The nightmares are back! Nightmares of the GE (low band VHF) TT-42 I had to tend for too many years. Distilled water. Tens of gallons of it. Copper plumbing without end. And an aural transmitter that could remain on-air when the visual was powered down. Oh well, Jack Benny's 1920s electric car is, o...

Oh, gee...thanks! In a few months I'll be installing an NX25 to replace a 20-year old ND25 and hadn't given any thought to heating since the ND and the weather service 1-kW have kept things toasty down to -30 (yes, minus 30F) and occasionally a little cooler. Wanted to do it earlier but late deliver...

While I agree that cheap antennas are far from perfect they are a good way to see what you can get for reception without going broke. I've bought big-name antennas at big bucks only to find there really was no point. If a cheapie gets results than it's easy enough to spend $400+ for something really...

Try one of the many cheap antennas on Amazon for around $25-$39/ I've used them in a couple of situations where it's not possible to use anything large. They include a pretty decent amplifier intended for UHF/VHF but which seems to do quite well with FM. Rotor is built in so you can point it at the ...

Early morning local newscast - I was doubling in news while doing the engineering for an Alaskan AM. Story concerned state fish and game making changes to THE COUNCIL CARIBOU HUNT. Alliteration is NOT your friend. Say it (THE COUNCIL CARIBOU HUNT) fast five times. It WILL happen. Did it in two conse...

Not entirely germane as my experience is limited to Nautel's AM line....but at one point some years ago they got a really bad bunch of fuse holders. In the circumstances at hand I'd give them close attention. Even if they've been replaced once - I recently had a replacement fuse holder go bad.

Look into alternative fencing. There are new materials, all of which are non-conductive. If you'd like a wooden look, Trex or similar product works well. There are also plastic material that have the durability of and look like chain-link and might actually be tougher to cut than actual steel. Also,...

Sometimes it's not just the cold, deep snow, or even ice. Before retiring some 12+ years ago I made daily early morning visits to a transmitter site at Nome. Yes, Alaska. Remember, sunrise (when there was one) came around 1pm and I'd go there about 7. Did I say "dark"? -40 was not unusual and the ro...

When I was young and reckless I'd "shotgun" components of similar age/type. Then, all too often, I'd spend days trying to figure out which new part was causing the more severe problems that resulted. Occasionally it would be something I had done wrong - more often a bad batch of parts. Worst was whe...

Is there any body of water between the transmit and receive points? I've never had fog cause the kind of problem you describe but I have had temperature conditions create a sort of "lens" above a small lake that caused what you describe. Moving up might get you above it but, oddly enough, moving dow...

The strength is in the materials but also notice the brace in the online illustrations. I've used Scala antennae of several types in arctic conditions where extreme icing and high winds are the norm....used 'em for over 45 years and some I installed in 1972 are still in service and, though somewhat ...

Deep Thought, please check your private messages about an ND-25 issue that is off-topic for this thread but could save you a lot of work. Not of general enough interest to start a new thread.

How I wish it were always simple.... One site I used to care for (retired now) had an unburied ground system - specified that way on the license because it is unusual. It's on permafrost; the top few inches thaws in summer but anything buried is pushed back up within a year. Because the tundra is so...

Think about having the power provider temporarily place recording meters on each of the three phases. If there's some kind of hit on only one phase there's a good chance you wouldn't see any lights flickering depending on how you were getting from 3-Phase to single phase for non-transmitter power us...

Some 30_ years ago I picked up a "war surplus" transit for about $50 and learned to use it. It wasn't perfect; it was well beaten and worn. But it was adequate enough to run sightings on the AM tower from a couple of angles about 3 times a year and spot any plumb/true problems before they become a s...