Ive been lent a personal radiation monitor for any warm antennas that I may be jumping,is anyone else out there using such a device?
If you are,where did you get it and how much did you pay for it?The one i've been given retails around $1700 and is used by the cell phone guys in the UK.
Any pros/cons please post...cooking yourself may have become a thing of the past!!
Pro: you may or may not get an accurate exposure reading (variables such as background or terrestrial readings will affect your "exposure" reading)
Con: a monitoring device is just that - a monitor. It will not protect you or keep you from getting "cooked." It can tell an exposure - it can't take the exposure for you.
I work with ionizing radiation so I'm not very familiar with the monitors used for non-ionizing radiation. I can tell you that monitors are usually used for occupational exposure - so if you're not spending 40 hours a week on the antenna there probably isn't much to worry about. Talk to whoever gave you the montior and find out how they (the cell phone guys?)use it and what they use for controls, how it is read, what causes false readings (possibly sunlight)etc...Also, make sure it is appropriate for the type of exposure you believe you will receive. Many monitors are specific and wont read things they are not calibrated for.
Have fun & good luck!
hey Carrie...they work on frequencies between 300kHz to 45GHz and conform to ICNIRP.Basically all they have told me is that when the abnormal level alarm goes off to move away from the possible source until the alarm subsides.The threshold is set at 50%of the lowest international standard so a margin of error seems to have been built in....my only concern is none of these guys go up to the level of the stinger so I am curious as to the effects of standing say within 6 to 8 feet of a 250kW TV transmitter...if anyone else has any ideas please post them up here...
Well, if you're worried about TV transmitters, check this out:
http://www.fcc.gov/mmb/vsd/tvq.html
Enter some info, either the fcc# or call sign (wxyz) and you can find out the power of the transmitter in Kw. (You can also find out the height of the tower.) The effects of this kind of radiation has been studied and is relatively inconclusive, but more power definitely equals more radiation. According to this database, TV usually varies from 200 Kw to over 2000 Kw. A source for comparison, I guess.
250 Kw seems to be near the bottom of the scale, so you might just take that gizmo of yours up there; if any alarms go off, jump.
Well folks it worked and gave me the incentive to get my ass up and off...what was surprising though was that for an "A" that was literally covered from entry to exit in all sorts of dishes,whips and other gizmos the monitor only went off once(about half way through a 20 foot stretch of non directional "whip" type aerials)it goes to show that the small non descript stuff on these masts is probably the most dangerous!!!
It was reassuring to have and I think I may well ask the kind donor if they would consider losing it from their inventory in exchange for a case of scotch....anything that makes this stuff safer gets my vote..later people
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