Galvanized Steel Roof Panel Vs. Power Lines?

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dibbons

dibbons

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I need to "trespass" on my neighbors roof to paint the back wall of my residence (it seems we share the same cinder block wall). Before I step out there with an aluminum ladder, I examined the area to find power lines lying on the cement roof of the neighbor (not my power lines). The lines also transverse some metal roof panels that have sharp edges. If the insulation doesn't hold up, will sparks fly? Fotos follow the cable from right to left:

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dibbons said:
I need to "trespass" on my neighbors roof to paint the back wall of my residence (it seems we share the same cinder block wall). Before I step out there with an aluminum ladder, I examined the area to find power lines lying on the cement roof of the neighbor (not my power lines). The lines also transverse some metal roof panels that have sharp edges. If the insulation doesn't hold up, will sparks fly? Fotos follow the cable from right to left:
Click to expand...

Absolutely.
In most developed countries that is totally illegal.
My younger Brother was almost killed by something like that.
 
if you don't know what your doing, don't go anywhere near that. can you get the electric company to come out and take care of that? is that their actual service or just some crap wiring they did from building to building? if it's the service, eventually that's going to rub through and trip the transformer
 
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I called the electric company and just as I finished reporting all the details, the call was disconnected. I had given the operator my cell phone number when the conversation began. I never received a call back, and no technician showed up after waiting all day.

My property lies to the right of the wall painted red in the first foto, and to the left of the red painted section in the third foto. The neighbor's property lies to the opposite side.
 
Here in Eastern Washington the customer is responsible for anything past the Meter. Hell, the only thing the locator services I spoke with will locate underground are Public utilities. They will not locate the anything but power & phone out here. I was going to put a fence up. Thanks to all the rocks even a post hole for a rail road tie ends up being a 2'x2' hole. I contacted the locator services....7 times, to come out verify that the phone line was not anywhere close to where I was digging. Never showed up...needless to say I found the neighbors phone line. It was running from the service box to the east of me, directly thru the middle of my property to the neighbor on the west of us.
My father in law lives in Mexico, Mexicali if I remember correctly. He told me wife that when they needed to replace the roof on his house that he had to go looking for a power company truck and slip them some $$ to get them to come out and turn the power off, his neighbors power was running right across his house...touching the roof in spots.
 
DANGER, DANGER, DANGER!!!!! I would not risk my life, that is an accident waiting to happen.
 
That whole mess is dangerous as hell. However you ARE in a "foreign country." No idea what the procedure is

How is it that you must contact any of that? Is the roof on part of your wall?
 
dibbons said:
Yep, their roof butts up against my wall (or my wall butts up against their roof).
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OK but I'm not understanding how you are coming into contact unless you are leaning your ladder up against the roof panels.

On the other hand, if this fails, and starts a fire, will / can it affect you? How cooperative are the neighbors. I don't have any idea, "down there" about electrical codes or enforcement. For all I know, that roof panel(s) could be "live to ground" RIGHT NOW
 
One other thing, the last thing you should use is a metal ladder (they conduct electricity). If you have to go on the roof use a wooden or fiberglass ladder.
 
That's a front headline waitin to happen.
 
In the US, that would have to be stuck in a conduit going up the wall, capped by a hogshead, two feet above the top of the roof, so the wires would not make contact with the roof. Otherwise, it'd be run underground in conduit.

When that roof cuts through the wires, it's going to burn a really big hole in the roof.
 
So, I'll start by saying that this is definitely a less than ideal installation. However, that's AL-triplex wiring and the insulation is some pretty tough stuff, you need a good skinning knife to trim it. Under the correct circumstances you can handle that wire bare handed (not recommended but you can do it) but at a minimum get yourself some clean leather gloves and slide a 2x4 between the edge of the metal roof and the wire. I wouldn't touch that roof until you have done that. If that wire is nicked and touching the metal roof and the bare ground wire isn't properly connected at either end, there is a small chance that you and the aluminum ladder could complete the path to ground and that's not good. However, once you have done that I wouldn't worry about working close to that wire, the insulation on it is better than what is on an extension cord and nobody thinks twice about those. Again, this is not an ideal situation and that installation is definitely not to any US code, but as far as what codes are applicable in Mexico, I have no idea. Disconnecting the power and rerouting it is the 100% correct thing to do but you aren't in imminent danger and a few simple steps could allow you to do what you need to do safer than the current situation
 
Something we have not considered yet is this: If what is visible to the naked eye is so inept, who knows what is amiss on both ends of the cables coming and going that we can't see?
 
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