mhensley

Thank you for jumping in. I have tried the breaker trick - meaning that I have shut off the main. No dice. We do have a flood light approximately 10 or 12 feet to the right of the spark on the corner of the house. I failed to mention that our gutter downspouts have had vibration - but we grounded those off and are no longer vibrating. Also, aside from the bad tv reception inside, our phone reception contains static.

We have had an electrician come out and inspect. He then proceeded to give us a top notch detailed response - "I dunno...I'd move if I was yall..." (Yeah, we live in East Tennessee). Without shelling out $70 for a hick to come out just to shrug his shoulders, I would love to figure this out on my own. We do not want to move, there has got to be a solution.

What about just draping a rubber mat over the area? Would that help?

Thanks again for your dimes...

handyguys

not likely

If we assume its something caused by the powerlines.
What would help is to do this (wear gloves). caulk the joint then put a screw in the face and draw the fascia trim tight together. This will do two things. It will draw the two pieces together making a connection that wont arc and it will also be more weather tight.

It wont solve any other issues.

Did your electrician look at grounding at your main? Inspect the incoming power lines? Give any opinions on the transformer or utility service?

I would call the utility, tell them there are issues.

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CraigFL

Personally, I would screw a jumper wire between the two and solder the screws for a solid, permanent contact. The arcing, if not stopped, could be a fire hazard if something burnable got in there.

mhensley

Thanks guys! Do you think that would conquer the bad tv reception? Also, are there special types of gloves to perform a job like this? Not the handiest when it comes to electricity....

handyguys

zero effect on the tv. It would just stop the arcing at that location. If our assumptions are correct its not really anything that can hurt you. Dry gardening gloves would even be fine. We could be wrong tho, cant see it from here. Soldering would give you the best connection. Personally, I think its overkill if indeed it is just sorta like a static thing happening. probably even a tap with a hammer will bend the metal enough to stop the arcing. Just a guess.

Maybe the electrician was right, start looking for someplace to move to.

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mhensley

nah - that's the puss way out...and i ain't no puss. thanks for the suggestions though.

oldognewtrick

Who's power lines are these? If they are the TVA's I'd call them and explain your situation and I bet they would come out and see whats going on for free.

JoeD

If you stop the arc the static on the tv etc. might go away. It's a simple solution. Watch for the arcing to possibly move to another joint. You might need more jumpers between all the sections of siding.

CraigFL

If this guy isn't worried, you shouldn't be....

mhensley

Funny you suggest this. I did call TVA, and a gentleman came out. He was stumped and hadn't seen a problem like mine before. He told me to ground off my utility box.