Since I was gone most of the summer I wasn't able to spend my usual time keeping things clean out in the field around the radial plates on my 160 and 80 meter TX arrays. That was my project late yesterday afternoon. Underneath and around one side of the plate on the SE parasitic element of the 160 array was a big clump of dirt that had built up. So I just started dragging it out with my left hand to learn it was a big fire ant mound. It wasn't a normal ant hill, just dirt built up so I had no concern about it. Of course, if you've ever had any experience with fire ants you know they are faster and more vicious than a water moccasin when you're draining the pond. So my left hand was covered with those little bastards before I knew it and couldn't get them off fast enough before I had a number of stings. As a result I wound up with a swollen hand last night and still this morning.

So be VERY CAREFUL and observant during antenna work, even if you're on the ground!

Oh....what happened to the ants?? I keep a nice supply of BIFEN mixed in a one gallon spray rig. The ants are all SK now and the radial plate area is clean!!!!!

73 Joel W5ZN