The CGC Communicator Newsletter

Web Posting

The Mt. Wilson Report
October 31, 2010

The first thing to report this month is the L.A. County ("LACO") road work.  Getting up to Wilson is not easy because Upper Big T is still undergoing resurfacing.  It looks like two or more weeks of work will be required because there are many steps in the process and much of the work is being redone because of bad materials.

I was told LACO is doing this type of resurfacing vs. just laying new asphalt because it's cheaper.  On the downside, this kind of resurfacing takes longer especially when lousy materials are involved.  Keep in mind that the resurfaced area is temporarily very slippery and it's easy to lose control of a vehicle.

Our main road, Route S2 from La Canada (Angeles Crest Highway), is still closed.  Some reports say it will open by December, others say Jan or Feb.  Only time will tell.  Keep in mind that the road east to Wrightwood will be closing as soon as the weather turns foul and that route usually stays closed all winter.

Sure feels like winter is on its way.  We are checking our plumbing systems here on Wilson and looking for exposed pipes before we get hard freezes that would break the pipes.  I note that a few stations still have extra fuel stored from last winter, so they need to add fuel stabilizer.  Same for any other "old fuel" sitting around.  Nothing worse than having to rebuild a generator's fuel systems due to old fuel!

While on the subject of generators, block heaters are a big item of concern especially on diesel CATS.  If the ECM (Engine Computer Module) sees a heater error, it will shut the entire generator down according to a CAT tech.  Having spare heaters is always a good idea especially if the generator is over two years old.  I also check the belts, hoses and batteries because I'm allergic to making repairs when it's cold, wet, windy or dark.

Don't forget that the Mt. Wilson weather reporting system is alive and well.  Most of the bugs are behind us and visitors are as welcome as ever:

http://weather.mtwilson.net/WDL  (Flash summary page)
or
http://weather.mtwilson.net  (Full stats).


Weather-related road reminders:  LACO Roads has made it clear that if mud flows are predicted, the roads will be CLOSED.  Make sure you have supplies stored both in your vehicle and at your transmitter site.  LACO has a Website where you can sign up for alerts about road closures and mud flow forecasts.  Here is the address:

http://dpw.lacounty.gov/general/enotify/userPages/registration.aspx


See you on the hill or lookin' at us on the Web!

Dennis Doty
dennisd (at) ladigitalnetworks.com


Posted by Steve Blodgett
Earthsignals.com