ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade Non-US Electrical Systems & Trades Danger High Tension

Someone at the IEC has come up with the idea of substituting the term 'voltage' for 'tension'.

Few think it will catch on.

What do you think?

C-H,
Why not leave the signs the way they are?.
I myself, prefer High Voltage, as opposed to High Tension, after all, the lines are carrying a High Voltage, not a Tension.

The ESB has always used the term "High Tension" here in Ireland.

High Tension Transmission lines etc.

Danger! High Voltage makes more sense to the average person though.

Or as they usually say:

Danger! High Voltage!
RISK OF DEATH!

Small aside... On the phrase: DANGER — HIGH VOLTAGE — KEEP OUT

Several code editions ago, the wording was amended. "Keep Out" was added as a result of some litigation in the US. Apparently, without that specific instruction, the warning was not obvious enough for some dimwits.

Would you think that Ireland's ESB is a little over the top in fixing "High Voltage KEEP AWAY!" and a pictogram of a guy being zapped to every single pole that they own, including stuff carrying 220/380V through residential areas?

djk,
I think that would possibly be a little over the top, sticking one of these signs on EVERY pole that carried wires, even LV ones.

I find the word "tension" interesting in that I always used to hear the (USA) transmission lines (the cables carried by those enormous metal towers) referred to as "high tension wires." However, that's the only use of the word "tension" that I have heard, with regard to electricity. Everything else was always "voltage."

I used to think that "high tension" meant that the cables were extremely taught, having been pulled to a high tension!

Those yellow signs are becoming more numerous here as well, along with the wordier Danger of death - Keep out signs in place of the simple old-fashioned Danger - High Voltage ones.

I would think that the average man in the street probably understands voltage better than tension, probably more so these days than in the past.

Back in the days of battery-powered valve/tube radios, we had H.T. and L.T. batteries, so many people probably knew the term tension by those (the H.T. battery was usually only 90V, but it was "high tension" compared to the L.T. battery!).

I wonder how this IEC proposal would be reflected in other languages? For example, the only French term I've ever seen for voltage is tension (pronounced somewhat differently).

It's tension / something similar in most of the latin type languages but all of the germanic languages...

"achtung! hauct spannung! " ?

But yeah, the ESB actually do put their logo, phone number (incase of emergencies), pole ID number and the DANGER ! Keep Away - RISK OF DEATH on EVERY pole along witht he guy being zapped... even on LV distribution stuff.

At least they're consistant!


The transmission pylons have their actual voltage.

HIGH VOLTAGE LINES OVERHEAD
DO NOT APPROACH ! - KEEP AWAY !
RISK OF DEATH

All train doors have a warning saying "HIGH VOLTAGE LINES OVERHEAD" and the little pictogram too.

Just incase anyone decides to climb up and touch the 25kV DC lines!

Cars have HT leads, not HV.