[TowerTalk] Split legs

[Gary K9GS]

Hi Jerry,

Some head scratching here and some ideas.

First, the towers legs split because the base was installed incorrectly 
without adequate drainage in the legs. Water/condensation filled the 
base section and when the water froze it split the legs.

Even if you were somehow able to repair the splits you still have the 
drainage problem.

Here's a suggestion...I'm not a tower guy but maybe others will chime in.

1)  Rent a big crane.  I don't know what you have on top for weight and 
antennas but the idea is you want to be able to pick up the whole tower 
enough so that you can un-bolt the damaged section.

2)  With the tower suspended by the crane, torch off the stubs sticking 
out of the concrete.

3)  Drill a hole between the torched-off stubs and epoxy in a pier pin.  
While you're at it, seal off the holes left where the cut of stubs were 
to eliminate water getting inside the old buried base. This assumes the 
base is adequate to begin with.

4)  Replace the damaged tower section with a brand new Rohn 25 section 
fitted with a pier-pin plate.

5)  Lower the tower back onto the pier pin, re-tension the guys and you 
should be good to go.

This is NOT a simple repair job and must be done by a professional that 
knows what they're doing.  A 180 ft tower, or any tower for that matter, 
is nothing trivial to deal with.  You've got a very dangerous situation 
on your hands.

It might just be simpler to replace the whole tower.  Especially since 
the original installation was faulty to begin with I'd be worried about 
what other mistakes were made, such as inadequate base, guy anchors, etc.

Again...call in a pro and see what they say.
On 4/20/2013 7:48 AM, Jerry Head II wrote:
> I have a 180' Rohn 25g, the bottom section is cemented in the ground.
> This section has developed a 1" split in two of the legs. Is there a 
> safe way to repair these splits?
> My apologies if this has been covered before, I am fairly new here.
>
> thanks!
> JH
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-- 


73,

Gary K9GS

Greater Milwaukee DX Association: http://www.gmdxa.org
Society of Midwest Contesters: http://www.w9smc.com
CW Ops #1032   http://www.cwops.org

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