Naracoorte repeater fault – May 17th 2026
The proverbial failure of a 20 cent part . . . . . .
Following a report that the Naracoorte 2m repeater was ‘off the air”, Peter VK5BE & Nick VK5NJS travelled up to the site to investigate the reported failure.
Upon arrival, it was noted that the main power supply still had mains power, but no DC output, and the 12 volt back-up battery had discharged down to 10 volts where the repeater had shut down. It was also noted that a “DC fuse fail” alarm was active on the front panel of the power supply.
The 30 Amp glass DC fuse was then removed & visually inspected & all appeared normal. However upon testing the fuse with a multimeter, it was found to be open circuit, despite appearing OK. The fuse was faulty without being blown.
Another fuse of similar rating was fitted to the power supply, & the repeater restored to service & all functions tested OK. A faulty 20 cent fuse had caused a total site failure.
Lesson learnt – don’t assume that if a glass fuse looks OK, that it is actually OK.