[AT] Garden tractor???/Now RF hazard

[Howard Weeks]

Some of those towers that are base fed (whole tower is radiating) can 
have very high frequency and RF voltages present at the base.  You do 
not want to get into contact with that in any way.  Besides the 
possibility of death, the arc will burn a hole through you that is 
hard to describe.  I have gotten a finger in contact with relatively 
low power sources (neighborhood of 400 watts) and it burned a hole 
from the skin surface to the bone instantly.  Hole was small but 
incredibly painful and took a very long time to heal. Smells like 
hell!

I do not worry about radiation from RF sources but will not look down 
the end of a microwave wave guide or feed horn that is transmitting 
regardless of how much power it is producing.

Most of what you see, hear or read from the media on the subject is 
knee jerk hysteria.

You are in significantly more danger from sun sources of radiation!

Howard in GA

On 26 Jan 2010 at 7:28, charliehill wrote:

> He's certainly doing something he shouldn't unless he's staying clear
> of the area while the wood is cooking.
> 
> I've got a question for those that might know.  I used to mow the guy
> wire lanes for some transmission towers for a local broadcast company.
>  There were three towers.  One was a 100,000 Watt FM and the other two
> were 50,000 watt.   The two smaller ones had a chain link fence around
> the base of the tower and the transmitter building with warning signs
> about RF danger and I never went inside them.   The area was covered
> in rock and there was no need to mow.  The big 100,000 watt station
> had a larger chain link and a much larger transmitter building.  On
> that one I mowed inside and right up within 4 feet of the base of the
> transmitter.   I've always wondered how much RF load I was getting and
> how much danger I was in while I was right around the base of that
> tower.   Anyone got thoughts on that?
> 
> Charlie


Howard Weeks
Harlem, GA 
K5JCP