Outgrowing Hydraulic Reclosers? You’re Not Alone
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Why are we still investing in hydraulic recloser maintenance?
If you’re an electric cooperative asking this, you’re far from the only one.
Across miles of rural infrastructure, co-ops are systematically replacing aging equipment inherited decades ago during massive deployments. The single-phase recloser market itself reflects this shift, with utilities and manufacturers moving toward smarter, more sustainable solutions.
Should we switch to electronic?
Another good question, and one you likely already know the answer to when it comes to cost. Repair and refurbishment procedures of a single hydraulic recloser can run $600 to $1,000, not including truck rolls, labor, or the inventory required for removal and replacement on the line. New units are more expensive than ever.
Budgetary reasons make a strong case for switching. And when you layer in additional long-term factors, the case for change becomes even more compelling.
Hydraulics Stifle Growing Rural Grids
Today’s grid isn’t just powering lights. It’s supporting smart homes, EV chargers, heat pumps, and more. That load growth is pushing legacy equipment past its limits.
Lake Region Electric Cooperative (LREC), a 26,000-plus meter utility located in Hulbert, Oklahoma, faced this exact challenge. LREC had a base of hundreds of hydraulic reclosers that were maintained on a six-year cycle.
LREC found that growth in portions of its system required loading capacities that exceeded the continuous rating of their existing hydraulic reclosers. For the cooperative, the next standard size disrupted device coordination across the system entirely.
With new hydraulic reclosers no longer cost-effective, LREC piloted S&C’s TripSaver® II Cutout-Mounted Reclosers. They delivered the efficiencies LREC needed:
- No user-serviceable or replacement parts avoids maintenance and extra inventory.
- User programmable settings and multiple TCC curves emulate fuses and other reclosers, enabling reconfiguration without hardware changes for simpler scalability.
Eliminating the inventory needed for annual maintenance on about 150 devices per year, as well as the cost to maintain the in-service units, translated to an annual savings of at least $120,000 in maintenance costs alone for LREC. Moreover, the cooperative gained added flexibility to accommodate current applications and future system changes.
Replacement Is Inevitable—And Fundable
Hydraulic reclosers aren’t just costly—they’re entering a phase-out. Rising maintenance costs, aging infrastructure, regulations, smart grid requirements, and smarter technology are converging to make replacement urgent.
Electronic reclosers reduce costs, eliminate maintenance hassle, and scale with your system to meet rising grid performance demands.
Fortunately, funding is helping cooperatives make permanent upgrades possible. Programs like the USDA’s Electric Infrastructure Loan and Loan Guarantee Program unlocks billions for cooperatives to support the construction and modernization of their systems including through the deployment of smarter, more flexible grid technologies.
For cooperatives planning upgrades, the message is clear: replacing hydraulics with electric reclosers is a strategic investment. Simply put: Electronic reclosers reduce costs, eliminate maintenance hassle, and scale with your system to meet rising grid performance demands.
If you’ve been waiting for the right time to make the switch, this is it.
Try a pilot to validate the value
Contact S&C about our TripSaver II recloser technology assessment program to see how switching could help your cooperative close the money gap and support system growth.