[TowerTalk] Obstruction Lighting

[Jim Lux]

At 10:22 AM 7/5/2005, paul at w8aef.com wrote:
>I am under the impression that if you run 110 vac to and up the tower the
>work has to be done by a licensed electrician.

Depends on your jurisdiction.  In many jurisdictions, a homeowner can do 
work on their own home without requiring a license, although it will need 
to be inspected.  You may or may not need a permit.

Also, sometimes, the regulation is written along the lines of "wiring must 
be done in accordance with applicable standards and by qualified 
persons".  Qualified leaves a lot of wiggle room.  If you're a licensed 
ham, that presumes you have at least a nodding acquaintance with Ohm's law, 
etc., and may well be as qualified as anyone else.

For instance, many commercial factories and the like have on-site 
maintenance staff who do the wiring, and they're not necessarily licensed.


There's a difference between licensure in the contracting sense, and 
certification or licensure in the personal qualifications sense.  A 
contractor may have a contractor's license, but, in California at least, 
that's primarily to assure that they know the laws, can meet financial 
responsibility rules, have a defined presence for service of legal process, 
etc., and says nothing about competence for the job at hand.

California's laws are changing, by the way, so come 1 Jan 2006, things WILL 
change a bit due to AB1087, signed back in 2002.


>Of course if you installation does not have to be inspected.......
>
>de Paul, W8AEF
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Doug Rehman" <rehman at surveil.com>
>To: <towertalk at contesting.com>
>Sent: Tuesday, July 05, 2005 4:06 PM
>Subject: [TowerTalk] Obstruction Lighting
>
>
> > Due to my proximity to a small airport, the FAA is requiring obstruction
> > lighting (L-810 light or lights) on my tower; painting is not required
> > though. The tower will be a Tri-Ex LM-354HDSP 54' crank-up with 15' of
> > mast
> > out the top.
> >
> > My first decision is where to mount the light(s). I was planning on a
> > VHF/UHF vertical on the top of the mast. If I do this, then I'm going to
> > need two lights since the light couldn't sit on the top of the mast. To
> > cut
> > the lighting cost in half, I will probably make a sidearm for the VHF/UHF
> > vertical to mount on pointed downward, thus allowing the light to sit on
> > the
> > top of the mast.
> >
> > The next decision isn't quite as easy to make. I can use a standard 110
> > VAC
> > light that costs about $120 or a 12 VDC light that costs $223 (Dialight
> > model 860-1R03-001 from www.unimar.com). Either option only requires a
> > couple of amps.
> >
> > I will have mast mounted preamps for 6m, 2m, and 70cm mounted at the top
> > of
> > the tower, so I need 12 VDC there anyway. I could run 110 VAC to a NEMA
> > box
> > with a 12 VDC power supply in it to feed the preamps and use the 110 VAC
> > to
> > feed a standard L-810 light. A heavy outdoor extension cord, or stranded
> > THHN, encased in flexible conduit would be used to run the 110 VAC to the
> > top. The tower will already have 110 VAC at the base to run the winch.
> > Alternatively, I could use the more expensive 12 VDC L-810 light and just
> > run 12 VDC to the tower top for everything; running the preamps and light
> > from a trickle charged battery would provide for emergency power.
> >
> > I'm leaning strongly towards the last choice (all 12 VDC on the tower),
> > but
> > looking for input from the collective wisdom and experience of the group
> > before committing.
> >
> > Thanks,
> > Doug
> > K4DDR
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> >
> > See: http://www.mscomputer.com  for "Self Supporting Towers", "Wireless
> > Weather Stations", and lot's more.  Call Toll Free, 1-800-333-9041 with
> > any questions and ask for Sherman, W2FLA.
> >
> > _______________________________________________
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> > http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
> >
> >
>
>_______________________________________________
>
>See: http://www.mscomputer.com  for "Self Supporting Towers", "Wireless 
>Weather Stations", and lot's more.  Call Toll Free, 1-800-333-9041 with 
>any questions and ask for Sherman, W2FLA.
>
>_______________________________________________
>TowerTalk mailing list
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