Why would a raccoon climb onto a transformer? It’s not out of curiosity, but because they are searching for food.
In many substations, small birds will nest in areas like arrester guards. These spaces offer shelter and warmth, making them ideal for eggs and fledglings. For a raccoon, that’s an easy meal—and a reason to climb into places it otherwise wouldn’t go. And so, what begins as a nesting issue quickly becomes a broader system risk.
Although these issues may seem to simply be caused by nuisance wildlife, there are underlying causes that spark a chain reaction of events. For instance, openings that are trimmed too large may allow birds to enter and build nests inside nest inside areas like protective guards, radiators, and a wide range of components that create a safe habitat. When these birds introduce organic nesting materials into energized areas, they increase the risk of fire.
And once birds begin to nest, larger predators follow.
Sometimes guards can be cut back to maintain visibility in oil levels, but in doing so, energized portions remain exposed and bushing protection can be unintentionally compromised. Decisions like these can seem small at the time, but they can create a big risk for contact points between energized and grounded components.
Installation practices can also have a large impact on wildlife protection. Many often choose to use common cable ties, but these are not rated for long-term UV exposure and will degrade and fail over time. This allows guards to loosen, gaps to form, and in some cases, components to shift or become entirely dislodged.
Even the most subtle details, when overlooked, can compromise wildlife protection. When conductor covers are not cut to overlap, that leaves small but critical exposure points in adjacent protection. And wildlife can take advantage of even the smallest opportunity to enter.
Trying to eliminate every possible contact point in a substation is unrealistic—especially with agile climbers like raccoons. A more effective approach is to address the root cause: if nesting opportunities are eliminated, the raccoon’s food source disappears. And without the attraction of food, predators have no reason to engage with the equipment.
This requires more than off-the-shelf solutions. It demands protection systems that:
Engineered solutions like Greenjacket are built with this in mind. By prioritizing complete coverage, durability, and long-term performance, they don’t just protect components, they help prevent the conditions that create risk in the first place.
Because in substations, reliability isn’t just about managing exposure. The real goal is to make the environment unattractive to wildlife.