WZRD, Northeastern Illinois University’s radio station, has resumed limited transmission after over a month of silence caused by a mechanical malfunction with its antenna.
The decision to continue transmission was made Feb. 9 after the station decided it was safe to do so.
The 100-watt radio station began experiencing difficulties transmitting when a slow leak developed from a pipe that runs through the antenna. Nitrogen is fed through the pipe in order to keep the antenna clean and to prevent moisture from building up.
The slow leak has caused the radio station’s transmitter to shut off whenever a transmission is made.
Rick Senne, technical advisor to WZRD, said the problems they are experiencing are due to what is called “reverse power,” the amount of wattage that returns from the antenna to the transmitter.
“When you exceed a certain amount, which is like five watts ä which is pretty much the maximum ä then what you are looking at doing is potentially damaging your transmitter with major problems,” said Senne.
In order to make the necessary repairs, contractors must disassemble the antenna on the school’s roof. No official date has been set, but repairs are planned for the near future.
WZRD has been granted what the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) calls a 30-day grace period in which the station may fix any technical issues that prevent transmission.
The FCC requires that radio stations keep a log of how many days it has gone without a broadcast and file for extensions every 30 days.
“As of now we have no problems. We are following standard procedure. It is normal for things to occur,” said Senne.
WZRD also plans to add an extra transmitter as a back up, pending the repairs to antenna.