Strange Tower Design

I've never seen a tower designed like this one. Have you? Let me know, especially if you know why this structure. was designed with an elevated top series of antenna mounts.

[@timmack2415]

Something about the design of that tower made me nervous! I'm sure it's well engineered and structurally sound, but..... I'm getting older and climbing isn't as easy as it once was. Last weekend, I climbed my freestanding, 100 foot amateur radio tower to make a repair. For the first time in many years, I was feeling more than a little uneasy. Between the brisk Autumn breeze, the moving clouds and muscle cramps, I was second guessing my decision. LoL Stay safe!

[@joebessette6565]

Now that I look around up here, I'm too scared to climb down. Go get my dad

[@alasdair4161]

Wow.. when my engineering brain adds up all that overhead structure, then add two people, and then wind and such small tritower legs..... argh .. it screams NOOOOOOO! but then there it is, not falling down.. pure guts, that's all I can say..guts!

[@jhettish]

I think I did a really good description of the tower and it's capabilities in answer to another's comments. I think the whole 10 section tower only weighs about 150 to 250 pounds but it may have as much as 24,000 pounds of concrete holding it up. Aluminum tubing is doubled up in certain parts of the structure (sleeved) and the bolts are all rated for the load. Yes they sway but if you think how engineering works these days, especially in the US, It's all based on the "L" word, liability. No manufacturer wants to be sued for damages based on designed. I think good engineering allows structures like this to last a long time and not fall down. I have a lot of experience and would not have asked my guys to climb that tower. I know it can be climbed in a high wind as long as it's been installed correctly and the foundation appeared to be in good shape. I know how to climb such things so I didn't consider it a risk beyond the most risky thing I do, which is drive between tower sites. John

[@jhettish]

Hello Alasdair, I appreciate your comment. I'm amazed at the engineer's ability to determine overall weight and wind load on structures. More amazing yet is that the modern engineer uses a computer to do this. When this tower was designed in the early 60s they were still doing it by slide-rule and hand. This particular tower was built by Trylon, a Canadian company, and patterned after the tower designed and built by a company called Pirod. Pirod itself seems to have been absorbed by another company called Valmont. I've got one coming by truck and in pieces that is of that very design Pirod design. I'm not saying that the top will be identical however. This is the first time I've ever seen the upper works shown in my video in all my 46 years of climbing. The strange look is what prompted me to post it. This design is still popular but expensive and usually preferred by clients needing a self-supporter (no room for guy wires) to support microwave dishes. MW dish antennas present a bunch of load to both wind and gravity. There's another video on this channel showing two of my guys removing a 1200 pound, 12 foot diameter microwave dish from a guyed tower. Here's a link if you're interested. kzbin.info/www/bejne/hH7TnHehoqySf80 I'm a member of the Society of Broadcast Engineers. At our monthly meeting several months back we had a speaker from one of the vendors. He made a comment about how "guyed" tower sway and "self-supporting" towers don't. At the end of his talk I had to set him straight on that one. Self supporting towers definitely sway and guyed towers do not. Also, an experienced rigger can tell by feel if tower movement is "normal" or not. Of course, as in a tower falls episode, anyone who was on that tower would probably be dead and would not be able to add to the "too much" or "normal" tower sway database. This thing was supporting quite a bit of weight (gravity) for sure. The tower had already stood for a little over 20 years. in downtown Nashville, with virtually no renters. Owning a tower has a lot to do with income and I think it's only now starting to create a positive cash flow. John

[@jhettish]

@@longerlife5192 Hi guy. Could you have been looking at my "Aluminum Tower on a Windy Day" video? kzbin.info/www/bejne/iqHVh2hqaZ6Mg6c The tower on this page is an extremely strong "steel" tower of the Pirod Design. I believe it was manufactured by "Trylon". It's around 500 feet tall, in the middle of Nashville and has been standing since 2002. I'm thinking you might have been watching the "Aluminum Tower" video but were on a different page when you commented. John

[@gekkedirkie]

always nice to see your uploads

[@jhettish]

Lately I've been getting a lot of video on job sites but having no time to edit and upload since I was on so many job sites. I've got an unlisted video on KZbin that I'm going to work on a little bit then make it public. Right now, this minute, I'm in my office about to make a short video on how to monitor current on an LED beacon. Time to get back to work. John (this one is for a customer and will be unlisted)

[@CITYTV19]

Enjoy your videos! Looks like two even perhaps three separate towers put together to make 1 tall one.

[@RyanM-ke2gu]

Never seen one like that! That'd be one of the ones I gear up before I climb, or just jump before that last move to top out. New subscriber here, love your vids. I've been climbing towers and stacks for 20 years now but I usually don't climb down, way easier to jump ;-)

[@markkut5373]

John, your work is allways pleasure watch. I work ground level equipment shelter and mast guys climp up installing cables and antennas.

[@jhettish]

The ground guy is a very important part of the team. I have a ground guy who has only climbed a couple of times but isn't comfortable at height. Usually the best ground guy is the one with the most climbing experience but my ground guy, Jason Cope (aka Agent 6) has learned the skill quite well. An experienced climber knows how a load must arrive on the tower. Sometimes things can get tangled in quite a tangle and he knows how to prevent that. Sometimes it's hard for the ground guy to visualize removing parts of a load while suspended from a rope. The ground guy is one of the busiest members of the crew at times. The tower workers need receive what they need to receive in a timely well organized manner and to be able to remove pieces of the load easily and stash them out of the way until needed. John

[@norms3913]

Pretty lately I seen a lot of cellphone tower climbers working on the 5 g system

[@mikespikedog5293]

The People who design these towers should be the ones who have to climb and work up on them cause they sure don`t make it easy for you guys.

[@samallan6616]

I have an idea to help your videos, John: At the beginning of the video, briefly show the entire tower or structure you will be working on from the ground at a short distance away. That helps give some perspective about what you will be working on. 73!

[@timhalstead9790]

I spent my career at AT&T working in the cell tower huts at ground level, I can barely stand to watch videos of you guys at the top, lol

[@andrewwilson8317]

Take up a flask of tea and some lunch. Be an amazing place to sit down and enjoy your lunch! Best view in the city!

[@jhettish]

Usually we just want to get finished and go to the ground but it would be nice. :-) Thanks for the comment. John

[@chadatkins9053]

Very strange design of that tower

[@SteveHolsten]

She sure looks taller than 500 ft watching the guys climb it. I do like the platforms on top to stand on.

[@torres_arriostradas]

wow , una torre hecha de muchas torres😊👍

[@dennisqwertyuiop]

Thank you for video yes in all my travels never seen a tower and yes I look at everyone along roads

[@jhettish]

Once you get interested in caves you look for a cave in every rock outcropping. You just can't help yourself. I usually see all the towers adjacent to roads I'm traveling on and look at them as well. In middle Tennessee I've climbed many of them in fact. As a hobby I used to explore Middle Tennessee caves and brought my wife into the process. She caught that same kind of fever I described above to look for caves as we were driving down roads. I'm also very attuned to aircraft and airports when driving. My flying videos are on my other channel kzbin.info I think it gets down to what you're interested in. John

[@jmurphy1973]

John Hettish I worked in the industry for over twelve years, leaving in 2008, and I still find myself saying "that's a Sabre..that's a Pirod, etc"

[@Fireship1]

John Hettish I've always been interested in towers ever since I was a young child. I live directly behind four 400 foot AM radio towers. WWRL in NJ. This is a swampy area so there are a plethora of radio towers all over the place. As I understand it the swampy location makes for a better ground plane for the signal, but I may be mistaken. I used to watch the tower climbers and painters doing their thing when I was a kid and was fascinated. So I know what you mean by you saying you notice every tower. I seem to notice every one I drive past as well. This is what led me to your videos. I've been enjoying them ever since! 😊

[@Fireship1]

The top of that tower looked like a small observation deck. Lots of space available up there!

[@jhettish]

It's a real disease, isn't it. :-) It's hard to get the tower virus out of your body. John

[@isettech]

With an extra line a bowline can be used for a step for the transition at 10 minutes. A simple 1 step ladder makes all the difference.

[@jhettish]

We generally use the figure-8 loop for such things. I've seen bowlines untie themselves. I can teach a figure-8 in five minutes. It takes a little longer to perfect a bowline. There's also the Butterfly Knot, not really a knot but more of a bite. It can be tied anywhere on a standard line, carry a good bit of load and more importantly, untied. Removing a knot is the most important reason to tie a "real" knot in the first place rather than just slap something together. I believe in "real" knots and consider the bowline a "real" knot but choose not to use it in most applications. John

[@ststele]

I work on the other end of the spectrum just about as close to the ground as you can possibly get. These videos make my palms sweat, yet I still watch! Just want to say thanks for posting videos.

[@jhettish]

I sincerely appreciate the comment. I believe that most of the industry's safety "experts" share your squeamishness which gives them the opportunity to become safety directors and write rules for we who work aloft. I also do a lot of work on the ground and have even done radio work in the ground, specifically a zinc mine in Tennessee. That didn't work out all that well. That was in the days before "radiax", slotted coaxial cable. John

[@tazz3663]

how often do you guys drop things?

[@JOSEALVIM100]

Misericórdia! Tem que ter nervos de aço, coragem e muito equilíbrio físico e emocional para executar esse trabalho nessas alturas.

[@thelightninghunter23]

Ah, the Flash Technology integrated red/white strobe. Tower in my town used to have one ... it has a very distinctive red color to it. I hope I can get a hold of one someday, as I quite miss it.

[@jhettish]

I've got a bunch of broken actuators, the motorized thing that would lift a red lens around the white tube at night. That was an innovative design that never really worked well after a year or so. The tower in question really needs the replacement beacons (324) that have two tubes. One is in the red housing and the other in the clear housing. The beacons can be retrofitted pretty easily. The violet lead becomes the red trigger lead. John

[@thelightninghunter23]

Thought I'd revisit this post since I've actually found two structures that have that style of strobe/beacon in the Huntsville area where I just moved to... one of the structures being the big prop rocket at the Space and Rocket Center. They're surprisingly happy given their age, though evidently the red lens/motor failed on one head on the rocket since it's white in night mode. You mentioned that the ones on your tower were FH-312s. Is there any difference between that and the 306? And finally, where do these things end up when they're replaced with plastic crap... err... LEDs? I'd imagine there's a bunch of old xenon strobes looking for a home, assuming they're not getting trashed. Chris

[@tonywestvirginia]

What are the vertical pipes at the top for? Enjoy your vids.

[@jhettish]

All the vertical pipes are intended to be mounts for antennas that never arrived. I had mentioned earlier that the tower was built by someone who thought cell companies and broadcasters would come rushing to them with cash in hand. What they didn't know was that the cell and broadcast needs 20 years ago had been met already. The tower stood empty for many years, with some owner paying rent on the property but having no income to support his rent payments. The tower has been through many owner's/manager's hands during those 20 years. Only now is the tower generating income for its current owner but I doubt seriously that the vertical pipes (antenna mounts) will ever be filled. John.

[@jhettish]

The vertical pipes were intended for tenants to mount their antennas. The only problem was there was not much of a market for that tower. Even today it only has four or five active antennas. The original owner apparently didn't do any sort of market research before building the million dollar site but stuff like that happened in the early part of this century. John

[@TerryMcKean]

The helmet-mounted cameras sure make it seem like the KZbin viewers are up there doing the climb themselves. For me it felt scary watching them at first, especially when the climber looks around and down...lol!.. as I watch more of these it gets a little less scarier. My respect for the climber's fortitude never gets less, though... it increases. I started watching these types of videos a few weeks ago when I came across some videos of linemen riding helicopters up to live 765 KV power transmission lines and bonding-on to them and working on them. Eventually I came across a video of a man climbing "the highest tower in the world" with a helmet-mounted camera and I was like, "WWWHHHOOOOOAAAAA!!! :-O ...LOL! :-D.. it's still a little creepy for me watching that one again! ;-) Next in line for me to watch is your 'Tower Work in High Winds at 900 Feet' video, John. Your videos are awesome! :-)

[@jhettish]

Garrett and I are pretty good at not bobbing our heads or looking side to side quickly most of the time but Clay moves his head at lightning speed. I'm generally aware when I'm making video that the camera is on my head and try to keep the camera stable. There are times I think a "selfie stick" would be useful but the camera only rides on my helmet, weighs only a few ounces and doesn't represent "extra equipment" being lugged up the tower. The helmet mounted does give good perspective. John

[@TerryMcKean]

Definitely. It's like being there, visually. This comes to mind now: It's very good to show that camera-viewpoint, especially for people who are thinking of going into that line of work. The scary, vertigo-ish feeling is a natural response to being in the potentially life-threatening situation of being far up in the air like that, and even seeing it on a TV or computer screen, etc, can bring it on, but with more practice, it becomes less scary and more doable. Seeing such imagery on these screens starts a gradient process for the potential new professional climbers to start getting used it at a safe gradient, and it would give them a bit of a head start when they actually begin actual training and practice.

[@TerryMcKean]

Right on, John... well it's been a few days and a few more high climbs watched and I'm OK with it now. It wasn't the general moving around of the camera as you or Clay or the other tower-technicians who had helmet-mounted cameras looked around... it was seeing from a viewpoint +/- 2000 feet in the air that needed some getting accustomed with...lol! :-D

[@jhettish]

It's different isn't it. John

[@TerryMcKean]

Definitely

[@turbo2ltr]

I wish I knew more about tower design. I climb on volunteer basis so I don't climb often though I am certified. The towers we climb are typically less than 150ft with a mix of free standing and guyed. I don't mind the heights, but I always question the strength of everything. I get mocked for telling my 300lb climbing partner "Quit shaking the tower" haha. Like having 350+ lbs of people to one side of that top part I feel like it might overload it as it's basically a overhang. Obviously it doesn't but that's what goes on in my head. I keep telling myself my 195lbs is nothing compared to the total weight of the tower.. But we've had tower neighbors have their towers fold in half under the strain of ice. I wish I could see these structures tested to failure so I could get an understanding of what kind of strength they had.

[@Tacos888]

Why not work for a company ??

[@devherrick5775]

Ice and snow can easily accumulate weight. But truly it’s never good to shake a tower. Yes it’s rated for quite a lot but safety precautions

[@hashbrownie334]

Pyrod with a height extension?

[@alphasxsignal]

What do you do if you get a cramp in the leg???????

[@hermanngoring397]

Rest in the harness.

[@andreyanart148]

Thanks for this video. It would be great if you have a HAM radio callsign! On this height with handheld radio..and simple 3 el Yagi antenna for 2m band....you will get a huge sucsess... I am a little bit jealouse to your job! Take care. Greeting from Belarus.

[@jhettish]

I've had a ham radio license since May 1960 but once I started working in the two-way radio business the ham thing started to fade. These days I donate a lot of used equipment to hams who can actually do something with it and maintain several ham repeaters. And yes, I do still know Morse Code. :-) John (BTW: I also have 12 cats at the moment.)

[@andreyanart148]

Thanks a lot for your answer, John. It is realy great thats you donate a ham stuff to hobby brothers ). God bless you ...and your 12 cats : )...I wonder thants they have a calendar names...like Jan, Feb and etc. ) 73 and GL!

[@jhettish]

Names such as German numbers or months might be good but we often get two during the same month. We've had many cats over the last 26 years I've been married to my wife. Recently we had 16. Now we're down to 13 and one of the cats has started to refuse to come to us so I see her as being in trouble. I had told you 12 but I was off by one. My wife works at a Spay and Neuter clinic and has brought home more than 10 cats during the last two years. Some are no longer with us either through disease, accident or the rare adoption. My ham call sign is K4WJZ. It's an original and I have no plans to change it anytime soon. I'll probably die with it. John

[@andrewwilson8317]

It does look a bit different,would of expected the platform to be bolted to the top of the three verticals rather than clamped to a single central pole. Why would they do this? Only reason I can think of is it allows rotation of the array to align the side lobes with a desired direction?

[@jhettish]

I have no idea what they were thinking when they did this. Rotating the array doesn't even make much sense since the sectors and all the (empty) antenna mounts would give an infinite opportunity for adjustment and coverage. I think the tower is merely weird but who knows? John

[@zatchsmp3262]

How does one take a piss up there? I mean if you’re working for hours up there.

[@Penfold8]

Was that the relay or just the flow of electricity making that loud ass hum?

[@jhettish]

That gets down to how strobe lights work. Both white day and white night strobes can be handled by one tube. However the day white creates 20,000 candella of light. At night that would be really aggravating to both pilots, the people who live and work nearby towers and even people driving down an interstate. Day strobes deliver the 20,000 candella by applying a 1000 volt (approximate) dc charge into a gas filled tube and then causing that gas to conduct by sending a trigger signal to the the tube. There are exceptions but this is most common in strobes. The charge is held by six to eight large capacitors inside the controller. At night that bank of capacitors is bypassed and a single small capacitor is switched into the circuit. The small capacitor causes the 20,000 candella to be reduce to 2,000 candella, much less bright. Rather than one sudden trigger signal the controller applies a string of pulses to the tube so that it appears to come on and go off much like an incandescent (older) lamp. The series of triggers actually sound like a buzzing sound. That's what you were hearing from the beacon in the video. I know the color of the beacon, stuck in night mode, in the video was somewhat red. That particular model has a red filter that rises in front of the white strobe tube making the light appear red at night. John

[@infinitecanadian]

Where is this? Interesting to see how the 60 cycle power causes it to flicker, sorta like a television set.

[@jhettish]

As just about everything we do the tower is in Middle Tennessee. I may have even gone to the point that I located it in Nashville but I'm not sure I did. Usually I do not tell where a structure is located in order to protect the client (owner) property.

[@jhettish]

I believe the tower was manufactured by Trylon, a Canadian company. It appears to be the design made famous by Pirod, now a part of Rohn and not associated with Trylon. The reason I believe that is a manufacturer sign at the base of the structure.

[@tonycosgrove6433]

Yes we have one were I live back in the UK not as high as the one you're on.

[@jhettish]

Interesting. I'd love to see a photo of the tower in the UK. My memory of traveling in the UK was of relatively short towers. John

[@tonycosgrove6433]

John Hettish sorry just spotted your reply next time I am near there I will take a photo for you I should be the next few months.

[@jma5177]

Amigo, essa torre balança????

[@lewiemcneely9143]

So, out of hibernation, eh John?? I knew that wasn't your arm starting out because it didn't look like mine! Antenna resembles some local commo jobbies but they're not high at all.I'm used to the drawl. Mine's the worst of the whole family and I'm just across the line East so it isn't that different. You be calm and don't get sunburned down on the ground! And your help said he was getting OLD??? I think we missed something if HE's old! Take care , Pal!

[@jhettish]

He's about half my age. :-) I haven't been any higher than 260 feet in about a week now (I have some boring video of that) and have not been any higher than 750 feet in about six weeks. Still climbing when necessary. John

[@lewiemcneely9143]

Yeah, I figured I'd get a gouge in where I could. You know how I am. Glad you're wobbling along. Me too when I can and think about it when I can't. Take care and I'm a tower watcher too but I really get interested if it's diesel powered. Lew

[@klystron22]

Low powered FM dipole?

[@jhettish]

Yep. We've put up a lot of these things. The customer is the one who chooses what he things will do the best job. I am asked for an opinion on occasion but most times we just install what is provided. John

[@royamberg9177]

that's one odd bunch of engineering. there should be some expand sheet metal on top of tower. there should be some step pegs to climb the pole to the top. good to see your all doing good.

[@jhettish]

Yep, it was sort of strange. I wish the camera had not crapped out before installing the antenna though. I've taken steps to prevent that in the future. John

[@royamberg9177]

Youl have to reconstruct the camera and use a cordless tool battery to operate camera

[@jhettish]

I was thinking about an automotive battery. Rig the tower, haul it to the top, convert the output to 3.2 volts or maybe not. Actually I've discovered a relationship between quality of video and battery life. At the lower quality it looks just the same on KZbin but then you run into another problem. The chip fills up too quickly and that once again limits battery life. My three (of five) active cameras now have 16G SD chips. We'll see how that comes out. Live in learn. Fortunately I'm still able to learn at 72. Not sure why, just lucky I guess. John

[@royamberg9177]

Keep going lots of welfare recipients are relying on you lol. The bigger SD cards cost more but when time is important you do what needs to be done

[@jhettish]

Well I can't let those folks down can I. :-) John

[@Penfold8]

I love your vids John. I wish they were longer and showed more of what you do. Have you ever helped erect a tower? If so when do you place the guy wires that stabilize the tower in the erection process?

[@jhettish]

I've erected quite a few towers. We use temporary guys for the first few sections which are removed once the first permanent set of guys are attached. Really tall towers even have attachment points for temporary guys. John

[@SergioGarcia-mt9kv]

i have watched alot of your videos and i was wondering if you have ever thought about using a magnetic tray for all the nuts and bolts that you remove

[@jhettish]

No I haven't. It might be a good idea but it also seems like just one more thing to carry up the tower. I think I commented on losing one nut or lock washer in one of my videos where there were hundreds of nuts and lock washers involved. Those were stainless steel which is barely attracted by magnets. Once it becomes obvious to a new tower worker that he doesn't want to drop anything he might need I believe the ability not to drop things becomes almost instinctive. The only guy I ever had trouble dropping things turned out to be working too fast. It was like he was working at ground-speed when he should have been working (slowly and deliberately) at tower-speed. Working with him for a few hours and he started working smarter and slower. John

[@andrewplayfair3075]

Wow

[@educatedmanholecoverbyrich8890]

This, obliviously, going to be a 4G tower. I didn't see ant feeders, only the tubes that hold the antennas. Does not seem too safe up there

[@jhettish]

The reason you didn't see antennas was there are none. The tower was built in Nashville about 15 years ago, at what must have been great expense, with obviously must have been no market research whatsoever. The big hunk of steel has sat on somewhat expensive property for 15 years, owned or managed by several different organizations, but generating virtually no income. As of now it has one cell carrier, four low-power FM (VHF) broadcasters and one Paging company. It is a massive structure and could support many more antennas if there were any demand. As far as the safety of the strange top fixture, it's supported by a 20 inch steel pipe, well attached to the main structure. I cannot fathom why it was designed that way but no one asked me. It's plenty safe for now but needs a bit of maintenance. I'm awaiting a go-ahead to take care of some of its issues. John

[@gatesmw50]

John I Think it is also a sign of the times we live in, as well as what you are saying about area saturation and lack of market research. There is a hilltop tower in an area of New Jersey called the "Oranges" in Northern NJ. that is line of sight to Newark New Jersey and New York City. Even just 15 or so years ago, it had so many antennas it looked like a porcupine! When they ran out of space, the started mounting Stationmaster antennas upside down just so they could cram more of them on the tower. Never saw anything like it. TODAY there is ( one NY. City FM ) , half a dozen cell antennas, and maybe 3 or 4 commercial 2-way antennas on it. Cell phones have put a damper on the 2 way radio business. The 2 way shop that maintained the radios there is now no gone too, after 51+ years in business.

[@ErikPAPATIE]

is à fh 306 dual in one Red filter for night mode and White for day mode is have a trouble the strobe is stock in night mode

[@thelightninghunter23]

Erik PAPATIE The tower near my house had an FH-306 that was also like that. Is there any real difference?

[@ErikPAPATIE]

kuba kuba is the Red filter inside im sure is FH302 dual mode but im never see the fh306 im see one on youtube sorry im get wrong but good in this system the strobe is stuck in night mode and im rewrite im get wrong now is fh306 sorry

[@jhettish]

Trouble. I just answered another comment suggesting the tower needs to be retrofitted with 324 beacons (two tubes) or better yet converted to LED. John

[@joeblow8593]

The only strangest tower that I have seen was the famous "Star Tower" in Cincinnati. Have you've seen it yet? j-hawkins.com/star_tower.html and j-hawkins.com/startowercopter.html . "The tower was erected in the summer of 1991. The tower was designed and built by Landmark Tower Company of Ft. Worth Texas. The structure is 956 feet tall. The three individual leg base columns were erected with a crane and they were joined at the first level. From that level, all further erection was done with a huge helicopter. As one with many helicopter hours I was amazed to watch their precision flying. They lowered the assembled sections with such accuracy the iron workers were able to align the holes and bolt the sections together."

[@crazygamertv761]

what a strange design

[@jhettish]

I had never seen anything like it during my 45 year association with antenna towers. John

[@steelem422]

That’s nice of them to just have the ladder end couldn’t they have had it go all the way ? Is it heathy for you guys to be near so much electronics operating around you?

[@jhettish]

Concerning the ladder, it's just something people who work on open structures encounter every so often., As for the RF radiation it is probably not a real problem. In fact, there is almost no RF radiation at the top of this tower. What you are seeing is a bunch of antenna-mount pipes which have not been used in the seventeen years this tower has been here. Other panel antennas on the way up were deactivated about ten years ago. The company that originally bought or leased the property, purchased the tower and had it erected had no idea of the potential market in Nashville. Essentially there was no real market for this tower due to the sheer numbers of existing towers. The tower has been bare for years, sitting on an expensive piece of property and is only now starting to gain some revenue from tenants transmitters and antennas. ATT finally added cell equipment around 200 feet up the tower about five years ago and there are now some low power FM renters and one paging transmitter. The paging transmitter will most likely disappear in ten years or so due to the demise of the belt mounted "beeper". John

[@steelem422]

John Hettish thank you for answering my continuous questions mr Hettish

[@jhettish]

No problem. When I type answers it causes me to be careful not to give bad information. If I have a doubt I look up what I'm trying to say and if I've got it wrong the idea gets eliminated from the reply. I learn where I'm wrong or misinformed or I reinforce my knowledge of some subject. I just like to be correct with my answers especially in an open forum like KZbin. John

[@lauriew2907]

Similar design to our cell phone Towers, platform on the top with antennas outside of the platform in different directions. Not as high as this

[@AlphaFlight]

I would of liked to see a enclosed ladder of some kind.

[@jhettish]

That's pretty rare on communication towers. In fact I've only experienced one enclosed ladder on a rather massive 805 foot tall radio tower built in 1932. Back then there were very few towers being built and the manufacturers were trying to compete for sales with one another. There's a video of me working on that tower on this KZbin channel. kzbin.info/www/bejne/kHq8qo15hKqVn5o I've experienced enclosed ladders on older water towers and electric power transmission towers. Newer water towers have a safety cable or some sort of safety rail system, rather than a cage. John

[@AlphaFlight]

John Hettish wow. this tower almost seems like they had no thought about the worker in mind when building it.

[@jhettish]

The erectors rarely consider stuff like that. They did their thing now everything else is someone else's problem. John

[@norms3913]

Must be a cell phone tower

[@stevenhardy2898]

You , I just got a funny idea and I think i'll use it on my little 50 foot rohn 25. You know, for those times when you climb up there and think :shoot , I wish I had brought up a little butane solderer or crap , I wish a had a pl259 to n adaptor... I think it would be handy to have an old fashioned fishing reel with a few hundred feet of 50 pound monofilament that clamps to a u joint or cross support. A 1 or two ounce sinker should be adequate. Anything to save a second climb for something lightweight. A heavy lift drone might be useful also...... Send me up a drink!!

[@jhettish]

Let me know how it works. John

[@crazygamertv761]

wow that is tall

[@jhettish]

It's only 500 feet. In my world that is only medium tall. :-) John

[@jaimesolorza4186]

Never seen one like that... yikes

[@trappistachel]

Have you ever been up there and all of a sudden had to take a shit?

[@jhettish]

Nope, never. John

[@trappistachel]

Thank God, eh? :-P

[@jhettish]

I have felt the urge before climbing for one reason or another. I generally grab the one necessary supply from the back of my truck and head to the woods to emulate the habits of bears. I don't get hungry on towers or have other biological problems at height but once back on the ground I'm often hungry and often need to relieve myself in some form or fashion. The lack of hunger on the tower is somewhat athletes whose appetites disappear while engaging in their sport. I never got hungry while playing soccer or racing motorcycles would be an example. I was also told that by a medical pro about appetite and athletics. Tower work is quite athletic but should not be competitive. John

[@thess406poacher]

its a Pirod tower

[@alfredkatzjr.6879]

Sure is. Built many. Easy to build

[@ErikPAPATIE]

im never see this before and the strobe light is in night mode in day

[@jhettish]

I have. It's malfunctioning. There are three strobes on that tower and only one of the strobes at mid way is working properly. The lighting system needs work and the owner has been notified several times by me. John

[@ErikPAPATIE]

John Hettish ha ok great

[@AlphaFlight]

it's surprising how little they think about accessing these later on. this tower design was sketchy from the get

[@jhettish]

I did work as a contractor for one of the two major tower owner's in the US for about seven or eight years. They owned a couple of old towers that belonged to MCI back when they were doing their "pin drop" commercials in the 80s. The marker (obstruction) lights had been mounted on these towers five feet from the structure. Changing a light-bulb is a pretty simple task until you're 120 feet up a tower and the light's housing is 5 feet away. The only way to get at it was to rig above and rappel down to the housing. I ended up at another tower where the erection crew was just finishing up, owned by the same company. The brand new lights had some sort of a problem and I'd been asked to fix them. I asked if they'd mind if I climbed to fix the lights and they said it wouldn't be a problem. When I got the problem fixed and was back on the ground a couple of the guys approached me and said, "we always wondered who took care of the lights on towers we'd built." Basically they don't have to access certain places on the tower or do certain things other than their erection tasks. Getting to a strange part of the tower becomes like the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. SEP, Someone Else's Problem. John

[@AlphaFlight]

John Hettish wow. here's a tower. now go find out how to fix it . That's insane

[@jhettish]

Actually that happens quite a lot. :-)

[@ethanlamoureux5306]

@John Hettish I did some tower work a few years ago. I recall one job where I had to work on an antenna I couldn’t get to. I ended up loosening the clamps and sliding the mounting pipes over until I could reach it. Sometimes you just have to improvise!

[@crazygamertv761]

is that a cell tower

[@jhettish]

I think the original idea was that the tower would be loaded down with cell antennas but the investors didn't seem to think a market study was important. The cell carriers and the broadcasters had tower space already. It's only now with low power translators that the tower is becoming popular. It's set with nothing on it at all for the most of it's life. John

[@rondaxen88]

Is that a cell tower?

[@jhettish]

It was intended to be a cell tower, paging tower or whatever would bring renters to it. However the cell system was quite comprehensive in Nashville around 2000, paging transmitters were everywhere already and the broadcasters all had towers. In short, whoever built it did not do a market study. As a result the structure has passed through many different owners' hands between 2000 and 2017. Most of that time there were no renters and those who came with their radio equipment and antennas failed to attract customers of their own. Today ATT does have antennas on this tower along with one paging company and three low power FM broadcasters, two religious and one commercial. Finally the new owners are getting income from this very expensive piece of steel sitting on some very expensive land. John

[@studinthemaking]

John Hettish At least it’s finally brining in more than it takes to keep it up and running.

[@ErikPAPATIE]

stuck not stock

[@dougtaylor7724]

I hate to state the obvious but engineers should never design towers while drunk.

[@towerclimber7277]

Where is this tower?

[@jhettish]

I never give specific locations due to customer relations. I will say however that this one is in the Nashville area. John

[@towerclimber7277]

John Hettish not a bad idea at all, thanks for posting

[@infinitecanadian]

@@jhettish It's not like there is anything that anyone would do if they knew where the tower was...

[@infinitecanadian]

Jefferson Street, Nashville, Tennessee. It is near a bridge over the Cumberland River.

[@MrGenericmember1234]

This seems like a younger mans game. Brutal honesty please...If someone is 32 yrs is that too old to get into the antenne business?

[@jhettish]

If you look back about three videos to one titled "Sweeping an antenna at 750 feet" the guy with the camera is me. I'm 72 and have been climbing these things since 1972. It's all in how you treat your body and a bit of genetic luck. John

[@commodoresixfour7478]

John Hettish Keep climbing, it's probably what keeps you alive and going.

[@jhettish]

I don't know about "young" but fit and probably healthy. Not smoking helps a lot. I've never smoked, than heavens. Still, numbers don't lie and I am in my 73rd year. Of course I don't get to call my age 73 until the 73rd year is completed. I am also mentally stimulated by working and I love that part of it as well. Now, if only I could get a bunch of projectes complete, things would be nice. John

[@sleeve8651]

I know how other countries treat R F and the dangers it and the modulation schemes impose on the human animal . Different here in the states, likely driven by the all mighty dollar, and greed ! And I understand power levels should be reduced when working in close proximity to hot antennas. But I was wandering if anyone has taken a good look at the men and women that are exposed to the plethora of frequencies they work with, to see if they are prone to develop any particular Cancer types, as opposed to other people in general ?

[@RyanM-ke2gu]

That's a great question. I regularly climb these at full power (I'm a jumper not a worker) and I developed cancer in my lip after it was damaged in a car accident. Not sure if it was the RF, the trauma, or something else entirely. Had it removed, so far so good. I try not to spend anymore time near the transmitters than I have to. I'm mostly replying to see if you get any answers to your question. Thanks!

[@sleeve8651]

@@RyanM-ke2gu Ryan, you likely would have no knowledge of the inherent dangers of exposure to especially high levels of Radio Frequency. (R F) As like most people, you don't fear things you can't see, ie. RF ! However, it can produce nasty burns, and in some instances, cause heating of the flesh, as well as internal organs. Firstly I encourage you to investigate the effect of RF on the Human body. A good place to begin might be to research the dangers of exposure to cellular technology. Particularly articles written by experts, outside the U.S. , for reasons I alluded to in my previous text. I think the government here, was forced to look at the dangers of RF exposure, as stories began to appear about possible links to brain tumors and cell phone use. Noticeably the cell phone industry changed the design and placement of their antennas and reduction of power levels on cell phones, several years ago ! To me, those moves speak volumes ! Along those same lines, the FCC mandated rules for proximity exposure to RF from Amateur Radio stations, and their neighbors. Along with advancements in technology, it would seem there slowly has been a realization that there may be a connection to expose and various illness. To you and your adrenaline junkie friends, I would suggest getting a new hobby and or finding a place free of RF to jump from ! I must say one of the most brilliant comments I ever heard to date, in regards to being exposed to cell phone energy, and perhaps other RF sources, was seen on one of Dr. Gupta's talk shows when he was interviewing the Doctor who treated the famous attorney, Johnnie Cochran, (known for his representing OJ Simpson.), who died from a brain tumor ! When asked what he thought caused Mr. Cochran's tumor, the Doctor replied " His Cell Phone " ! When Dr. Gupta fired back a rebuttal about the so called experts in the U.S. poo pooing any harm coming from cell phone use, and pressed for an explanation, the Doctor stated the he believed the medicine, just had not caught up to the technology ! Unfortunately, we all have become unwilling participants in this technological experiment, by having cell phone towers virtually erected in everyone's backyards. Who's antennas, I might add, are pointed downward ! Not to the horizon, not to space, but downward where it would impact people most directly and at power levels many times greater than your cell phone, 24/7 ! Just say'n ? Thank you for entertaining my thoughts !

[@RyanM-ke2gu]

@@sleeve8651 I certainly don't have the knowledge of an engineer in the field but I've read up on it quite a bit. Most of the info I read was from US sources though, I'll look for others. I'm aware of all the risks I'm taking, and I'm pretty sure I get more damage from my daily cell phone usage than the few hundred antenna jumps I've done over the years. I appreciate your concern but the immediate threats of BASE are probably greater than the long term risks of exposure. Of course the goal is to minimize the risks as much as possible while still enjoying my sport, thus my tagging along on your comment here to see if I could glean some more knowledge.

[@riccom]

needs paint

[@jhettish]

With white strobe paint is not required. Mainly the tower has a little bit of surface rust (no big thing) and is dirty due to the urban location. John

[@1RadioShowHost]

Sure John. One more thing to blame on Human Activity. "Dirty Tower Syndrome". You should write a detailed scientific report and publish your findings. You might win a grant to conduct a long term study.

[@jhettish]

I've thought of certain topics where I might be able to qualify for a federal grant but kept falling asleep when I would attempt to fill out the forms...................in triplicate. :-) With the way the FCC and the cottage industry that has arisen in reference to the Electromagnetic Exposure issue I can just imagine the former cell workers complaining of RF induced injuries. It's caused a level of paranoia among cell antenna workers. I read the comment of one tower worker who used the the word "electrocuted" in reference to the 45 or so watts being fed to an antenna. I'd actually like to do a study on the deterioration of the American dream once lawyers were able to advertise. In Nashville lawyers spend lots of money advertising during news programs and wrap their photos and advertisements on city busses. Who rides in city busses? Could it possibly be desparate people looking for a quick way to make money from law suits based on ficticious injuries? Ok, you got me started. I need to walk around the building to cool down. That's hard to do because of the chain link fence on either end of the guilding. John

[@jhettish]

By the way, the tower isn't "that dirty". Still I need to wash my hands before many activities which include but are not limited to consuming food once I step off that structure, or any other for that matter.

[@1RadioShowHost]

Given the number of years I spent working as a transmitter operator at AM, FM and TV sites . . . . I should Glow In The Dark. I even have a full head of hair. Maybe I can sue for being deprived of the experience of going bald. What is the name of that Law Firm advertising on the Bus?

[@Ts68mo]

I think a lot of these towers are multi purpose, cell phones don't require ANYWHERE NEAR the voltage I see going up & or down these towers !! I have good reasons to believe that they are used for microwave pulses, for Weather Control & Very Possibly being used for Receiving Free Atmospheric Energy !? Just pay close attention to the size of the cables going to & from these towers & Huge Flag Poles too !!

[@jhettish]

Uhmmm, conspiracy theory. This particular tower, 500 feet right in downtown Nashville spent years with absolutely nothing on it. A really large steel structure making no money whatsoever. Pretty sad from a business point of view. It appears the original owners didn't do a marketing survey before just plopping it down. There are several other towers in that area that have taken years to get some antennas. There are no active antennas where my guys were working that day. The antenna we put on top of the tower was not the first one up there. My company installed wireless internet equipment on that tower about fifteen years ago. Within a short time the equipment was turned off because the owners couldn't make it pay. Too many other options for internet in Nashville. The tower has been owned by several companies over the years. The current owner is finally making it pay. John