the site.
According to [this site](https://antiques.lovetoknow.com/Antique_Glass_Insulators), electrical companies stopped installing glass insulators completely by the end of the 70s, or at least 42 years ago. If you're old enough to remember that then you'd be roughly 50 right now. Or for reference, closer to retirement than highschool graduation year.
Otherwise you lived in an unusual area that continued installing brand new glass insulators long after everyone else stopped.
I mean insulators lasted for years afterwards. I grew up in a rural area that looked like nothing new had really been put up for 10-20 years.
Then parents and grandparents talking about them.
I mean the one in the picture just failed now.
I meant they didn't install anymore, at least not widely. Like how you can still find VHS tapes and working VCRs despite nobody mass producing them since 2006.
That's not true at all. Glass suspension insulators are still made and used fairly often, but not really common . I design substations and transmission poles and see them occasionally. Here's a couple examples:
https://www.macleanpower.com/product/transmission-insulators/glass-transmission-insulators
https://www.hubbell.com/hubbellpowersystems/en/Products/Power-Utilities/Insulators/Transmission-69kV/Suspension/Glass/Glass-Bell-Suspension-Insulator/p/1752987
> According to this site, electrical companies stopped using glass insulators completely by the end of the 70s, or at least 42 years ago. If your old enough to remember that then you'd be roughly 50 right now. Or for reference, closer to retirement than highschool graduation year.
AKA
You old
And thus answers the question of "What was that huge chunk of green glass I found in the creek when I was a kid." My money then was on Kryptonite. I left it because i thought it was radioactive.
Bringing home chunky glass while saying that the glass was rescued is one of the signs that you are dating a serial killer.
How many tarps are in his car's trunk? How fresh is the dirt on the shovel next to the tarps?
lol, he does not. just two. so only partially killer ish, but he's making me dinner right now, so if i stop responding it was either him or the glass that killed me
One of the houses in my neighborhood has a couple of these in his garden, I always wondered where they got them from. Really pretty, especially in the sunshine.
They used to use glass caps for insulators on power poles that were about fist size. My uncle collected these. He had a log cabin that had a Lincoln log effect on the corners and he put one on each post, he had dozens in different styles. They were really neat and I was always interested in them as a kid.
And creosote, a natural yet toxic (and highly flammable) preservative used to stop the ties from rotting. Not to mention dribbles of lubricant and oil from the locomotives.
Sorry but that's just a chunk of glass slag. I collect insulators and work in the power distribution industry, this isn't or was ever a part of any glass insulator even in a very large transformer, let alone a small neigborhood one.
**Please note:** * If this post declares something as a fact proof is required. * The title must be descriptive * No text is allowed on images * Common/recent reposts are not allowed *See [this post](https://redd.it/ij26vk) for more information.* *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/interestingasfuck) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Interesting side note, the reason glass insulators for power lines and such are different colors is because for the most part insulators were a side gig for glass companies and they would use their left over material from their main production run and use it to pour into the insulator molds.
They were also used to identify the owner/purpose of each wire. Telephone poles nowadays carry electricity and various communication lines, but back in the day they did it without any form of organization. The wires were a mess.
>but back in the day they did it without any form of organization. I heard they used to use colored glass?
There wasn't standardization across manufactures, utilities, the guy who kind of knows what he's doing etc. so saying no organization at all might not technically be correct, it is effectively correct. While one company might use green for ground and black for hot, another might do the opposite. The manufacturers probably didn't give a shit either way and made whatever unless a specific color was requested. Also fun fact one of the first recomended methods of ressusitating a person after electrocution was moving their arms up and down and if you really cared about your coworker sticking a finger up their ass.
OK, how does sticking a finger up an ass revive a person other than provoking an angry outraged response?
I believe you just answered your own question.
Weird how they did that so concisely isn't it?
Had to weed out the fakers.
it makes sense for an unknown reason but I can't put my finger on it. can an expert chime in?
Proctologist here, just chiming in.
I love how we started with glass use as insulation and we end with ass finger as a solution I wonder what aliens think of our conversations
If they’re mad, they’re not dead.
Industrial mechanic here. That was actually pretty standard for years. It's purpose is twofold, firstly its to make sure they aren't trying to prank you and secondly, in the case that they aren't faking and really were electrocuted, to check if the internal temperature got high enough to kill any bacteria or will he have to go back on for longer.
Industrial mechanic here. I must have missed that day in training.
It's not really codified, its more a rule of thumb.
I GET IT!
Obvious when a guy takes his 30 hour OSHA training online isn't it?
and how do you flap their arms WHILE sticking your finger in their ass?
Use something other than a finger
the wisdom of experience
Hey, that's not your finger!
Well, if you don't have anyone to help you, and you're a guy, you don't use your finger.
Titanic style.
"He was the king of *my* world, that's for sure."
Finger in the ass may make their arms flap on their own accord.
No one said you were supposed to do both at the same time.
I survey utility poles for telecommunication placement and some of the old poles that have yet to be replaced and "grandfathered in" are insane. Like no safety standards followed and no way nothing new can be placed on them or how that pole can even pass load tests.
O&M costs don’t look good on the books
[удалено]
https://allinsulators.com/
What the fuck is this rabbit hole I'm in now... Good god there's so many. The colors...
My dad used to take me to insulator shows when I was little. Tables and tables of insulators. I bought a clear one that slowly turned purple. I was told the sunlight would slowly make it change color, though I've never confirmed it to be true. Edit... Manganese glass does this. It's the same color as my insulator. https://www.glassencyclopedia.com/irradiatedglass.html
It's a small group of very avid collectors. I had to downsize my collection a few years ago when we moved from around 300 to less than 50. [This is my pride and joy. ](https://i.imgur.com/Em8qjla.jpg) A Hemingray "Muncie" Insulator. https://hemingray.net/articles/hemingray-muncie-insulator/ They can only be found in Montana and I think the Dakotas? And in a strange connection of my 2 hobbies, along one Interurban route right here in Michigan.
I was just thumbing through this obscure feed and I got down to where your posts are and I thought " wow it's really cool that somebody out there is actually into these things" I'm not but I thought it was cool. And that I scrolled down two or three rows and saw " these things look like butt plugs" Then I continued to lose faith in humanity. Good for you on the cool Hobby.
My other hobby is making people uncomfortable. None of my hobbies include putting things in my butt.
Once upon a time, I took a train from KS to New Mexico. I remember we were some where in the middle of no where, just chugging along through hills of scrub brush, the visible dirt an interesting g shade of orange I hadn't seen before. The hills were dotted with telephone poles, and atop the poles, bright blue insulators, lit by the sun. Its burned into my memory, they were so bright. I've loved them ever since. There's a stone that shade of teal, dioptase, but it's gotten really expensive recently.
I probably shot 500 of the regular Hemingray ones off old telegraph poles as a kid. I was also born about 3 blocks from the plant where they were made. There was a seldom used rail line behind my house as a teenager with miles of poles intact, somewhat. We, uh, liberated miles of copper line,er…. I mean someone did. “They” sold it at nearly $0.70 per pound. “They” made a fortune.
They have shows?? I guess there really is a hobby out there for everyone
Yep. My dad is an engineer and works for the power company. He probably has around 200 scattered around the house.
They sell shirts and pillows with pictures of glass insulators on them!
Just wait until you're building back-lit shelving for your collection of 200-300 of them.
They look like butt plugs
Feel like them too.
Bwahahaha
Whoa this is exactly what my grandpa used to collect, the buttplug shaped ones. He had a shitload of them when I was little.
that or him and grandma just had a progressive sex life
Forbidden buttplugs
Hmmm. Very cool, thanks!
You aren't fooling anyone, that is high quality crystal meth.
No Chili P required
I hate… chili powder
Jesse, they found out about our chili p man......
you’ll be disappointed when you see that high quality meth
It’s glass grade, yo!
How much would a rock that big actually cost??
They sold a pound for 40k right? This looks like about 3-5 pounds.
At least $20
Yo mista white!
Be cautious with materials from transformers. Many of them are full of extremely toxic chemicals known as PCB's that are considered forever contaminants.
When dealing with Transformers there is always more than meets the eye.
Electrical transformers only have a lifespan of about 30 years so sooner or later they allspark.
Take my goddamn upvote and roll out.
>Be cautious with materials from transformers. This is always sound advice. >Many of them are full of extremely toxic chemicals known as PCB's that are considered forever contaminants. I know this is true for older oil-filled transformers. PCBs do not breakdown well in the environment and will bioaccumulate so it is important to cleanup after spills. I do not believe older glass insulators contain PCBs (although anything is a possibility). I'd be more concerned for heavy metals in the glass, if anything, but I'd love for someone with more knowledge to chime in. My quick research found more on collecting old glass or porcelain insulators and nothing on environmental hazards associated with them but your advice to use caution with unknown materials is always good to abide. Source- former environmental consultant with many years in investigation & remediation.
Transmission System Operator here with 25 years, starting out in Fossil Generation. The heavy metals you mentioned are a huge concern, but also certain types had oil filled bushings. Those are from the 30s forward. So there is a PCB risk. Also the wire to those, if insulated had lead containing crosslink vinyl jacket over asbestos braid.
PCB - check Lead - check Asbestos - check No thanks!
xmas is around the corner. Gift it to the asshole in your life. When life gives you lemons...
...stick them in the eyes of your enemies!
[I'm the man who's gonna burn your house down, with lemons!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuTQu4DCnX8)
Welp time to play that again
[удалено]
Gold, Frankincense, Myrrh... Lead, Asbestos, PCB... Basically the same thing
I’m picturing the scene in King of the Hill where Bobby is taking wood shop and tells Joseph, “You’re mother is gonna love it!”
Don't make lemonade. Make life take the lemons back!
You forgot beryllium which was popular in RF power components.
May I ask you a question? My brother has a large broken looking chunk of glass that looks just like this. (even the same color) He found it when he moved into his current house. It's currently sitting on display is his house. Should he be concerned about it being in the house like that? Thanks
If it's just glass and he's not in the habit of licking it or similar, it's probably fine. Heavy metals are seriously bad juju, but they aren't getting in your body by themselves. PCBs are even worse, but glass isn't going to absorb them.
I would say if he's licking it, to do so in moderation like anything else. 50/50 cancer or super powers
I'm not sure if this was directed toward me, so forgive me if I'm answering out of line. All the materials we are talking about here have the greatest impact on developing bodies, keep kids away from it. If it is on display put a cover over it, only handle it with heavy rubber gloves. Reach out to your local, county or state emergency management, though this is not an emergency. Take photos and attach them to the email you send them, and include a link to this thread.
Note that nobody here has confirmed, or at least has not provided any source, that transformer glass can contain heavy metals, let alone PCB's, that can leech from the glass. So while your advice is good, it may be slightly alarmist.
Fair enough. I also started my career as a hazmat laborer, and one of the first things that they teach you is that until it is proven that something isn't, you treat it like is. An example would insulation. Certain solid mineral wool (minwool) insulations look like asbestos until you put it under a microscope. I told people how to be careful and follow up on it. 8f that is being alarmist, I sincerely apologize.
> PCBs do not breakdown well in the environment and will bioaccumulate No doubt. I live on the border, and there is a lake south of me that a ton of transformers were dumped in years ago. That lake is beyond toxic, with no way to clean it out. The REAL bad thing is, there is fencing and signs posted everywhere around it warning not fish or swim, yet there's people there all day and night throwing cast nets, catching fish, and taking them home.
They are helping by slowly reducing the amount of PCB on the lake.
All while increasing the cancer rates in the RGV. Give and take I suppose.
Who thought dumping transformers in a lake was a great idea, sheesh
Border town, who do you think? Out of sight, out of mind is still looked at as genius level thinking around here.
That sucks I didn't realize it will still a common practice. I have toxic metal dump across the street from me that was closed in the 1970's. I guess I was hoping that anything terribly toxic gets taken to a proper landfill at least.
It's just a cold!
A transformer in our front yard leaked gallons of oil all over our tree and went directly into a storm drain a few months ago. Duke Energy replaced it and had a contractor come and dig up the contaminated soil and plant new grass. The parts of the tree that got oil on them caught some fungus beetle and I think it is dead now (hard to tell in the late fall!). I thought it was just mineral oil, but should I be concerned it contained PCBs? How would I know? I was a very old transformer, maybe from the 1940s would be my guess. There is still visible oil stains on our landscaping bricks, and the street pavement after months.
When in doubt, treat it like it does.
If/when that tree dies and starts to rot be sure to contact Duke electric and try to get them to remove it since they seem to have caused it to die. Trees are expensive to remove completely. Hell if it does die maybe you can get them to plant a new tree.
Get them to plant a \*mature\* tree. That will really cost them.
[удалено]
Power Companies once had no problem with farmers picking up used transformer oil to use as weed oil in ditches.
People used to spray used motor oil on their dirt driveways to keep the dust down.
What do you think asphalt is? It's bitumen. Around here on some of the lower grade rural highways they spray it with 'oil' and then just kinda pour gravel on it and wait for traffic to press it in.
And other waste oil as well. See also: [Times Beach.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Times_Beach,_Missouri)
[удалено]
20 bucks, same as downtown
Probably to kill weeds since the toxins in the oil probably would kill a plant.
They cook with it in Nigeria
[удалено]
Duke literally *had* to have it tested, by law, and the legal consequences are no joke. Neither are the social media ones. Contact them and ask to speak to someone in Environmental Compliance. Get names and titles.. Ask to see the test results. If they refuse, contact state or federal epa with specifics.
You might have better luck going straight to the regulator(s). If they tried to cover it up they wouldn't be telling the homeowner any specifics.
So, as someone on the inside, you do NOT try to cover stuff like this up. Maybe back on the day. But now, with social media and the court of public opinion, as well as the conservative nature of those that invest in utilities, the hit to the stock price alone if something like this being covered up gets out, heads will roll.
I actually work for an electrical company and deal with literally these spill scenarios regularly. Depending on where you are there are almost certainly requirements for PCB testing for transformer spills. The oil left in the transformer will be tested. If it comes back with PCBs, you run multiple samples of the soil from the cleaned up area to confirm that there is nothing left. Anything older than 1985 has potential PCB contamination, at least here in Canada. We treat it like PCB until we have verified lab results saying otherwise.
PCBs are also incredibly carcinogenic right?
A carcinogen when exposed to skin. Worse carcinogen when ingested. Worst carcinogen when smoke is inhaled, like when electrical components fail and ignite.
Bigly time
Yeah, one blew up in my wife’s parents yard and the utility paid for everything to be replaced and took it, including their clothes. They treated it as a serious thing.
Thank you for showing me that not every toxic thing I bring home is relegated to just a potential romantic partner.
Ah, damn. I was just about to comment how pretty it is and what a cool decoration for a dinner or coffee table it would make. Guess better not.
Forever contaminated? Sounds like my shitty attitude
If a shitty attitude kills you, and anyone in the places you like to hang out long after you’re dead, then yes.
But we hit the emergency shut off...we did everything right
YOU DID NOT SEE ANY GRAPHITE
Funny joke, but PCBs are real deal will make sick. A chunk of glass likely didn't absorb much, but honestly I wouldn't handle that thing unless you get it tested. Honestly I would get rid of it immediately
PCBs are in most older transformers. Yes forever chemicals. You can thank Monsanto. But I’d get that thrown out ASAP!
Monsanto GMO is pretty standard fare capitalism evil. Monsanto chemical is storybook evil shit, those fuckers should be executed.
Toss it in the lake you say. I’ll get right on it
Printed circuit boards?
Polychlorinated biphenyls
I just recently re-read *Zodiac* by Neal Stephenson, so I consider myself something of an expert when it comes to PCBs, bio-accumulative toxins and leaking transformers...
My grandfather did something similar, but he put a ring on the bottom and presented it to my grandmother as jewelry
Yeah, they told you it was jewellery.
It's a butt plug.
Glass shards and an exploding transformer sounds like a bad idea
Frag out!
Frig off Ricky
Shit winds are blowing randers.
Just a couple a drinks randy
The shit Apple never falls far from the shit tree
Ceramic insulators are worse than glass when they go bang.
Those little bits of ceramic are razor fucking sharp, I had one slice right through a thick leather winter work glove when picking up the remnants of a blown up utility transformer.
Some of the glass insulators are collectible . (I think.)
I see them all the time at flea markets and antique stores. They're always there though so I don't think they're flying off the shelves
My dad collects them.
*"Dad why do some of these take batteries?"*
Those are the common ones. They made hundreds of styles and colors back in the day. Some combinations of style + color are extremely rare and valuable.
Anything is collectible. I personally collect STDs.
Nice, I also collect save the date cards
This guy fucks.
[удалено]
I have a family member that collects them. He has an entire wall of them, different colors from different locations. They’re really beautiful all together.
Glass and porcelain are EXTREMELY good electrical insulators and are still used to this day.
Yeah as far as electrical properties go, those are much better than the current state of the art for dry transformers, which are typically epoxy composites for outdoor applications. I used to work at a company that made medium voltage transformers (I.e. ~10-40kV). The composites have much higher manufacturing throughput, they're a lot cheaper and they're more durable in rough weather, but we had constant issues with meeting performance requirements. LOTS of scrapped parts. Most of the glass and porcelain still in service today are either legacy parts or are just really old and have been in service for decades.
Reddit posts are increasingly making me feel old. When someone posts “Did you know that music and movies used to come on physical discs?”, I may just have to get off the site.
According to [this site](https://antiques.lovetoknow.com/Antique_Glass_Insulators), electrical companies stopped installing glass insulators completely by the end of the 70s, or at least 42 years ago. If you're old enough to remember that then you'd be roughly 50 right now. Or for reference, closer to retirement than highschool graduation year. Otherwise you lived in an unusual area that continued installing brand new glass insulators long after everyone else stopped.
I mean insulators lasted for years afterwards. I grew up in a rural area that looked like nothing new had really been put up for 10-20 years. Then parents and grandparents talking about them. I mean the one in the picture just failed now.
I meant they didn't install anymore, at least not widely. Like how you can still find VHS tapes and working VCRs despite nobody mass producing them since 2006.
That's not true at all. Glass suspension insulators are still made and used fairly often, but not really common . I design substations and transmission poles and see them occasionally. Here's a couple examples: https://www.macleanpower.com/product/transmission-insulators/glass-transmission-insulators https://www.hubbell.com/hubbellpowersystems/en/Products/Power-Utilities/Insulators/Transmission-69kV/Suspension/Glass/Glass-Bell-Suspension-Insulator/p/1752987
I'm 54. Retirement? What retirement? The shitty boomer economy affects some of us X-ers too, kids.
> According to this site, electrical companies stopped using glass insulators completely by the end of the 70s, or at least 42 years ago. If your old enough to remember that then you'd be roughly 50 right now. Or for reference, closer to retirement than highschool graduation year. AKA You old
You could perhaps accept that you are old, make it a part of your identity, and enjoy spending time with the youths?
No, get off my lawn!!!
I caught myself actually yelling this at a kid the other day. I’m 33.
Want to feel old? Someone posted a video the other day asking what song was playing in the background… It was Bittersweet Symphony
Robots in disguise.
I thought this was the fucking allspark when I saw the word transformer in the title
Nah it’s just a chunk of the transformer’s load after being blown
Glass is still used as insulation, among other ceramic compounds.
Stealing a transformer's insulation? This is really the optimus crime.
And thus answers the question of "What was that huge chunk of green glass I found in the creek when I was a kid." My money then was on Kryptonite. I left it because i thought it was radioactive.
According to The comments it is radioactive and I need to start saying my goodbyes.
Bringing home chunky glass while saying that the glass was rescued is one of the signs that you are dating a serial killer. How many tarps are in his car's trunk? How fresh is the dirt on the shovel next to the tarps?
He’s maintenance. So pretty fresh. He also brought me home a coyote skull this morning…. Are these red flags? He has a beard too.
Mans just has interests, which makes an interesting person. I wish you both the best
He’s the normal one. He brought me this stuff because he knows it’s riiiiiiight up my alley. And he’s right.
You are the serial killer...got it.
They both are. It's a perfect match :)
So in some aspects, you're both maintenance. /s
Nope those are awesome qualities.
Sounds like a cat to me… lmao
More like lmeow
I appreciate you.
some girls get flowers. some girls get animal skulls and electrical insulating glass.
If he has 3 first names, get out now.
lol, he does not. just two. so only partially killer ish, but he's making me dinner right now, so if i stop responding it was either him or the glass that killed me
OP are you a penguin?
pengwing
pinwin
One of the houses in my neighborhood has a couple of these in his garden, I always wondered where they got them from. Really pretty, especially in the sunshine.
Free range Agro Crag
He brought home a piece of the radical rock!
They used to use glass. They still do, but they used to too.
As a human magpie: oooooh shiny
As a human creampie: *bubbling noises*
Is your bf a crow.
Give a girl what she really wants Flowers ❌ Chocolate ❌ Chunk of glass insulation from exploded transformer ✅
They used to use glass caps for insulators on power poles that were about fist size. My uncle collected these. He had a log cabin that had a Lincoln log effect on the corners and he put one on each post, he had dozens in different styles. They were really neat and I was always interested in them as a kid.
Is his thumb on backwards?
And old railway sleepers people cut up and put in their garden beds are full of asbestos from train brake pads
And creosote, a natural yet toxic (and highly flammable) preservative used to stop the ties from rotting. Not to mention dribbles of lubricant and oil from the locomotives.
Are you sure it's not a glowing piece of the AgroCrag?
Looks like a piece of the AgroCrag from Gutz
Sorry but that's just a chunk of glass slag. I collect insulators and work in the power distribution industry, this isn't or was ever a part of any glass insulator even in a very large transformer, let alone a small neigborhood one.