I was out at an abandoned drive-in earlier today, and while me and my exploring partner were having a poke about, we noticed that not only was the big green transformer box outside of the snack bar/projector area still buzzing, but the meter that was attached to the building was still slowly running. This place hasn't been functional in at least 10 years (according to its DB entry, but I can't give an exact date), and a good hard look through the windows didn't reveal anything inside that might still be operational; all the equipment was smashed up and disassembled. I've driven by the place many times at night, and there's no exterior lights that come on that I'm aware of/have noticed, so aside from ghosts making popcorn in the middle of the night, we're not sure what it might be that's causing power draw.

Basically, I'm just curious as to what other people think the odds of it being some sort of security system are. We didn't see any cameras, or obvious motion detectors, and the building is locked up pretty tight at this point. So, security, or something that my wholly ignorant-on-this-one's self may not be aware of?

Alot of places that I have gone to have power for motion lights, but it could also be that the electrical company never shut of the power to the place. Or the person who owns the property keeps it on for whatever reason.

Moved thread to the Rookies Forum.

I've also seen a lot of abandoned places with power. For example, the lights were on in some sections of an abandoned paper mill, the meter outside a small business was still drawing power, and the exit signs in an old laboratory were still lit up. These each, to my knowledge, were because of a different common reason.

The paper mill had power because it was slowly being scrapped by a recycling company, and they needed the power to see what they were doing.

The small business had power simply because nobody ever bothered to disconnect it- it was owned by a real estate firm that never managed to sell it, but since an empty dark building uses little power the firm never had it disconnected, and since the firm pays their bills the power company never bothered to shut it down.

The lab had power for insurance reasons- the institution that owns it still uses the land it's on, so they keep the power on and the fire extinguishers up to date to comply with insurance policies- even though the building is falling to pieces.

There's plenty of reasons for something to have power, even if it is abandoned- especially if it's owned by a massive corporate entity that won't notice a few dollars in ambient electric bills. If the lights, heating, and AC is disconnected, the building will use very little power, and thus its utility bill will be so small that it can fall through the cracks.

Of course, security cameras and alarms draw power too...

Posted by Aran There's plenty of reasons for something to have power, even if it is abandoned- especially if it's owned by a massive corporate entity that won't notice a few dollars in ambient electric bills. If the lights, heating, and AC is disconnected, the building will use very little power, and thus its utility bill will be so small that it can fall through the cracks. Of course, security cameras and alarms draw power too...

And that's kind of why I'm wondering. I did some digging online this morning, and found videos of someone actually getting into the building, posted earlier this year, plus a real estate agent doing a walk-through to try and sell the place from about 2 years ago. I watched both videos quite a few times, and didn't see anything that would indicate any sort of security measures...
I dunno. I've just never come across a place that still had power without some sort of obvious reason, but most of what I've done is more rural urbex. It, along with the other 2 locations we went to yesterday, just kind of leave me wondering a bit.

I've been to a good few places with power too, most notably a mental hospital, a power plant, and a house. They all had various or multiple reasons for this.

The mental hospital was mainly due to a messy shutdown, but motion and street lights for the security was also a reason. It was still attached to its own semi-active power plant too, which wasn't decommissioned properly.

For the power plant, it was mainly for security. The lights were on inside to give the illusion of patrol or people inside, this also applied to the outside. The outside lights were also on to help security if they decide to do rounds or when they looked out from their station. The plant also has power since they need to have blinking lights on the top of the smokestack for air safety regulations. Now, the workers also use the lights to see what they're doing.

The house still had power since it was just recently abandoned. After no one bought the house the owners simply left and had still had the power bill paid for some time afterward.

Sometimes they have security on, some will just have motion lights on. I always watch the ceiling for lights, or motion sensors. If a motion sensor is close to a light and the light comes on when I get close, I can bet that motion sensor is just for the lights. However if I see and/or hear a motion sensor, all alone, not triggering any lights, it might be an alarm system.

My honest and reckless way of gauging this stuff is just walk in, take a quick look around, then fall back for awhile and see if anyone comes to check the building. Sometimes the security is even abandoned. Just be prepared for a loud noise sometimes

Posted by Koti I was out at an abandoned drive-in earlier today, and while me and my exploring partner were having a poke about, we noticed that not only was the big green transformer box outside of the snack bar/projector area still buzzing, but the meter that was attached to the building was still slowly running. This place hasn't been functional in at least 10 years (according to its DB entry, but I can't give an exact date), and a good hard look through the windows didn't reveal anything inside that might still be operational; all the equipment was smashed up and disassembled. I've driven by the place many times at night, and there's no exterior lights that come on that I'm aware of/have noticed, so aside from ghosts making popcorn in the middle of the night, we're not sure what it might be that's causing power draw. Basically, I'm just curious as to what other people think the odds of it being some sort of security system are. We didn't see any cameras, or obvious motion detectors, and the building is locked up pretty tight at this point. So, security, or something that my wholly ignorant-on-this-one's self may not be aware of?

If the place is trashed and the meter is still slightly turning it could indicate leakage. When the wires begin to rot and the pipes in them are failing there can be leakage current. Also very dangerous because that means there is no more safe ground protection. So if you step on a wire or bump something your could get killed or cause a fire.

Collapsing buildings with the power still on is a dangerous thing. Be cautious.