Holton Power Co. to switch from glass to porcelain insulators

HOLTON POWER COMPANY USES NEW STEAM PLANT

Important Changes In Progress on the Transmission Lines for Entire Valley — Plans for More "Juice."

The Holton Power Company's auxilliary steam plant, at El Centro, was placed in operation, Wednesday morning, for the purpose of supplying electric power to the company's patrons while various improvements are made on the high voltage wires between the company's plant at Holtville and El Centro.

The plant here worked smoothly and supplied the "juice" without a hitch. General Superintendent C. E. Paris estimates that a week will be required to make the changes in the line between the two valley towns. Heavy porcelain insulators of the Locke type are to take the place of the light glass insulators, and steel pins are to be used instead of the wooden pins now in service, and which have caused trouble on the line each time of rain, because of their swelling and bursting of the glass.

Immediately after the completion of the work on the El Centro-Holtville lines, a similar work is to be under taken on the company's lines through out the entire valley.

It is expected that ground will be broken for the second power plant at Holtville at the time of the next visit of W. F. Holt to Imperial Valley, which will be about November 10.

The new power house will more than double the capacity of the company's plant for producing electric energy. It will be located a short distance below the present Holtville power house, on the Alamo river, and will utilize the water power now going to waste at the discharge from the present turbine to the Alamo's bed, a drop of fourteen feet.

In preparing for the new power house, it is the purpose of General Superintendent Paris to divert this fall of water to the new site and let it do the necessary excavating, to a large extent, the earth from the excavation being thus carried away into the river bed. The new plant will be equipped with a 300-kilowatt machine.