What are those things that look a bit like saucers on large electricity pylons, buses, transformers etc?

Are they part of a switch or something else?What are those things that look a bit like saucers on large electricity pylons, buses, transformers etc?i think they may be insulatorsWhat are those things that look a bit like saucers on large electricity pylons, buses, transformers etc?
they are electrical insulators.without them the electricity would simply jump form the wire to the pylonWhat are those things that look a bit like saucers on large electricity pylons, buses, transformers etc?Insulators.What are those things that look a bit like saucers on large electricity pylons, buses, transformers etc?
I think what you are describing are insulators. Usually made of porcelain, glass or ceramic. Normally used for high voltages whereas for lower voltages plastics/nylon is used. The insulator does as it says it insulates the voltage usually from earth or between the two polarities.What are those things that look a bit like saucers on large electricity pylons, buses, transformers etc?Whyteay, as the other answerers have said, the objects about which you asked, are "insulators". A interesting fact about these saucer shaped insulators, is their ability to continue to operate without "flashing-over" in the heaviest rain --- even if the rain is blowing horizontally. The biggest enemy of the insulators used on lines with voltages like 400,000 Volts, is dust. These insulators are a perfect example of a device that is ultra-simple to make but which incorporates very careful design.