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FM towers

S

secondchoice

I asked a similar question on the Atlanta TV board for TV but radio is different. Do any of the radio stations in the Atlanta market have back up towers sites? I assume most of the stations have back up transmitters. IIRC some of the FM stations in NYC were off the air for some time after the World Trade Center's Antenna was destroyed? Do any transmitter sites have engineers on duty?
 
You raise interesting questions. I don't have the answers, but I have some observations on the topic.

Don't expect a great rush of information. This is a day and age where people are concerned about security for their property and their people. They may want information about where secondary sites are located and whether people have to be there to make the switchover not be too widely known.

Back when radio stations tended to be owned by someone who had no other broadcast location, an owner had to consider seriously how much prepartion to make to continue to operate following a fire, a flood, a tornado. Today some of the group owners can warehouse some standby equipment at a key location with the idea they will truck it to the site of the disaster... where ever than turns out to be. (That probably means having your own truck as the key location so things can get on the road quickly.)
 
Before I make a fool of myself, I probably need to sit still and let one of our active contract engineering friends speak fully to your question.

But in this day of leased towers and shared towers you have to be very, very devoted to the task and know how to dig through attachements to applications to get that kind of information. What the FCC records will not tell the devious mind is whether there are personnel in the building if you are planning and invasion to disable the equipment or steal stuff to sell as scrap.

Publicly held corporations don't like to own something if they can work out a satisfactory leasing arrangement. (Has to do with accountants doing the division calculation of profits over assets which results in the return-on-investment percentage.) The FCC records and tower registration records at the FAA will tell the curious mind who owns the tower, not who uses it.
 
Most major Atlanta FM stations have backup sites. And most main sites have aux everything.
WSB AM has a backup site. It is diplexed with another AM station.
Most Atlanta transmitter sites have engineering jacuzzi for the engineering staff and their stripper friends. The sites are staffed only when the strippers are off work.....
 
At one of the FM sites we have a fully stocked bar, and a fully stocked trout pond in addition to the hot tub and strippers. Personally, I feel no need to ever leave the transmitter site.

Unfortunately the hot tub at thee site I was at today was broken. We do not have backup hot tubs.

A broad answer to you other question: many FM stations have backup sites, but a few do not.
 
What caused me to think about was the 106.7 and 104.7 antenna issue. How can you "hide" a lighted tower that a class C, C0 or C1 is most likely on? The engineer "on duty at the site" would only be there to "protect" revenue lost due to being off the air. I just was looking at some pictures of some of the "A" AM's in around Chicago and they are "were" pretty impressive transmitter buildings (room for a bar and possibly a stripper pole or two) with cars in the parking spaces which would indicate that the are folks at these sites. I know the old transmitters were a handful a took up large spaces and lost a lot of electricity to heat, and the new Xmitters are a lot more reliable but remote control units can only do so much. Sooner or later someone will have to reset breakers and fix lightning damage, if not then there would be not engineers left.
 
Looks like the WSB AM site in Tucker had a shopping center built especially for the engineers. I remember when it was in the field by itself, and then suddenly a shopping center was built around it. Must have been built for engineers to enjoy like the hot tub.
 
trusty said:
So, the FCC doesn't require public knowledge of backup towers & transmitters???
Click to expand...

It's all in the FCC database at FCC.gov.

A few of the ones I know of are WSTR on Bishop Street behind Atlantic Station; WWWQ and WNNX at the American Tower (WUPA-TV) site off I-20; WSB-AM (I think) at the WFOM-AM site. I think WSB-FM has an aux on the WSB-TV tower, WZGC has one on the Summit tower on New St, and WSBB has one on its original Atlanta market tower off route 81 in Bethlehem.

If you go to FCC.gov and type in AM Query or FM Query, you can check any station.
 
On FMQ. I often notice that backup sites mysteriously vanish.

Many times FMQ does not tell the whole story.
 
mona lott said:
hi taylor i use to see you at the hot tub all the time in the 80's, where have
you been lately?
Click to expand...


I stopped hangin' round the tub after Littlejohn started bathing the Big White Dog in it.......
Dogs, strippers, jacuzzis and radios......that just ain't right. I don't care who ya' are.........
 
You oughta see the current puppy. 2 years old, 120 pounds, fur everywhere. And they're cheaper than alla your kids. (You can sell the puppies)I got a used (very) RV this last Spring to go to shows now and again, first criteria was a bathtub in the back for the dogs. Strippers optional. I dint see you at the Harris freemeal last week, Mindenhall had some interesting stuff to say.
 
HGR1290 said:
On FMQ. I often notice that backup sites mysteriously vanish.

Many times FMQ does not tell the whole story.
Click to expand...
I wonder if they were taken down for Homeland Securityish reasons...or might they be found in the same FCC bit bucket with all of the PSRAs and PSSAs on the AM side...?
 
littlejohn said:
You oughta see the current puppy. 2 years old, 120 pounds, fur everywhere. And they're cheaper than alla your kids. (You can sell the puppies)I got a used (very) RV this last Spring to go to shows now and again, first criteria was a bathtub in the back for the dogs. Strippers optional. I dint see you at the Harris freemeal last week, Mindenhall had some interesting stuff to say.
Click to expand...

The boss was hoggin' the hottub with his better half that day so I couldn't get by the Harris slop trough.
120 lb. bow wow can eat it's weight in groceries. I'd have to get a third job to feed 'em. Kids can have Moonpies/RC colas......
We need to get all the radio guys together. Tell some lies & eat some bbq......
 
jabba17 said:
HGR1290 said:
On FMQ. I often notice that backup sites mysteriously vanish.

Many times FMQ does not tell the whole story.
Click to expand...
I wonder if they were taken down for Homeland Securityish reasons...or might they be found in the same FCC bit bucket with all of the PSRAs and PSSAs on the AM side...?
Click to expand...

If a station has a backup site, it has to be listed in the FCC database for the public to see. I've noticed that the FCC is sometimes a little behind in reporting changes.
 
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