Wisconsin winters and television don't mix
Call the Discovery Channel. If there were ever a dirty job, it's gotta be the guys who fix Green Bay transmitters during the dead of winter.
WBAY and WPNE are about to go dark Friday morning while engineers diagnose a transmitter problem. If you've been following this site with any regularity, you know that Northeast Wisconsin broadcasters have had winter after winter of rotten luck in the recent past.
Transmitter failures have been the norm in this area in the last couple years, and the majority of those failures have come during the harsh cold of winter. Obviously, Wisconsin winters can be brutal to just about anything left out in the open, and tall metal transmitter towers take their fair share of frigid abuse. WLUK and WFRV have both had freezing issues with their transmitters in the last couple years, among other issues.
Unfortunately, in this all-new, all-digital television universe, viewers don't have the luxury of switching between analog and digital transmissions when one goes out. During the years of the digital transition, having two transmitters running gave viewers a backup system. Now with single transmissions going out, disruptions are going to be more commonplace and more spotty. Some pay TV providers take their broadcast signals over the air while others are directly fed.
Another unfortunate side effect of the digital transition is when broadcasters cut power during transmitter issues, viewers in outlying areas with already spotty reception may now get no signal at all. Instead of a gracefully-degrading analog signal, digital is not nearly as forgiving that way.
While they are probably well-compensated technical pros, I still can't help but feel bad for the engineers that get dispatched to remedy transmitter problems in the middle of winter. It's not really a job many of us think about until we're unable to watch a soap opera on TV one day. I'm sure it takes a special breed of person to get into that line of work, and it's gotta be brutal on single-digit days with gusty winter winds.
Kudos to those fine folks who make it safe for the lethargic like me to stay home and laze in front of the tube all night.
Fox Cities TV is an independent blog and member-driven community based in Green Bay, Wisconsin and serves the Northeast Wisconsin area, including Green Bay, Appleton, and Oshkosh. TV lovers can come here to learn about what's happening in local (and national) television, interact with other TV viewers and express their opinions.
Well, I'm one of those
Well, I'm one of those "technical pros" that USED to climb those 1000-foot towers in the mid of winter as well as the heat of July. The emphasis is on the words "used to". I now work in the cellular industry and they pay me to keep my feet on the ground now-a-days. It's a young man's game.
You mention fixing "transmitter" problems a couple of times. Just wanted to clarify that the transmitter is in a building at the base of the tower where it's nice and warm with lights and bathroom facilities. The problems that are out (and up) in the cold are "tower" problems. Large rigid coaxial feedlines carry the signal up the tower to the antenna mounted up top. The insulators inside these feedlines can arc over from the RF power causing what's known in the trade as a "burnout". I don't know if that was the issue with WBAY or not, but it sure sounds like it. It could have also happened in the broadcast antenna itself, which would be a much more difficult repair.
It's not glamorous work. The hours are long, the weather can be brutal, and climbing 1000 feet straight up with winter clothing, tools, harness, etc. takes a toll. (Although WBAY's tower has an elevator inside the structure making the trip up a lot easier.) Oh, and the pay is a lot less than what you would think for the risks involved, as well as being away from home for weeks at a time. Yet, there is a certain sense of pride knowing that you are doing something for a living that most people can't even fathom, nor imagine what it's like. Those were some of the best years of my life, and my hat's off to those men working up there this past week. Lot's of facial hair full of snotcicle's to be sure!
Thanks for the insight and
Thanks for the insight and the perspective!
I was offered a job once as a
I was offered a job once as a tower worker but declined because the pay was definitely far from glorious compared to the work and commitment required. I would say what drew me in was the thought of thrill you would get performing a job like that but for the pay and the required time away from home it wasn't worth it to me.
Video of a 1500 ft guyed
Video of a 1500 ft guyed tower being built.
http://www.wirelessestimator.com/VIDEOS/Tower_Construction.wmv
If you scroll down lower on the page they have answers to question about the tower and some additional photos.
http://www.wirelessestimator.com/t_content.cfm?pagename=Southeast%20Towe...
More Photos
http://www.wirelessestimator.com/t_content.cfm?pagename=Guyed%20Tower
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