Why is CTV (CFTO) going off air just after midnight?

[NakedGord]

I'm not sure if this is affecting cable customers as well or if they're getting a direct feed but for last week just after the local news ends and right at the start of The Daily Show the CTV signal abruptly cuts out.

I figured they might be doing work at the transmitter last week but now that it's progressed into week two I'm starting to wonder what's up?

[artudo123]

This was posted on the CTV Toronto Facebook page on January 12:

Hi everyone - producer Maurice here with some information for those who watch CTV Toronto over-the-air (antenna).

Maintenance work is being carried out on the 'Channel 9' transmitter inside the CN Tower. Work started on Jan. 10 and is expected to last 4-6 weeks.

Because the work can't be completed while the transmitter is on, it's powered down from 0:05 a.m. until 5:30 a.m. from Monday to Friday.

Thanks for your patience - MC

[NakedGord]

This was posted on the CTV Toronto Facebook page on January 12:

Hi everyone - producer Maurice here with some information for those who watch CTV Toronto over-the-air (antenna).

Maintenance work is being carried out on the 'Channel 9' transmitter inside the CN Tower. Work started on Jan. 10 and is expected to last 4-6 weeks.

Because the work can't be completed while the transmitter is on, it's powered down from 0:05 a.m. until 5:30 a.m. from Monday to Friday.

Thanks for your patience - MC

Thanks for the FYI.

Wow...up to 6 weeks. You'd think after the recent DTV switch over they would have had thing pretty much (if not totally) set up right.

Part of me wonders if, after the repairs are done, CTV will just happen to start airing infomercials from 12:05 to 5:30 am.

[joe46699]

I imagine that this thread is effectively dead, but I'm still experiencing this problem. I'm watching ctv ottawa (cjoh),and it seems to go off airevery night from about 12:10 am.

[PokerFace]

According to Facebook:

CTV Ottawa: The Channel 13-1 CTV DTV transmitter is located on a tower owned by the CBC. CBC is in the process of major repair and overhaul of the antenna and systems on the tower. As a result, the CBC is shutting off all transmitters from 00:10 to 05:00 approx. for the duration of the work. The work is expected to last the summer. Also on occasion we have been asked to power down during the day so it’s safe to climb.

[rickmav]

we had this problem too in 2013 and again this week,every night just past midnight;
R-C,CBC,TVA,CTV,CKMI,TQS all shut down and will restart around 5:00 am
and this is not due to "repairs",if so they would warn us before.

Only CIVM stay open but this channel was on UHF band before.

ps; I use "rabbit ear" antenna here with a digital converter,Canadian TV is not worth paying for!

them big company who pay for night advertisement should ask for a partial refund and see how
fast this problem is fix.

[InMontreal]

we had this problem too in 2013 and again this week,every night just past midnight;
R-C,CBC,TVA,CTV,CKMI,TQS all shut down and will restart around 5:00 am
and this is not due to "repairs",if so they would warn us before.

The main tower at the Mont-Royal needs tweaking, which is why it's being shut down between midnight and 5am to protect workers from RF radiation exposition.

See, before the conversion to digital TV, there was an amount of powerful analog television signals from the tower (SRC, CBC, TVA and CTV were 325 kW+ each), and radiation on the tower reached a high. Radio stations on the main tower are currently capped at 40 kW but they are now requesting Industrie Canada and the CRTC to boost up to 100 kW. SRC/CBC recently asked to up their FM antenna at the top of the tower. They also installed a microwave receiver on the tower to expand coverage of the remote truck (tower being higher than the Maison de Radio-Canada on Dorchester street).

Only CIVM stay open but this channel was on UHF band before.

Télé-Québec is on the mat of the Olympic Stadium. It doesn't have to shut down.
SRC/CBC may or may not switch to the backup transmitter on the roof of the Maison de Radio-Canada, which is where the digital transmitters were located before the digital transition.
What else... City and ICI (CFHD) are not on the main tower but adjacent one, so power may be also reduced or turned off for radiation reasons.