Frequently Asked Questions

What is an Invisible Tower©?

While we will readily admit that the “towers” that we are building are not actually invisible, the industrial aspects of the structure are truly hidden from plain view. We strive to create tower solutions that are hidden in plain site and complement the surrounding view shed. Whether we are working in a dense urban community such as the locations being developed in Cascades, Oakton and Potomac or the rural sites in Western Loudoun County, we strive to develop towers they way we would if they were in our own backyard. We look for creative solutions that bring the best of technology, architecture and engineering to a community.

Why aren’t all towers disguised or invisible?

There are several reasons that all towers can not be disguised. To create sufficient coverage, some towers need to be taller than one hundred and fifty feet in height which is about the maximum height that can be effectively disguised. Above that height the visual impact of the disguise becomes greater than the traditional tower or monopole solution. In locations where there is no existing natural tree buffer and no buildings to work with, a disguised structure may be worse than the solution. For instance a 138 foot mono-pine (monopole tower disguised like a pine tree) would look out of place in the middle of a field with no trees around it. Sometimes existing regulations undermine the development of disguise sites. Arbitrary zoning height limitations can preclude or discourage the development of structures that are both capable of supporting multiple carriers and being disguised. Finally the disguise structures can be extraordinarily expensive and thus cost prohibitive for a single individual wireless carrier. To minimize the cost of these structures, often a disguise tower solution will only accommodate a single wireless carrier. This results in multiple tower structures in the same geographic service area. Invisible Towers© builds sites that are able to accommodate multiple carriers and works to make disguise tower structures financially viable for the carriers and the communities in which we locate.

How can I get an Invisible Tower© in my neighborhood?

Invisible Towers© is searching for locations that are underserved by wireless carriers. Submit your community on our web site along with as much information as possible and representatives of our company will explore the viability of developing a solution for your community.

Why do carriers need so many towers?

There are two major factors that determine how many cell sites a carrier needs to construct to operate their business. First and foremost is the need for reliable coverage in a specific geographic area. The second is the need to create capacity within their network to support multiple users at the same time. A wireless carrier increases network capacity by lowering the heights of the antennas at a cell site and reusing the radio frequencies from that site again at a near by location. But there are tradeoffs between capacity and coverage. As the antennas are lowered to eliminate interference between two cell sites using similar or the same frequencies, gaps are created in the coverage and the need for an additional cell site occurs. Additionally, wireless carriers are sometimes forced to build shorter towers then they actually need for their network. This forces them to build additional towers to cover the same geographic area.

Our community has no broadband internet services, is there anything that you can do about this?

In many rural areas, homeowners and small businesses have no reliable option for broadband internet service. The major telephone and cable providers may never arrive in these communities with their state of the art capabilities because the rate of return on the required capital investment needed to construct the infrastructure is far below what they can achieve in higher density communities. This leaves rural areas to rely on wireless internet service providers to deliver these services and ensure these communities are not left stranded in the digital divide. Invisible Towers© is committed to the growth of broadband services to the communities we serve. We work with local wireless internet service providers and regulators to ensure our sites are able to support the rollout of these leading edge services in our service area.

Are towers safe?

Yes, the disguise sites that Invisible Towers© construct are safe and meet all regulatory safety standards. The concern for safety typically focuses on the radiation generated by the radio transmitters and antennas located on the tower. “Radiation is energy traveling through space. Sunshine is one of the most familiar forms of radiation”. There are two types of radiation. The first is called ionizing radiation which can potentially change or modify the molecular structure of biological tissue. Ionizing radiation, a common part of our daily lives, can come from many different sources including x-rays and other medical procedures, smoke detectors, the soil, and even the air we breathe. The second type of radiation is called non-ionizing radiation and as the name implies, it does not have any impact on the molecular structure of tissue because of insufficient energy. Radio transmitters generate non-ionizing radiation which at extremely high power levels (such as TV Broadcast) can generate enough energy to heat up the water molecules contained within tissue cells. Exposure to radio frequency energy is closely regulated by the Federal Communications Commission and Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The level of radio frequency energy generated by cellular and PCS system installations on towers are typically significantly below the lowest standards set by these regulatory bodies. Invisible Towers© utilizes third party licensed engineering firms to analyze and document the maximum radio frequency power generated by the combined carrier installations to ensure that the actual operation of the site falls well below these thresholds.

1 Eric J. Hall, Professor of Radiology, College of Physicians and Surgeon, Columbia University, New York in his book “Radiation and Life.”