• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

Tower Painting

W

WJEPPD

Does anyone know of any good companies to do Tower Painting down here in Georgia? The 2 I have found are based in Colorado and Kentucky so far. One quoted $3,800 which I thought was a little high to paint a 230' Tower.

Thoughts???
 
Thirty-four hundredths of a second of Googlating the phrase "RadioTower Painting Georgia" giveth forth 250,000 possibilities. You can check into the other 249,999 at your leisure, but I did see one Georgia based company:

http://www.unitedtowercompany.com/

I don't think that $3,800 is too out of line for painting your tower, though. If you can get it done while your station is down, I think it may be worth paying a slight premium, if it happens to be a little high. If you can arrange it, get the job scheduled without having it interfere with revenue generation. Take a look at the link. Hope it helps you out.

Googlating? Maybe it is Googlizing? How would the President say it?
 
Googlizing? Or is that "to make more like Google". Anyway, Bill at United is a good guy. Call him to get your work done. While they are there, get the tower relamped, too. $3800 isn't bad if they are supplying the paint and crew. The going rate to paint a tower is between $15 and $35 a foot. That rate is to change depending on how far the crew has to drive, if they supply paint and the time of day. I would not hire anyone to paint any of my towers for less than $15 a foot. This isn't like painting your house or anything. It's a specialized job requiring special paint and tools and expertise. You cheep out on this, and you'll be spending the same money again in a couple of years to get it repainted because the "aviation orange" has turned into "pepto pink". Repeat, this is NOT something to cut corners on.
 
kyscott said:
Googlizing? Or is that "to make more like Google". Anyway, Bill at United is a good guy. Call him to get your work done. While they are there, get the tower relamped, too. $3800 isn't bad if they are supplying the paint and crew. The going rate to paint a tower is between $15 and $35 a foot. That rate is to change depending on how far the crew has to drive, if they supply paint and the time of day. I would not hire anyone to paint any of my towers for less than $15 a foot. This isn't like painting your house or anything. It's a specialized job requiring special paint and tools and expertise. You cheep out on this, and you'll be spending the same money again in a couple of years to get it repainted because the "aviation orange" has turned into "pepto pink". Repeat, this is NOT something to cut corners on.
Click to expand...

Also, you might get them to check and verify that the spot welds where the tower sections come together are intact.

Whomever you choose, make sure the company is licensed, bonded and insured; and that you get and check references. This covers you legally as well as assuring that you get a professional-quality job. This is not something to leave to amateurs, beginners or those with murky backgrounds. Top flight companies will gladly provide references and documentation of their coverage. Also, the services provided will be clearly spelled out in the contract, and prices will be specified. If you talk to someone who tries to be evasive or makes promises and then is unwilling to put them in writing, thank him for his time and move along to another outfit.

In short: Shop wisely. Good luck!
 
I can vouch for Bill. He's a good tower guy. And yes, checking the spot welds will save you time and money if you find one bad or going bad now while he's already there. I remember back in the day when we were required to have quarterly tower inspection, not just checking every three months to make sure the tower lights are on.
 
Your recommendation is good enough for me!

It seems stations don't do PM the way they used to. I suppose the new breed of management doesn't see the sense in spending a little money along to save money in the long run. And make money.

Eighteen-wheelers fed me, clothed me and sent me to college. My Dad owned as many as four at one time. He had a running maintenance routine: Each truck would get thorough maintenance every three months whether anything was wrong or not. Of course, after a million miles or so, an engine would need to be rebuilt, but he saved untold hundreds of thousands of dollars by spending a few thousand per truck each year making sure everything was in order. He made up what he spent just in what he did not have to spend on towing and road service; besides, a truck sitting at the side of the road is not even earning its keep, much less turning a profit. Contrary to what some believe, turning a profit is why one goes into any business, be it trucking or broadcasting.

In Woody's situation, I think he has a great opportunity to do a lot of necessary work on his tower while the rest of the plant is being reassembled. If I were he, I would have the entire tower system checked -- from the guys all the way to the top beacon and back down to the sacrificial cathodes, electrically and mechanically -- and brought up to the highest level of functionality possible.
 
Witchlover said:
Your recommendation is good enough for me!

It seems stations don't do PM the way they used to. I suppose the new breed of management doesn't see the sense in spending a little money along to save money in the long run. And make money.

Eighteen-wheelers fed me, clothed me and sent me to college. My Dad owned as many as four at one time. He had a running maintenance routine: Each truck would get thorough maintenance every three months whether anything was wrong or not. Of course, after a million miles or so, an engine would need to be rebuilt, but he saved untold hundreds of thousands of dollars by spending a few thousand per truck each year making sure everything was in order. He made up what he spent just in what he did not have to spend on towing and road service; besides, a truck sitting at the side of the road is not even earning its keep, much less turning a profit. Contrary to what some believe, turning a profit is why one goes into any business, be it trucking or broadcasting.

In Woody's situation, I think he has a great opportunity to do a lot of necessary work on his tower while the rest of the plant is being reassembled. If I were he, I would have the entire tower system checked -- from the guys all the way to the top beacon and back down to the sacrificial cathodes, electrically and mechanically -- and brought up to the highest level of functionality possible.
Click to expand...

Thank you Witch and that is the plan
 
And, while you're thinkin' big....
Have them inspect the tower, keeping the consulting engineer in mind, so you can hang a nice FM antenna on the side one day.
 
Back in the old days, (70's) 100 bucks a foot to paint and do some limited tower repair, bulb changing etc., was the going rate. So maybe factoring in inflation and gas, that's a pretty fair quote.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom