For the past six months, we have been raising money through a capital campaign to renovate our repeater site.  This remediation is necessary because our repeater site has been infested with mice for many years.  The insulation behind the walls and in the rafters is contaminated with mouse excrement, the climate control cannot keep up with temperature extremes in the summer and winter, the roof needs replacement, and the exterior needs painting.  We have made great progress with our building fund thanks to your generosity, and we are now in a position to begin work on the project.

I am pleased to report that our building renovation project started today with the removal of all equipment and supplies from the repeater shack.  We also removed the old air conditioning units and portable heaters that have been in use over the last several years.  Consumable materials that were contaminated, obsolete repeater parts that have little value and any junk that was stored in the repeater shack is being hauled to the dump.  The new repeaters and all equipment needed to support their operation have been taken for storage by the Technical Committee and Building Committee members.  It will be redeployed pending the refurbishment of our repeater building.  On Tuesday, we have a professional remediation crew coming to the site.  They will remove all contaminated wallboard and insulation, and they will treat the remaining structure to remove any residual contamination and make it safe to renovate.  Basically, the building will be taken down to the studs.  We also noticed the insulation under the subfloor was heavily contaminated, so the subfloor will be removed and crushed stone will be put between the floor joists to prevent any further mouse incursions.

Over the next few weeks we will perform the renovation work.  We will install a new subfloor, replace any defective structural framing, put in new insulation and wallboard, install a ductless split HVAC system for climate control, replace the door lock with a WiFi enabled system that will track who enters and leaves the site, replace the workbench with a commercial unit and install any necessary storage shelving.  We will also replace the roof and repaint the exterior.  Then, the repeater rack and all equipment will be brought back to the site so we can get our repeater back online.  We estimate this project will take about a month, and the labor will be supplied by SECARS volunteers (some of whom are licensed trade professionals).  I look forward to seeing our site once the project is complete.

I am grateful to all the SECARS members who came to the site today to help with this project.  These members include Dave K1DCT, Bob W1RPQ, Pete K1PTO, Ryan K1RTB, Glenn KC1VGS, Doug N2BTB, Joe K1IKE and me.  The preparation of the site for the decontamination took about 3 hours.  I have attached photos below so you can see some of the materials that were at the site and the condition of the interior.  You can find more in our photo gallery.  We will keep you posted on the site remediation, and the end product will be a repeater facility that should last at least 20 years.  Until then, look for our nets to be hosted on other local repeater systems.

Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.