AM Radio Wall

[EJurich]

At WROK in Rockford the city grew around the studio/transmitter site. There is a nice residential area around the edge of the tower field. The AM was a three tower site, 500W non-directional night and 5,000W directional day.
In the mid 70's while Chief there, I get a call one day from a lady who lives in a house on the property line. She tells me that they have had a problem for years in that the radio station plays out of their bedroom wall. They never said anything because it was only during the day (5,000W). But, now they have the house up for sale and would like to fix the problem. I already suspected what was happing, grabbed a screwdriver and walked across the tower field to the house. Walked into the bedroom and it was funny, it really sounded like a radio was playing and with decent fidelity too. I walked over to the wall and centered myself to the point of source, looked down and there was an AC socket in the wall. I had her take me to the basement below the bedroom. Found where the conduit went up the wall to the outlet. There was a conduit coupling just as the conduit went up the wall. I tightened the screws and we went back upstairs, no more wall radio. Conduit was the antenna, a loose corroded screw a diode junction and the wall was the speaker. She was dumbfounded, "you mean we put up with that all these years and all we had to do was tighten those screws?"

[Bill DeFelice]

That's hilarious! They lived with the problem for all the time they occupied the house and it could have been resolved simply if they had made a query to the station.

I had a business on the opposite side of the transmitter site from a 1KW daytimer that would hear our station in their phone system. The phone company was either unwilling or unable to resolve the problem with their new phone system and shortly after I heard from the regional field office. It seemed after some prodding the phone company finally resolved the issue with the "new fangled" phone system that replaced their old 1A2 system.

Newer isn't necessarily better and they discovered that with their upgraded phone equipment.


edited: corrected typo

[Lee_Wheeler]

I had a 10 kW years ago (Religious Format) and the neighbor complained - loudly - to the city because his toilet was preaching at him. In that case the seat screws were all corroded and replacing them with nylon screws fixed it for good.

All part of the job I suppose.

...Lee

[Dale H. Cook]

I think I've told this one before, but right after we put a 10 kW daytimer on the air the a man in a house across the street from the transmitter site (and in the middle of the main lobe) complained of music in his basement. The water meter was at one end of the basement and the water heater and water distribution at the other end, with a long run of copper pipe from one end to the other. The music was coming from the pipe - obviously something there was acting as a detector. I shut off the water just inside the meter, drained that long run of pipe and re-sweat its joints. I turned the water back on and the problem was gone. That was nearly 40 years ago, and it remains the only RFI complaint that I have ever fixed with a torch.

[Shane]

All part of the job I suppose

Hey, fixing toilets and plumbing is traditionally part of the job description, right?

[rfn]

1970s. New 10kW AM. Woman a mile and a half away complained of her refrigerator being possessed by our (religious) radio station.
Found an ancient refrigerator with the cooling coils on top inside an steel (light weight) cylinder. Removed the covering and it was clear that the bands that had held the coil in compression had rotted away. The coil was not just chattering; pretty much shouting. A handful of cable ties (plus a sprinkling of tap water) exorcised that demon and peace returned.

[RGORJANCE]

"Hey, fixing toilets and plumbing is traditionally part of the job description, right"?

Shane, you forgot to mention cutting the grass and fixing the owners TV/hi fi equipment, car radio, etc.

Fossil

[ChuckG]

Had a group of psychologists and counselors build a clinic literally 100 feet from the base of a self-supporter slant fed AM. One day I get a call...they're hearing voices from their electronics. I asked if that was my specialty or theirs.... they weren't amused.
But I was.

[RGORJANCE]

Chuck:

It is very clear to me

that the nut doesn't fall far from the tree!

Well done my friend, I'm still cracking up!!!!! Got to be one of the best posts yet!

Fossil

[kkiddkkidd]

"Hey, fixing toilets and plumbing is traditionally part of the job description, right"?

Shane, you forgot to mention cutting the grass and fixing the owners TV/hi fi equipment, car radio, etc.

Fossil

I once built a floating boat dock for an owner... He wanted a boat dock at his river home and he decided that I could help him build it and bill the company. I billed 15 hours of regular engineering labor at regular rates with the description of "build floating boat dock" and it was paid without question.

I actually discounted the billing several hours because he bought the beer. Dock building requires a LOT of beer.

[kkiddkkidd]

Had a group of psychologists and counselors build a clinic literally 100 feet from the base of a self-supporter slant fed AM. One day I get a call...they're hearing voices from their electronics. I asked if that was my specialty or theirs.... they weren't amused.
But I was.

Now that's funny right there...

[ChuckG]

Chuck:

It is very clear to me

that the nut doesn't fall far from the tree!

Well done my friend, I'm still cracking up!!!!! Got to be one of the best posts yet!

Fossil

WAGN, Menominee. You've probably been there lol. They put the tower literally in the back yard of the studio, but don't own any of the surrounding city lots. I had just started to bury more copper strap up there to compensate for almost no ground radials when they were sold and I changed jobs. Still laugh about this one.

[ChuckG]

I billed 15 hours of regular engineering labor at regular rates with the description of "build floating boat dock" and it was paid without question.

I got questioned on "materials and labor for doghouse repair". How large were these dog houses and when did we get dogs?

[RGORJANCE]

"Who let the dogs out? Who, who"?

Sorry, the devil made me do it! I couldn't resist.

Fossil