A friend in junior high or hIgh school broke through a gate at a remote AM transmitter site to climb the tower. When he went to grab the tower, an arc jumped to his hand. He told me, maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all, and left. This happened 60 years ago.
Extremely well presented, Marcos. You have great camera presence and structure your information so that important information isn't intimidating - it's like having a friend show you around and point out what you should be careful with because they care. Thank you!
Had an office for an accounting firm we provided IT support for, it was near an AM radio station. The RF caused so much interference with the network, we ended up having to run shielded ethernet cable.
Thank you for this production. I’m a hiker and a Ham Radio Op. I like surveying mountain top TX sites. I know of the hazards you spoke of and had some concerns about omnidirectional RF. Thanks for your explanations.
Thank you so much for sharing this great and timely information. People going to see the new 'Fall' movie from Lionsgate should be absolutely required to view this video beforehand so that those who are made more curious and even intrigued by the concept of radio tower climbing on a dare or a some form of self therapy to overcome fears as least will have an more realistic understanding of the real dangers of even being around TX sites, no matter whether the tower is in service or not.
Thanks for your time putting together another educational video. Not everyone gets the opportunity to visit a 'Mountain Top Site' so this helps them to better understand the business. MY MAJOR CONCERN WAS PEOPLE ! INTOXICATED PEOPLE WITH FIREARMS. Confronted at the locked gate on the way down by hunters who got in some how but couldn't get out. If I had my way I would have just left them inside the gate hoping they call the sheriff to come let them OUT and INTO the BACK of the POLICE CAR. The two guys were carrying rifles and a deceased deer in the bed of their truck so I knew it was just best to let them out ahead of me re locking the gate behind me. Speaking of firearms, I was always concerned when the gate was unlocked for vandals. Enough said there. Don't want to give anyone any ideas. So, thanks again for your efforts by both your employer and the RF community. †
Oh yeah, hunters. There is hunting allowed in certain parts of Cleveland National Forest. I came around a corner one time and had some hunters step out of the brush on the side of the road. Startled me! That was the day I learned there was a hunting season there. Intoxicated people with firearms are always a concern. Locked behind a gate or not! The forest service likes to patrol the roads in a specific pattern when they close the roads so that they don’t miss anyone. That’s why they close the gates so far in advance of storms. If someone unlocks the gate then forgets to lock it behind them (authorized users) it creates headaches to have to let those people out and nasty grams from the forest service to the authorized users group.
I've done ham repeater maintenace at commercial transmitter sites: 1: Gigantice chunks of ice falling from the tower in the winter. Decided to call off the work that day. It's a volunteer job anyway, 2. Been burn by RF from my 100 watts or less ham equipment, don't want to mess with broadcast level stuff. 3. We asked an engineer for a 50 KW AM station, what happens if someone touched an active tower while standing on the ground. He said you will disapear in a pink puff of smoke. No rubber soled shoes won't protect you. 4. Don't know if it caused it, but I've had lots of RF right in my face and develped cataracts in my 40s. Now they've seen changes in my optic nerves that might be early stage glaucoma. However, right now I see about 20-15. IDK. 5. A dude tried to steal copper from a 50 KW AM transmitter site, he didn;t need to be cremated, The ME's crew had to clean what was left of him out of the transmittter's substation. 5. When we were at a transmitter site one day, we noticed the back doors were barricaded shut with a 3 x 6. We asked the engineer afraid somebody will try to get in? He said, not who, but what. He, said bears and coyotes had been sighted out there, and possibly some bobcats. Visitors could be eaten. So, if you don't have business at one of these keep out!
#4 -- Physiological needs. Eat a sensible meal and make sure you use the bathroom BEFORE going to a remote site. A radio engineer who shall remain nameless had loaded up on gas station chili dogs before an overnight maintenance session at a remote tower site. Well, the unthinkable happened, and the transmitter facility had no...facilities. We cobbled together a Home Depot bucket and trash bag, and gave him the box of Rags and left him alone in the building for awhile.
Yeah AM towers are scary. My friend owned an am station, and showed a video of him using a jumper cable to de-energize towers. Huge sparks. I would assume the directors have some serious current as well.
We owned a four tower directional AM station up outside of Bakersfield a few years back and when we would do maintenance on the towers and the ATUs I would need to ground the towers using jumper cables. If I can find enough video from that time I'll make a video about it, but I don't think I really have very much nor do I have access to an AM station right now...
@@TheBroadcastEngineer Have seen electric companies here use welding cables to ground out the overhead cables when they are working on them. Also have to ground my long wires if they are disconnected from radio and before reconnecting them, static can sometimes build up, which led me down atmospheric electricity research a few years back. We have an AM broadcast station here in UK called Radio Caroline who operate an AM transmitter on the ship Ross Revenge, they used to be a large Pirate Radio operation, now legal and do open days for vistors. I will be asking them how they ground out the mast when I get a chance to go out to the ship.
When we had the AM station, we had a set of jumper cables so when we would have to work on a tower we would ground the antenna. Our RF was off but a nearby AM station was picked up and still had a lot of RF energy to shock you.
@@TheBroadcastEngineer Yep I wondered about that because you get the same effect if you strike a tuning fork and put it near another fork of the same frequency it will ring in sympathy. So it looks like your tower is ringing like a tuning fork from the power of the others locally. Thats really cool when you think about it.
It’s cool until you forget to ground the antenna… fortunately I’m sufficiently respectful of RF and it’s power that I never had that issue when we had that station.
Regarding what you say around 7:00, I once drove up to the big cluster of broadcast towers on the hills in my area to try to get some closeup video shots, to illustrate how "radio and TV stations keep residents informed of emergencies...", etc., in an official county education video. I didn't go past any restricted areas, just the side of the dirt road where they are. But I was wondering why the bottom half of my shots were out of focus, even though I checked and rechecked that my optics were clean and I was using focus assist peaking and everything, and not using a high f-stop (which would yield a shallow depth of field, but this effect didn't look like bokeh). I was at either f/5.6 or f/8.0, in bright sunlight, with either 1/16 or 1/64 ND. I then figured it must be an effect of RF transmission. BTW, yes, I did also get a shot of the exterior of a television station building, but for enough coverage and variety, I also decided to get tower shots.
If you send me a link to the video I can take a look. But it’s highly improbable that it’s RF. Depending on the depth of field it could be a focus issue with fences. Fences are an autofocus’s nemesis. If I have to do that I usually use manual focus.
@@TheBroadcastEngineer No, it was nothing like that. It didn't look like a typical organic shallow depth of field effect, it was just the bottom half or so of the shot being out of focus. I shoot with a 1-inch camcorder, so even at a wide open f-stop, the DoF wouldn't be THIS shallow! Anyway, I just looked it up and it turns out I didn't use that shot in the final video (for obvious reasons). I'll have to do an unlisted upload of the raw shot and send you the link.
Dude, very well done :) Im usually more concerned about the two legged varmints than most any four legged ones that I might come across at a site. BOTH can be very unpredictable if you unexpectedly surprise them,.
I have been to a broadcast AM transmitter site, with the broadcast engineer. He knew that I wanted to see but not too close. They had elevated counterpoise on all three elements. Ones was thirty degrees ahead of the center and one was sixty degrees behind I think. I figured out a 90° 2 element CB with a switch. One on the hood one on the trunk. There was enough front to back most thought I had a 50W linear.
Getting to a transmitter site can also be a hazard. A few years ago, I nearly hit an antelope leaping up out of a gully without warning on a sharp curve on Dairy Farm Rd, going up to Video Rd. A long-ago colleauge in South Carolina had his brand-new Firebird totaled by a wild boar hog that didn't like him "marking" his territory out by the tower one night. (Station was a daytimer -remember those?) Hog was about 300 lbs and head-butted the car until it finally had enough. Another wildlife encounter I had was one afternoon when I was taking Base I at the towers at my last radio stop before going into TV. A female bird had built her nest (with eggs, at the time) in the doghouse, within the matching coil atop the ATU. She didn't mind me until I pulled the knob for the contactor to put the thermocouple of the ammeter in the circuit. That "Whomp" had her flying off after me! Needless to say, It took me a bit to finish that round! Our maintenance guy "took care" of the nest on Sunday night. At one station in my past, kids taking pot-shots at the tower lights was an ongoing problem. Both for us and a competitor a few KHz up the dial which had their site near ours. It happened often enough that their "morning team" started joking about it on-air. Until our CE and I caught one of them and called the police. Who got the FBI involved. A broadcast station is in interstate commerce, remember? Kid was 18, which meant adult. Seriously changed his college and career plans. Turns out the Ivy League doesn't like criminal convictions in their student body. Especially when guns are involved. There were always "the parkers". Late one Friday night, our maintenance guy and I were at the AM with the 'mitter sitter. We were working on another repeater. Around 11:30, we were outside and saw a pair of headlights crest the hill by the gate and disappear towards Tower #4. As our maintenance guy and I were heading towards our cars to investigate, we saw a second pair of headlights crest the hill and head towards Tower #1. We decided to wait a bit before heading out. Given that I had the larger car, I went first. We used the 2-meter repeater on Tower #2 for comms. (Although I was synthesized, he wasn't. So, I was QRP on the repeater output.) We approached by moonlight holding-off on lights until we were near the car by Tower #1. It was an old Ford sedan with two guys in it looking like they were smoking dope. When I hit my lights and brights, they couldn't get out of there fast enough! When I was satisfied they had left, I turned around and headed towards Tower #4. It was a couple that had been in a Torino station wagon, This was a different matter entirely! Apparently, out waiting caused us to "interrupt" their "activities". I'll leave it to your imagination because YT probably wouldn't let me describe it! What was funny , was that our CE was out with his wife and listening on the repeater. When he could tell that everything was OK, he finally called us and asked what was going-on. All we could say was "trespassers" and that we'd fully explain on Monday morning! Yes, he LHAO when we told him! Not so funny was the time I was alone and encountered would-be burglars early on a Sunday morning at my first radio station. You have to be careful. 73 (BTW, do you know Burt Wiener and/or Marv Collins?)
I remember back when I was 13 years old (now 29) I went cycling with a couple HS friends and we went past a mountain top TX site in my country and we stopped by to take photos, we never broke in or anything, but as we were taking the photos, it began to get really windy, like stupidly strong wind, and one of the guy wires from the tower snapped...the tower collapsed away from us but the whole thing shook the mountain top like a horde of buffalos charging at us One of few times i was legitimately terrified of dying because the tower was like 500ft tall at the very least
When the DEW Line radars were first brought into service up in the arctic by the military to watch for hostile incoming Soviet missiles and aircraft there was a rash of technicians and security personnel going on medical report for strange internal injuries. Turns out they were RF burns resulting from the men stepping in front of the large stationary radar arrays to warm up from the frigid Arctic cold. Reportedly a few stayed too long and were literally cooked, like meat in a microwave oven.
Ive owned two AMs and one FM. Everything he says is 100 percent. My FM was at a shared site with a TV station way up on a mountain. I made it a policy to never take visitors up (including friends). No need on letting people know how to get up there who had no business being there.
Many years ago the company I worked for built a new metal shop building. Installed 1/4 wave antennas on roof, VHF for two way radios & 108" for 11 meter american CB. When installed made a ticking noise at jacks in shop on cold dry windy day. Opened jacks, 1/2" arc across jack every second or so. If 9 foot antenna can generate enough voltage to arc 1/2 inch, imagine how much a 90 foot, or 190 foot or 900 foot can do.
LOL. I used to work in radio, and this video was great. I worked at a few AM stations. I was one of the on-air jocks, but occasionally, had to go to the x-mitter site. I was on the air one night, and our 5 KW x-mitter dumped, and I could not get it to stay back on the air. A snake got into the x-mitter. Every time I'd raise the plates, I'd zap the snake. I had to call the chief, who had to go out and remove, the now, toasted snake. I also knew not to touch the towers, but loved the BZZZZZ sound effect you tossed in. Those towers were self supporting, so ice wasn't an issue on the guy wires there. Anyway, it was a very entertaining video, that only another radio geek would appreciate. Thanks. Oh, one add on danger. The road to the x-mitter site. They are like goat paths, USUALLY. Almost like you need a camel to get back to them. LOL
Thanks for the story! Where did this take place? When the church had the AM station in Bakersfield I never had any snakes in the equipment or ATUs but I always opened the door expecting one to be there. I had the fence lock singing to me one morning on a quarterly inspection. That was pretty impressive.
@@TheBroadcastEngineer The station I mentioned, used to be WIXZ 1360, McKeesport, PA, right outside of Pittsburgh. It was 5 KW day, non-D, 1 KW night, 4 stick array. Back then, it was an Oldies station. Now, it is also owned by a church, playing gospel music. The calls are now WGBN. The station was donated to the church by Renda Broadcasting, the prior owner. The church was in so many violations with the FCC, it was appalling. The towers hadn't been painted since 1969. My complaining to the FCC, if nothing else, did get the towers a new paint job. There are other issues out there, too numerous to mention, but the towers got painted, so that made me happy. I grew up just 5 houses down from the towers, and they hypnotized me into want to get into radio. How did I know, I'd end up working there from 1979 - 1982, on-air, for minimum wage? LOL It was a place to cut my teeth in the biz though. Sadly, the church gave up the 5 KW power for days. Such a sad end to a once great station. You seem like a cool guy, someone I'd want to hang out with, if I lived in S. California, that is. LOL
@@RandyOnTheRadio Thanks! Although, I’m now in the Denver area (moved last week). It’s a shame that too many churches have radio stations and don’t want to take care of them or don’t want to learn how to take care of them. But then again, churches aren’t the only ones who neglect radio stations. I’ve heard stories about some owners who should know better…
@@TheBroadcastEngineer Denver? Good God, I almost moved there for a radio job, back in the mid 80''s. But then, I "almost" moved a lot of places to play "rotten pay disc jockey". LOL I was curious about the "singing" lock you'd mentioned. Was the RF that strong? Or what? I know the tube filaments would sing, (or so the chief engineer told me, that's what I was hearing), on an old Raytheon 1 KW x-mitter that we had for night when I worked at WIXZ, but then he used to pull my leg a lot. I worked with the same chief engineer at 3 different stations. As far as the neglect of those unpainted towers, that primarily happened on the watch of Renda. He bought the station in 1974, and didn't do much to it, until he "donated" it to the church in 2014, give or take. They finally got a new paint job in the fall of 2017. Too bad, the x-mitter "shack", (that's what it is), looks like Auschwitz. (Not kidding either). LOL So how did you end up in Denver? Did you work at the FCC at some point? Seems like either disc jockeys or FCC guys move around a lot. Engineers? They don't EVER seem to relocate.
The singing lock was from the fence and lock getting a thin layer of oxidation overnight and the RF was basically arcing and you could hear this ghostly speech coming from the lock. I have a video of it somewhere I’ll have to dig it up. I have a new job with a satellite provider, LinkUp Communications. I was an engineer at a station that was based in Orange County. Through circumstances that happened last year I ended up leaving that job after 23 years to take this one. I’ve known the owners at LinkUp for about 15 years. They’re really good people, as are the other people that I’ll be working with. Actually, today is my first day with them.
Great video and wise information for everyone to know! If you ever do encounter people trespassing whom obviously shouldn’t be there or look suspicious, do you have the technology through the security cameras to make an announcement through your phone or sound a siren?
Here in the UK Ofcom have announced new rules only a few weeks ago in June. Amateur Radio Stations must make sure no member of the public can get directly near to any transmitting antenna during use. So this especially applies to mobile installations used in a public car park for example or portable stations operating in a public area. I lived in Poland for a while and was hit by ice falling off my 28Mhz 10 meter coaxial J-pole antenna, which later snapped in the winter. Not a problem I ever expected to have.
It’s kind of like that here for amateurs as well. For sure for broadcast stations. Yikes, falling ice is no joke. I’ve been hit in the shoulder by a small piece and it hurt!
Ofcom are a useless shower of shit. how will they police the foundation licence holders who run 100w, the CBers running over 100w. what about the 446 users who run over 5w like 50w and such. who is really taking them seriously ??
Hi I have a question for you, I work for a small rural radio station and I was tasked with repainting part of a transmitter building, and I would be about 15 feet away from the 1000 watt am tower for a couple hours while I am painting it, is there anything I should do to prevent any RF problems?
For AM I am more concerned about accidental contact with the tower which would give you severe electrical burns or kill you. It would be best if the tower was deenergized and grounded while you’re working.
The transmitter manufacturer Nautel have informative videos as well. These are mostly intended for station engineers but others will find them interesting as well. Especially if you are into ham radio. Enjoy being aware of the world around you.
Indeed. I’m very well aware of Nautel and their videos. Yes they are more industry focused. I’m sure there is some takeaway for ham but it’s intended for broadcast engineers. My channel is not exactly aimed at the engineer that’s been in the industry for 60 years…
Thanks! This video was shot on a Canon EOS R, but I’ve upgraded since then. I made a video about the tools I use. My process in making a video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-GCCRX1zLxTY.html
Thankfully over here in the UK we don't have the kind of wildlife dangers although some snakes could be a hazard in a few areas. The one potential danger you didn't mention was when there are riggers working on the tower/mast. It is not unknown for a washer/bolt/nut etc to get dropped. When falling, wind can drag them into the tower and then they can then ping out some considerable distance. I've seen images of cars with a slot cut in their roof after something got away from the riggers.
I have worked at transmitter sights of almost everything. AM, FM, TV you name it. At some time or another I have seen examples of everything mentioned in this video. Be careful out there!
Hi sir, you mentioned your KNX station tour has a shot where your camera picked up RFI, appearing as a visible pattern, near the base of the mast. I've gone over it a couple times and I don't think I saw it - could you specify about when in the video it becomes visible? Alternately, since I'm viewing this on my phone, perhaps RU-vid is doing some compression that effectively covers up the interference? Anyway, informative video, thanks. I knew about ice falls and RF hazards but had never thought about wildlife or human intruders. Rock on 🤘
I remember when some thieves broke into a TV Transmission site and tried to steal copper and was electrocuted and died inside the building as the alarm was tripped and Police and the Engneer seen the thief burned and stuck to the Electrical wires and the cutters were still in his hand. Yep this Tv transmitter put out a whole lot of watts and it was UHF. But I'm glad there is one less thief out there messing with our equipment.
About 4 years ago, three addicts broke into a 50kW AM transmitter shack intent on stealing copper. They found the RF and the ground. IIRC, it was on 1170 in Oklahoma.
Ha! Those guys in the screen shot actually were site squatters. They install equipment without the landlord’s knowledge for the services they were selling.
One station I worked on the chief engineer demonstrated RF by walking by the AM tower holding an unconnected flourescent tube which glowed very brightly as you got near the mast! Also in the transmitter hall, a girlfriend once told me that her fillings which were different alloys picked up various stations nearby and emergency service coms.
I pulled the flourescent tube trick on a schoolteacher whose class was getting a tour of "the radio station". RF was leaking so bad in the place that on many of the spos, you could hear the air sound from when it was recorded under the read.
“Bad actors” will remove copper wiring without permission from transmission tower sites, “good actors” will install copper wiring and do upgrades to transmission tower sites without permission
Yes it does. I just got approval to get some staff volunteers and trucks up there to get the debris out of there. There’s a lot to do construction wise…
My wife started to climb one of these in April 2024 and was "cat called" by a bunch of construction workers. She told them to fuck off. Then one of them turned on the radio tower. Let's just say I couldn't use the HOV lane on the ride home. 😊
Not exactly. The “fm band” is the only mode or method of modulation allowed from 88.1-107.9 MHz. On charts it’s typically displayed as a band of color along a linear graph of frequencies. So “band” is appropriate.
From around the 60s to the 80s, the BBC would refer to it as VHF but that's the only time I ever heard it referred to as anything other than FM. While it is technically VHF Band II, I've never heard that used.
