DTE Problem Reporting Question

[courtney]

I've searched the DTE website and using every search term I can think of and I can't find the answer to this.

A power pole a few houses away appears to have a broken insulator [[ceramic or glass, not sure) on one of the distribution lines [[above the service lines that branch out to the houses). The line looks to either be resting just barely above or on the wood T of the top of the power pole. Last night, after the storms, it was sparking and making an audible buzzing sound when I was outside. It stopped once it dried out a bit.

We don't know if the insulator broke during the storm or had already been broken/damaged previously and just hadn't noticed it until last night.

DTE's online reporting won't let me report a broken insulator and I don't want to report it as a downed line, since it's not and I know there are still people who actually do have downed, live lines that need to be dealt with first. I couldn't ever get through to any human on the phone system and again, the automated one wouldn't let me report things other than power out/line down.

Does anyone have a number/email that I can report this so it will be fixed after the storm outages are taken care of? Or is it a case where they'll turn on some way to get to a live person once things are repaired and I should just wait to call the normal number?

[Vic01]

I'd wait a couple days then call 800 477-4747, during business hours I've been able to get a live person before...

[gvidas]

Managing the efficient use of DTE's resources in the aftermath of a summer storm is not your responsibility.

Report it as a live, arcing wire. That's what it is. If the closest category is 'down wire', report it as that. Once something starts to arc, the resulting fire / etc can rapidly escalate a situation -- it doesn't sound like it's very far from being a down wire.

Furthermore, I suspect DTE sends out a crew to scout customer-reported issues and prioritize them based on an internal report.

[compn]

dte has always done the phone reporting of power outages quickly for me.
once or twice they even call back to make sure power is back up.

better report it as a downed line.
i remember hearing a buzzing sound once, then the transformer blew spectacularly.

[Hamtragedy]

dte has always done the phone reporting of power outages quickly for me.
once or twice they even call back to make sure power is back up.

better report it as a downed line.
i remember hearing a buzzing sound once, then the transformer blew spectacularly.

And then the next one down the alley. And then the next one. And the next one. Then the wires started smoking, and the insulation started burning off. Life in Hamtramck can be so interesting.

Then it happened two weeks later in perfectly good weather. Then a month after that, and again several more times. Three years later, it still happens just not as frequently, but you know when it does.

Unplug the fridge, computer, hd tv, high efficiency appliances, anything that might be sensitive to a surge.

[Gistok]

I had the weird scenario where I lost power in 1/2 of the house since the storm on Friday [[it's a problem at the pole, since a Ghetto Palm is covering the pole). I reset the circuit breakers and that didn't help, although the power did return for a few hours after the storm, but went out again after the late night rainstorm. So I know it's outdoors.

I called the number listed, and reported it as a power outage... 2 hours later DTE called back and I explained the problem. Unfortunately that likely put me lower on the waiting list... but as long as the temperature is not too hot and humid, I can live without the air conditioning for a few days [[still have bedroom ceiling fan working).

[sumas]

Gistok, call an electrician. We rented a flat once that had the same thing. Our situation could have resulted in a bad fire.

I am a little neurotic about those things now. I have 15 smoke detectors in all and at least one/two fire extinguishers on all 4 floors

Our home is old and I would have loved to invest money in pretty stuff but but we opted to completely upgrade electrics. My garage still needs a new roof, my house trim needs painting but I sleep better knowing my house won't go up in smoke. At least I hope!

Ghetto Palms, so totally understand. You think you whacked them, killed them and the suckers just come back. I need to get out to my alley to combat them again

[marshamusic]

Gistok, call an electrician. We rented a flat once that had the same thing. Our situation could have resulted in a bad fire.

I am a little neurotic about those things now. I have 15 smoke detectors in all and at least one/two fire extinguishers on all 4 floors

Our home is old and I would have loved to invest money in pretty stuff but but we opted to completely upgrade electrics. My garage still needs a new roof, my house trim needs painting but I sleep better knowing my house won't go up in smoke. At least I hope!

Ghetto Palms, so totally understand. You think you whacked them, killed them and the suckers just come back. I need to get out to my alley to combat them again

You're right about taking care of electricity as soon as possible. I lost my home in an electrical fire 6 years ago this August. A huge, Mission Style stucco home with immaculate woods all through the house; leaded glass, pocket doors, built-ins, etc. A massive, overhwhelming loss and a trauma that resonates through my life even today, even though there were no injuries or loss of life, thank God.

I had put big bucks into a new roof, new furnaces, etc. and that was my next project, but I never got to it.

[marshamusic]

Gistok, call an electrician. We rented a flat once that had the same thing. Our situation could have resulted in a bad fire.

I am a little neurotic about those things now. I have 15 smoke detectors in all and at least one/two fire extinguishers on all 4 floors

Our home is old and I would have loved to invest money in pretty stuff but but we opted to completely upgrade electrics. My garage still needs a new roof, my house trim needs painting but I sleep better knowing my house won't go up in smoke. At least I hope!

Ghetto Palms, so totally understand. You think you whacked them, killed them and the suckers just come back. I need to get out to my alley to combat them again

regarding Ghetto Palms, i.e., Tree of Heaven, Chinese Sumac; my husband [[David Philpot) is an artist/master carver, has been working with this wood for years.

Let us know, Sumas, since you're nearby, if you have any you want to get rid of, he'll come look at them [[he usually uses straight ones) and he'll cut them down himself, if he can:

[Gistok]

Gistok, call an electrician. We rented a flat once that had the same thing. Our situation could have resulted in a bad fire.

Ghetto Palms, so totally understand. You think you whacked them, killed them and the suckers just come back. I need to get out to my alley to combat them again

Sumas, when we had the storm Friday night... the lights on the half of the house were flickering on and off when the winds were at their strongest, which is what suggests this is an exterior problem. I was told by an electrician to first have the power company [[DTE) check and re-torque my main connections. Then if they find nothing on their end, to then call an electrician.

My main power panel on the house [[built in 1956) was a new one installed in 2002, replacing the old fuse box with a new panel. So my gut feeling is still this is an outdoor problem.

[Funaho]

Sumas, when we had the storm Friday night... the lights on the half of the house were flickering on and off when the winds were at their strongest, which is what suggests this is an exterior problem. I was told by an electrician to first have the power company [[DTE) check and re-torque my main connections. Then if they find nothing on their end, to then call an electrician.

My main power panel on the house [[built in 1956) was a new one installed in 2002, replacing the old fuse box with a new panel. So my gut feeling is still this is an outdoor problem.

One of the two hot wires is loose at the pole, most likely, so you're losing one entire phase of power. That happened at my parents' house many years ago, and at the time it took quite a bit of phone calling to get DTE to understand what we were trying to tell them. Once they did, a tech came out and temporarily replaced the meter with a huge 3-prong bar that basically put both halves of the house on the same phase so that there was at least consistent power until they could get someone out to fix the problem at the pole. 220V appliances won't work like that [[they need to two opposing phases) but all 120V stuff will run fine.

I had a similar problem at my house a few years back, except in my case the neutral line was loose. Whenever the wind blew the neutral line went open, causing all my power to go through to ground in my basement. Unfortunately there was a considerable voltage difference between true ground and DTE neutral, so that when this happened the voltage in my house shot WAY up...to something like 160V iirc. There was no overvoltage reporting option at that time so it again took quite a while for me to get someone to fix that...in the end I got a supervisor who understood exactly what i was telling him.

[cramerro]

Just had this last week Wed-Thursday. One of the lines after the transformer at the end of the street split and was down. Half circuts worked, other half off. They spliced the line, still the same, then the next day they replaced the transformer and all was well. The wierd part was that on our inward-facing block [[half of our street and half of the next street that share a back fence), the first 5+ houses had half power, then the middle 20+ had nothing [[even the streetlights were out on one street), then the last 10 had full power. They listed it as 'trouble with the transformers'... hopefully my house will get a cameo in the movie.

[courtney]

Thanks for the input guys - a very helpful person on this forum who works at DTE let me know they'd put it in the system for me.

FWIW, while I admit I know little about the hows and whys of electricity, I'm not all that worried about it causing a surge - the broken insulator is on one of the distribution wires, not the service wire.

Gistok - the half a phase out is apparently a common issue in St Clair Shores. It happened to us several years ago after a storm. 5 of us [[we're at the end of a line, I guess) only had half the power. We lucked into a good CSR person when we called to report it - one of the neighbors spent quite a bit of time arguing with the person he got because they were telling him it was a problem within his house and that to even come out, he'd be charged a $75 service charge! It took about 4 days to have someone come out and fix the transformer. I was so sick of the extension cords we were having to use when I wanted to use the microwave or the washing machine - I'm just thankful that the fridge was on the side that still had power during that time.

We also for several years would go through periods of very low voltage - 70-80v, sometimes with one side getting slightly better, but still way low. That was finally corrected last year after dozens of reports. Neighbors across the street a couple of weeks ago had the same issue, but it only took on report to DTE to get someone out [[on a Saturday, at that!) so hopefully customer service at DTE is improving overall.

Just as a little PSA, if you ever smell something that smells slightly like rotting fish and it's not coming from your trashcan, take all of the covers off the electric outlets to check them for signs that they are getting overheated and starting to melt. Most people don't realize that they'll smell fishy when this happens.

[Gistok]

Well DTE finally came out yesterday, and fixed the problem. I never got ANY grief from the folks at the other end of the phone about it, they must be up to snuff on the problems symptoms. DTE had a tree cutting crew cut down the tree climbing up the pole. They did determine that the problem was at the pole end, and fixed it. They also replaced my entire line from the house to the pole, inspected my meter box, and move the line to above a limb of my 45 ft. tree in my yard. They said that way if that limb ever came down, I wouldn't lose power.

The folks [[on phone and in person) were all very appologetic on why it took so long [[since my call on Friday)... but I knew that since I had half power, I would be at the bottom of the pecking order. Also... since I used an extension cord to plug my fridge into a bedroom wall outlet, it really wasn't that much of an inconvenience... although it would have, had the weather been real hot, since my central air was on the downed half of my electric line.

I'm just happy that it didn't cost me big bucks for the need for an electrician!!