Sad shape of antennas

[dlwtrunked]

No wonder the National Park Service at Shenandoah National Park has troubles at times with its repeaters. Look at the current condition of the 400 MHz repeater link antennas at the Hogback Mtn. control point for the repeaters. Yes, these are active antennas and have been in this condition for over a year and yes one is bent towards the ground. Obvious severe ice damage.

 

[es93546]

This may reflect the sorry state of National Park Service funding. They are going to get quite a boost in funding to address the maintenance backlog of $4-5 billion, but I don't think that is going to fix the funding for daily operations personnel. Time will tell. The National Park Service is better off than the other land management/natural resource/environmental agencies. However, I think the U.S. Forest Service radio infrastructure is in better shape. They must be using some fire funding to accomplish this.

 

[K4EET]

I'm not sure about Hogback Mountain but I know that there are many underground caves in the Shenandoah National Park's radio service area such as Luray Caverns in Luray, Virginia. Yagi antennas pointing straight down to the ground or bent downward at an angle like that in the picture are OBVIOUSLY for providing communications underground in the caverns.

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View attachment 99965
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[mmckenna]

Looks like ice damage.

Or, as K4EET said, downward polarization for subterranean coverage. Yeah, that's what it is!

Someone should be periodically laying eyes on the site to check for things like that. Relying on end users to complain often doesn't work well.

I think their budget was raped over the last 4 years. Will probably take a long time to get caught up.

 

[12dbsinad]

Ice has mysterious ways of converting yagi style antenna's to down tilt configuration. If you're in winter wonderland they make these marvelous things called ice shields. Standard equipment for us in the northeast and certainly for dishes or there will be nothing left after 1 winter.

 

[dlwtrunked]

I'm not sure about Hogback Mountain but I know that there are many underground caves in the Shenandoah National Park's radio service area such as Luray Caverns in Luray, Virginia. Yagi antennas pointing straight down to the ground or bent downward at an angle like that in the picture are OBVIOUSLY for providing communications underground in the caverns.
[/QUOTEAnd this UHF radio link antenna (white) at water well in the Big Meadows area communicates with water in the clouds before it gets to the ground.

 

[CCHLLM]

Not to mention the open door assisting in equipment cooling....... Is the door closed in the winter season.....?

 

[es93546]

Ice has mysterious ways of converting yagi style antenna's to down tilt configuration. If you're in winter wonderland they make these marvelous things called ice shields. Standard equipment for us in the northeast and certainly for dishes or there will be nothing left after 1 winter.

The culprit is rime ice. It forms when the air is quite cold and very humid. It builds up on everything and is most prominent on ridge tops and mountain summits. It often forms ice that looks like a fin, with the largest portion of the ice being on the lee side of a stationary object. We see it from time to time here in the west, but in the more humid east, I think it is more of a factor. I've looked at winter photos taken at the top of Mt. Washington in New Hampshire where the build up is incredible. The weight is hard on everything, vertical antennas, horizontal antennas, guy wire, towers, buildings and anything else in those zones. Water is supercooled and can remain in liquid form several degrees below freezing. Here is a picture of rime ice formation on a sign at the summit of Mt. Adams, also in New Hampshire:

 

[mmckenna]

The culprit is rime ice.

We do get it periodically here in Central California:

But unlikely that much damage is from rime ice. Usually those Yagi's have solid elements, and many of them look like they are bent. This is failure to install ice protection above the antenna.

On the other hand, sloppy techs have been known to 'drop test' things off towers. A big microwave dish being lowered could do a lot of damage.

 

[12dbsinad]

We do get it periodically here in Central California:

But unlikely that much damage is from rime ice. Usually those Yagi's have solid elements, and many of them look like they are bent. This is failure to install ice protection above the antenna.

On the other hand, sloppy techs have been known to 'drop test' things off towers. A big microwave dish being lowered could do a lot of damage.

What in the world is that spaghetti on those folded units and electrical tape! Oh my head.....

 

[mmckenna]

What in the world is that spaghetti on those folded units and electrical tape! Oh my head.....

I believe that is either CalFire or DFG. Not my $h1t show, so I never tracked it down.

 

[12dbsinad]

I believe that is either CalFire or DFG. Not my $h1t show, so I never tracked it down.

haha I never for once thought it had anything to do with you that's for sure..

 

[CCHLLM]

I have seen numerous fiberglass Stationmaster and Super Stationmaster antennas with a bad seal and resulting water contamination that look like an explosive has detonated inside the antenna due to the internal ice expansion in extreme cold and winds at high AGL sites.

 

[kb7gjy]

What in the world is that spaghetti on those folded units and electrical tape! Oh my head.....

If that were on one of my sites, I would call that, "Lease about to be cancelled". I have very clean sites, and there are published site standards which everyone from Ham radio groups to state agencies all agree to in their lease.

Funny story, Had one state agency that thought they didn't have to follow the site standards. So I called up the radio department and noted the issue. They stated I was not authorized. I said if you will note in your lease here it says I am, and also please note this section of the lease which states ANY tenant not meeting and maintaining the site standards is subject to power being removed and equipment being removed at the owners expense. He got upset and said they were a state agency and were exempt. I then asked them to stand by a minute, then asked them to try their radio. It didn't work. I said I guess I'm authorized and hung up. Two minutes later my phone rang it was the head of the department apologizing asking for it to be turned back on and that the issue would be fixed ASAP and he would personally talk to the others in the department about working with site owners and management. Click the power is back on. Problem solved. (Note this was not a Law Enforcement or Fire system, more of a Admin system). Since then , everything has been great, no issues.

 

[mmckenna]

If that were on one of my sites, I would call that, "Lease about to be cancelled". I have very clean sites, and there are published site standards which everyone from Ham radio groups to state agencies all agree to in their lease.

It's CalFire's lookout tower at one of my sites. What they do on their tower isn't my business.

Loose coax is no reason to disconnect a CalFire or DFG repeater. I don't play games like that. I prefer a more professional approach.

 

[KK6ZTE]

If that were on one of my sites, I would call that, "Lease about to be cancelled". I have very clean sites, and there are published site standards which everyone from Ham radio groups to state agencies all agree to in their lease.

Funny story, Had one state agency that thought they didn't have to follow the site standards. So I called up the radio department and noted the issue. They stated I was not authorized. I said if you will note in your lease here it says I am, and also please note this section of the lease which states ANY tenant not meeting and maintaining the site standards is subject to power being removed and equipment being removed at the owners expense. He got upset and said they were a state agency and were exempt. I then asked them to stand by a minute, then asked them to try their radio. It didn't work. I said I guess I'm authorized and hung up. Two minutes later my phone rang it was the head of the department apologizing asking for it to be turned back on and that the issue would be fixed ASAP and he would personally talk to the others in the department about working with site owners and management. Click the power is back on. Problem solved. (Note this was not a Law Enforcement or Fire system, more of a Admin system). Since then , everything has been great, no issues.

Wow. Just wow.

This is why I hate renting space from hams.

 

[mmckenna]

This is why I hate renting space from hams.

Exactly. And part of the reasons I won't rent space to hams.

 

[ai8o]

We do get it periodically here in Central California:

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Looking the tower ,
Is that a Hygain V4S side mounted almost at the top?

 

[mmckenna]

Looking the tower ,
Is that a Hygain V4S side mounted almost at the top?

Appears to be.

 

[jeepsandradios]

I am thinking most of that UHF link stuff is not used as they use microwave site to site now. I have seen many agency owned towers with lots of "old" stuff on them as no one ever wants to pay to take the old stuff off. Its even worse on some of the SMR towers.