TO:    ALL WOOD COUNTY ARES MEMBERS  (OFFICIAL)
       ALL ARES AND NON-ARES AMATEURS ANYWHERE  (INFORMATION)
FROM:  KEN HARRIS WA8LLM ARRL DISTRICT 3
EMERGENCY COORDINATOR WOOD COUNTY EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS INC.

WOOD COUNTY ARES BULLETIN NR 20.22      DATE: May 24, 2020
SUBJECT: IT'S NOT ALWAYS JUNK

When something gets broke, and doesn't seem to work any more, doesn't mean that it's junk.  A lot of equipment can be repaired even though it seems to be beyond repair.

A good example of something that may be able to be repaired is those 10 by 10 pop up canopies.  Most of those canopies are designed for shade or light rain.  They aren't designed for hard rain storm and high winds.  When they are used in that kind of weather, they usually end up one or more broken cross pieces and in the trash can it goes, or is left sitting along the road waiting for the trash truck to pick it up.

If you happen to pick up a few those items, you may have a gold mine of parts on our hands.  Some times the cloth canopy may have a hole or a small tear, but that can be repaired by duck tape. By using the plastic or metal parts from one or two those canopies, another one can be repaired, and now you have a canopy that didn't cost you anything but a little time, and maybe some skinned fingers.  It seems that no two canopies are build the same, so you may have to measure, cut, and drill, but you can get one of them back in operation.

The same thing goes for electronic equipment and antennas.  It may have been used for another type of project, but may fit your need just fine.  It may not be as easy to get one piece of equipment repaired out of two or three, but if you do, you'll have something that didn't cost you any thing but a little time.

Ken Harris WA8LLM
WCEC
Wood County WV