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Obsolete Telephone Poles

Using old telephone poles to build.
 
(+1, -1)
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I am trying to come up with uses for telephone poles, when the land lines they carry become obsolete.
jpskiier, Mar 06 2013

Pole barn http://prepper7.fil...rvival-woodland.jpg
Many people already use them for simple barns and sheds. [TomP, Mar 07 2013]

info on creosote and use of RR ties in landscaping http://waterquality...ives/wq_faq_3.shtml
[xandram, Mar 07 2013]

[link]






       When you have an idea you should post it here, and delete this in the meantime.
rcarty, Mar 06 2013
  

       Well, I humbly suggest that they be left in place and used to deliver electricity to our homes and business. Or you could just chop them up and burn them I suppose; they're a bitch to get going but they burn like stink once they're lit, and lord knows we'll need the fires for light and heat once the power goes out.
Alterother, Mar 06 2013
  

       Disregard my psychotic ravings if you wish, [bigs], but watch out or you'll be first in line when we put up the wicker man.   

       I'm sorry, that was rude. Please note that I typed 'lord' with a lower-case 'l' on purpose. We heathens are a choose-your-own-gods kind of people.
Alterother, Mar 06 2013
  

       Cut square slots and make Lincoln Logs.
sqeaketh the wheel, Mar 06 2013
  

       Why are we using '@' instead of brackets now? Is this some insidious form of social network leakage?
Alterother, Mar 07 2013
  

       //Why are we using '@' instead of brackets now? Is this some insidious form of social network leakage?//   

       /We/ are not. #twitterinvasion
ytk, Mar 07 2013
  

       [21Quest] //Use them to make pencils, with which you should write things like this on little scraps of paper// - Big scraps of paper, surely? - have you seen the size of telephone poles?
hippo, Mar 07 2013
  

       No, how big are they?
ytk, Mar 07 2013
  

       Repurpose as cabers.
calum, Mar 07 2013
  

       That would certainly cut down on Scots.
Alterother, Mar 07 2013
  

       If the poles are usable why not? If old railroad ties are usable why not? Unconventional housing is a fascinating topic. What now happens to the poles when they become obsolete? [+]
Sunstone, Mar 07 2013
  

       Wi-fi towers.
RayfordSteele, Mar 07 2013
  

       Little log cabins scattered across the cityscape to go with the "Free Food Map" idea.   

       meanwhile [marked-for-deletion] not an idea, call for a list.   

       [jpskiier] the idea of the site is to showcase your own <random adjective> ideas; please read the "help" section, predictably found by clicking on the underlined "help" link in the left-hand column of this page.
FlyingToaster, Mar 07 2013
  

       [Sunstone], broken utility poles are trimmed down and are used to buttress leaning poles or become guard rail posts. I don't know what is done with worn-out utility poles, but I can tell you they wouldn't be great for housing materials. Utility poles and railroad ties are saturated with creosote to make them very hard and resilient, but this also makes them smelly and sticky, and as I mentioned before they don't light easily but once you get one burning there's really no putting it out.
Alterother, Mar 07 2013
  

       Unfortunately, most of those old poles are coated in creosote, which is an environmental No-No. New ones may be pressure treated which is still a No-No. (I must have been posting this at the same time as [Alter], so now it's somewhat redundant.) If not - it's toxic.
xandram, Mar 07 2013
  

       The creosote won't be more than a couple of inches into the wood - just feed them through a sawmill.
MaxwellBuchanan, Mar 07 2013
  

       The wood is infused with creosote in a special pressurized kiln. I've cut through RR ties and seen plenty of snapped- off poles. Take my word: it goes all the way through.
Alterother, Mar 07 2013
  

       At this juncture, then, I may quote the economist Paul Krugman: "Ah."
MaxwellBuchanan, Mar 07 2013
  
      
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