[RFI] Resources available to get power co to take action on i nterference?

[David Simmons]

Hi Wiley -

I live near Davis, CA and have dealt with PG&E on power line RFI issues.  I got lucky the first time, and a crew came out and fixed several poles in my area within a few days of reporting it.  The second and third time (things got bad again after a few storms) it took a couple of weeks and calls to make it happen.

The PG&E crew that worked on it had good sensing equipment and made repairs.  I talked to them a bit and they definitely knew what they were doing.  That aside, they also said they were always overbooked and behind schedule.

I would continue to call PG&E weekly and ask for the case status and when they are scheduling a crew.  These cases are assigned lower priority than immediate outages and other crisis.  Also make sure the RTVI department (Radio and TV Interference) is actually working on the case and it's not lumped in with general service problems.  You can't contact the RTVI department directly, but that's the group that should be handling it.

I would also send a letter to PG&E with the details and list the previous contacts you've had with them.  It's good to get some documentation on paper for the problem and your attempts to get it solved.

Other people probably know about what agencies to contact to escalate the issue and put further pressure on them, but after a letter or two to PG&E you can start sending copies to the PUC (Public Utilities Commission, http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/) but I doubt the govenment is going to move fast.  The ARRL can also get involved, and the FCC is definitely last resort.

Good luck, and keep after them.

 - Dave
 KQ6RL

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Spam Magnet [mailto:wsanders1 at yahoo.com]
> Sent: Thursday, May 01, 2003 7:29 PM
> To: rfi at contesting.com
> Subject: [RFI] Resources available to get power co to take action on
> interference?
> 
> 
> Hello,
> 
> Unfortunately, I live in the service territory of PG&E in California,
> and, during daylight hours, the power pole across the street from my
> house is causing nearly continuous S1 to S5, and intermittently S7 to
> S9 interference on all bands above 14 Mc. I am conident the pole is
> responsible - it is leaning and has a loose guy wire, and I can shake
> the guy wire and make the interference go away most of the time (the
> rest of the time, shaking the guy wire makes the interference louder.)
> 
> I first called PG&E about this on Apr 8th and was told I would be
> called back within 5 days. I jave caleld twice since then and I have
> not received a call back yet to discuss the interference with someone.
> Today is May 1st. I have been assigned a case number 1-140624440.
> 
> What resources are available to help me get the power company to take
> action? I am particularly interested in hearing from other hams in
> PG&E's service area who are afflicted with interference from PG&E
> equipment. This interference has basically shut down my station during
> daytime and early evening hours.
> 
> -Wiley Sanders KF6IIU
>  Lafayette CA 
> 
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