September 29, 2022 – update
Hurricane Fiona
The tower work at the New London Firehall is progressing nicely. I would like to thank Chris Buote from Home Hardware for his help today! We were able to have the bottom tower section lifted into place using their boom truck. I also want to thank Scott Cole from Kensington Metal Products for sending some cutting torches.
Now, if all goes well, we are planning to have concrete poured Monday or Tuesday of next week. Then if we can line up a crane to stand up the tower we hope to have that site back online by the end of that week.
I would also like to thank Gary Dunning at Toy Master Motorsports for his great customer service in helping us to acquire 2 more generators.
The work at the St Anns tower has been completed.
I have identified an issue at one of the sites in South Granville. I will be looking into that tomorrow morning. From what I have seen, once that site is back online then the other site in South Granville should be online shortly after as well as the Breadalbane site. No guarantees but I could see no obvious issues so hoping their alignments are still decent enough to establish a connection.
The power at the Cymbria Lions Club has been restored as of this afternoon!
There is a generator running 24 hours / day at the South Rustico tower site. At the moment I can see an issue with the link between that tower and the fiber circuit in the Cymbria Lions Club. That will need to be investigated hopefully tomorrow. Once that is figured out and that link brought back online then the alignment from the South Rustico tower and the Vanco site will need to be corrected. I have confirmed that the sites in both Oyster Bed and Vanco Farms have power.
The site at Rustico Resort is pretty much a loss and we will need to figure out what to do about that site.
Once everyone is back online we will need to return to all of our service locations to fine tune antenna alignments, that will keep us busy for a few weeks. There are also a number of sites that will need to have the router, switch, and UPS replaced as they have suffered some slight water damage as the rain found its way into the enclosures. Those enclosures will need to be replaced as well. This is going to take a significant amount of time and money so it will be a gradual and planned process that will be communicated to anyone that would be affected during that work.
We have already started working through our list of client sites that need to have repairs. There are also a number of client sites with hydro poles that will need to be visited with our bucket truck. I hope to start visiting those sites this weekend.
If you haven’t already done so please be sure to let us know at info@redsandsinternet.ca if you have noticed any obvious problems with the antenna on your home so we can add you to our list for repairs.
We know how important your internet service is and continue to do our best to get everyone back online in a timely manner. We really appreciate your patience and continued support for a small local business. The days have been long but we will get through this!
September 28, 2022 – update
Hurricane Fiona
Time for another update. The tower work in St Anns is mostly completed, just have to finish up some things in the morning. Wheatley River sites are both online now. One site is on Maritime Electric power and the tower site (Stewart MacRae’s) is still running on generator power.
I have realigned the antenna in South Granville so it will be online at some point tomorrow morning. I will need to put a generator at the 2nd South Granville site to bring it online as well. Then I will be able to see if Breadalbane comes online at that point.
The tower in South Rustico is running periodically on the farm’s generator. As soon as I am able to procure another generator (hopefully Thursday) I will put it there to provide more availability at that site.
Thankfully this afternoon the Toronto Road fiber site is back on Maritime Electric power and no longer running on the generator. The Snowie Road site is also now running on Maritime Electric power.
We had a bit of a setback today with the tower at the New London firehall. The ground was so wet that the tower was gradually sinking further into the ground. This was making it very difficult to raise the tower a few inches. With the generous help of the fire department we were able to gently raise the tower enough to get some blocks in place using some of their airbags and pneumatic ram. Very impressive and powerful tools! The tower is now ready to be disassembled. The rebar cage will be started tomorrow to prepare for concrete.
Please remain patient with us as we still have a number of sites offline as they are still without power from Maritime Electric. Please know that we are doing our best to keep our limited number of generators running and topped up with fuel but they may randomly go offline if we don’t get to them before they run out of fuel.
Thank you
Chris
September 26, 2022 – update
Hurricane Fiona
Most subscribers in the Stanley Bridge area and North Granville area should have internet service once again. The sites are running on generator power so service could be intermittent. The link from Stanley Bridge to the fiber circuit is not 100% so subscribers may experience some slowness.
September 25, 2022
Hurricane Fiona
Good afternoon everyone. Well that was an interesting weekend to say the least! I have visited all 32 sites to assess the amount of damage. I am happy to report that even though there is damage, the majority of my infrastructure is still standing. I am going to prioritize repairs and do what I can to bring sites back online asap then return to those sites later to complete any remaining repairs. Service may not be 100% at first as I want to focus on getting everyone back up and running first before I fine tune things.
I have some colleagues coming from Ontario and NS to help with the tower repairs which should begin this week.
I do have a few generators to provide power to some of my sites. Since I am expecting power to not be fully restored for quite some time I will likely have to rotate them from site to site to give each area some functioning internet service. Also, from what I saw today, there could be some fuel shortages so I will have to monitor that situation as well. This may mean only running the generators until late evening and then shutting them down until the morning but that is yet to be determined.
The Cymbria Lions Club, where I have fiber connectivity, is currently running their gas powered generator during the day so I will take that into account. I may need to take my own generator there to keep the fiber circuit up and running but that is also yet to be determined.
In the meantime, if subscribers can take a look at the antennas on their homes to see if there is any obvious damage that would be appreciated. If there is damage then please let us know by sending a message to info@redsandsinternet.ca or calling 902-218-8550 to leave a message. Damage would be a bent or missing antenna, damaged mast or cable. Once I have all sites back online and subscribers have power then I will be able to check from our end for any degraded signal strength and then visit your home to correct it.
Thank you so much for your patience and understanding. This is unprecedented and I will try my best to get you back online asap. We will get through this together!
August 3, 2022
New Subscriber Portal
We have a new billing platform! This has been a long time coming and it is finally live. The new billing platform introduces some new payment methods that subscribers have been asking for. You can continue to pay via Interac etransfer however you now also have the option of configuring auto-payments from your bank account or by credit card. Be sure to look for the New Portal Announcement email sent today that will contain your login ID. Also take a look under the FAQ section of our website for some helpful information about the new portal.
OCTOBER 19, 2021
Provincial Government has renewed the Residential Broadband Fund
Good News! The Provincial Government has renewed the Residential Broadband Fund and it is now a permanent program. So, if we were unable to reach you in the past due to trees or other obstructions you may be eligible to apply for funding to enable us to reach you with a reliable signal. Contact us today at info@redsandsinternet.ca for more information. Be sure to include your name, phone number, civic address, and email address.
OCTOBER 19, 2021
Breadalbane off-grid site is now live
The Breadalbane off-grid site is now live and accepting new subscribers. Contact us at info@redsandsinternet.ca to arrange a free site evaluation and we can confirm whether or not we can reach you with a reliable service. Be sure to include your name, phone number, civic address, and email address.
This site is an exciting new configuration for us that we have been wanting to do for a while now. It is 100% solar with a battery bank. The site has been running great for a couple of weeks since it went live. The solar panels and battery bank are oversized for the site to ensure a very long runtime in case there is a long stretch of poor weather.
SEPTEMBER 6, 2021
New site coming for Dixon Road
Check back here or follow us on Social Media to see when the Dixon Road site site goes live. Hoping to have it online in the next few weeks.
SEPTEMBER 1, 2021
Upgraded Packages
Effective immediately all subscribers have been upgraded to the new packages with the same prices!
The base residential package is now 40Mbps/15Mbps for $99.99/month +tax
The business package is now 65Mbps/30Mbps for $139.99/month +tax
AUGUST 1, 2021
Expanded Service areas
The new tower at our Toronto Road fiber site is now online and the old gear has been decommissioned.
The new site at the New London Firehall is online and subscriber installations are underway. Get in touch with us to arrange for your site survey and installation. You can reach us either by using the form at the bottom of the page or by sending an email to info@redsandsinternet.ca. Please be sure to include your name, contact information and most importantly your civic address.
DECEMBER 25, 2020
Upgraded Packages
Effective immediately all subscribers have been upgraded to the new packages with the same prices!
Subscribers that had the 25Mbps/10Mbps package are now 30Mbps/15Mbps.
Subscribers that had the 50Mbps/10Mbps package are now 60Mbps/30Mbps.
DECEMBER 20, 2020
South Granville site
Service is now available in some areas in South Granville. If you would like to be added to our survey list just send us an email to info@redsandsinternet.ca and be sure to include your name, civic address, phone number and email address.
DECEMBER 1, 2020
North Granville site
Service at the North Granville site is now fully live and has been extended to North Granville Community Center. Please contact the Community Center for access.
The tower in North Granville is also able to provide service to some homes located on the Trout River Road. To see if we are able to reach you just send an email to info@redsandsinternet.ca and be sure to include your name, civic address, phone number and email address.
OCTOBER 9, 2020
North Granville site
The new site in North Granville is almost ready to go. The link is active and service is being tested. A final alignment of the link will happen at a later date when the weather and winds co-operate.
We will begin reaching out to those of you that are already on our list and scheduling surveys and installs over the next couple of weeks. If you would like to be added to our survey list just send us an email to info@redsandsinternet.ca and be sure to include your name, civic address, phone number and email address.
Soon we hope to look at extending the service to the North Granville Community Center.
SEPTEMBER 1, 2020
PEI Broadband Fund
Islanders eligible for the Residential Pilot will receive up to 100 per cent funding with a maximum of $5,000 per household. Eligible connection equipment costs include antennas, tripods, towers, and hydro poles. One project per household will be approved. Applications are now open and residents can apply for funding by visiting Prince Edward Island Broadband Fund.
MARCH 24, 2020
Free Wi-Fi Now Available at Cymbria Lions Club Parking Lot
Do you know anyone with poor or no internet access from their home or have limited data on their phones? Please share this with them. Due to the pandemic, it is more important than ever now for everyone to have access to the internet. Red Sands Internet is now offering free Internet access from the comfort of your own vehicle in the parking lot of the Cymbria Lions Club Community Center. Please note the building itself is not open. To access the internet simply connect your device to “Red Sands Internet Guest WiFi”. This will enable your friends and family to keep up to date on the news, do their work or continue with their studies. As always, please continue to follow the advice of our Chief Public Health Officer, Dr. Heather Morrison.
I would like to thank the members of the Cymbria Lions Club for allowing me to offer this free service.
Thanks!
Chris
MARCH 17, 2020
COVID-19: Red Sands Internet Has Your Back
Good morning everyone. I hope you are all doing well. I want to let you know that if you have been laid off, are self isolating or are otherwise having difficulty paying for your internet service then rest assured as that is one less thing you should have to worry about. If you are unable to make your payment by the due date you will still get an automated message letting you know that your account has been suspended, but rest assured I will promptly unsuspend your service. If you are unable to make your payment then simply send me an email to let me know and I will work with you to figure out alternate arrangements.
Thank you,
Chris