K2PG is off the air!

[K2PG]

While eating a late dinner last night, the lights blinked in the house and I heard a thud. The power pole that supplies my transmitter shack here in Pennsylvania broke right at ground level and came down, destroying the meter socket, conduit, and a mercury vapor fixture that was used for security lighting.

Due to my current job situation, I cannot afford to have this replaced, so it looks like I will be off 160 AM indefinitely. My WE2XTT 500 meter experimental station is likewise dead in the water.

[W3GMS]

Phil,
Sorry to hear about your misfortune.  I do believe you have a remote setup so you can operate the rig down at the shore.  Maybe that has changed I don't know.  Then again, you can always plug in a DX-100 or something else and get on the air.  Your an old broadcaster, so you know how to work around these issues.

I have not heard you on in quite sometime.  Have you been active?

Joe, GMS

[K2PG]

I need to get some parts for the remote setup in NJ...that's also off the air now. Due to my job situation, I have not been able to get there to make the necessary repairs and at least get that station back on. I have only been able to find part-time work and am barely meeting expenses. (Thanks, Cumulus!)

Out here, I will need to have an electrician set a new pole and repair the damage to the conduit and meter socket.

[flintstone mop]

That is a very strange event to lose a utility pole. It wasn't up that long for termites to start eating. It was just supporting the three phase wires to the shack? No pole pigs? Was it at least 5 feet in the ground?
fred

[K2PG]

That is a very strange event to lose a utility pole. It wasn't up that long for termites to start eating. It was just supporting the three phase wires to the shack? No pole pigs? Was it at least 5 feet in the ground?
fred

Apparently, the wood rotted. That pole was here when I bought this house about 8 years ago. It supported the security light fixture. The pole snapped right at the ground. The pole pigs are on the power company's pole alongside the road. The pole that fell is a "customer owned" pole, like the ones used for supplying power to mobile homes.

At any rate, this station is dead until I get NJ back on the air.

[KL7OF]

Phil....You maybe eligible for a "temporARY meter" setup at your broken pole location..This would be so that you could have temporary power to effect your repairs..These consist of a meter and panel on a treated wood support and can be erected  cheaply and with the renewal procedure available from most areas you can get year a few years out of the temporary situation before permanent repairs are forced...Good Luck......

[steve_qix]

Wow Phil, that's a problem (understatement!).  I suppose one question is:  Was this a three phase circuit, or was it single phase?

Things are a whole lot easier if it's just single phase for a variety of reasons.  Was the pole there because the service drop would otherwise be too long from the street (or the last pole, depending) to the building?

[K2PG]

Wow Phil, that's a problem (understatement!).  I suppose one question is:  Was this a three phase circuit, or was it single phase?

It was three phase 240 volt closed delta. The power company claims that the pole is customer owned...not cheap and not an item I could find at Lowe's or Home Depot.

The pole was there originally to support security lighting. According to the electrical code and power company policy, I need a pole service, as the transmitter is in a pre-fab shed. They treat that like a mobile home.

[flintstone mop]

Hi Phil
Take it a day at a time. I know you are struggling with work schedules and now the power feed to your shack.
Sometimes utilities remove poles from service that might still be good for your use. Finding one and getting the auger they use to plant one in the ground is another battle.
The New Jersey TX seems like it might be a little quicker to get back on the air, but your time schedule is jammed.
Fred