| Author |
Message |
    
Heavyweight
Junior Member
Username: Heavyweight
Post Number: 28
Registered: 11-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, August 21, 2005 - 11:51 pm: | 
|
what is the best way to put a imax or antron in a tree?Is there a wrong way and a right way to do it?Im not sure how to do it so before i try i need all the help i can get,thanks. |
Kid_vicious
Advanced Member
Username: Kid_vicious
Post Number: 515
Registered: 9-2004
| | Posted on Monday, August 22, 2005 - 12:36 am: |
|
first off, lets get this out of the way.
MOUNTING AN ANTENNA OF ANY KIND IN A TREE WILL INCREASE THE CHANCES OF LIGHTNING STRIKING THE TREE, AND IF THAT HAPPENS, YOU COULD BE WATCHING A 30 TO 40 FOOT FIREBALL COME DOWN ON YOUR HOUSE.(OR YOUR NEIGHBORS HOUSE!)
that being said, if you want to try and be safe, you need to run some sort of mast from the bottom of the antenna all the way to the ground. (you need to use a metal mast or conduit, the roll of ground wire from rad shak will NOT do.)
attatch your antenna to a 10' section of 1 1/4 or 1 1/2" conduit, begin sliding the antenna up the tree, adding conduit sections as you go. (dont forget to attatch you coax. try to get the base of the antenna up close to the top of the tree.
at the bottom, drive an 8' ground rod into the ground right at the base of your conduit mast, and attatch it to the conduit with a heavy copper wire. (4ga. or larger.)
that should work. just water proof everything.
(and tune the antenna before its way up in the air.)
good luck. |
Marconi
Intermediate Member
Username: Marconi
Post Number: 436
Registered: 11-2001
| | Posted on Monday, August 22, 2005 - 1:10 am: |
|
Hey Kid, how do you keep the mast from falling over as you go up the tree? |
Slowhand
Member
Username: Slowhand
Post Number: 59
Registered: 7-2005
| | Posted on Monday, August 22, 2005 - 4:24 am: |
|
I've had aa antenna in a tree for 10 years now, no problems. Lucky I guess. |
Heavyweight
Junior Member
Username: Heavyweight
Post Number: 29
Registered: 11-2004
| | Posted on Monday, August 22, 2005 - 10:13 am: |
|
never thought about the storm thing. |
Road_warrior
Advanced Member
Username: Road_warrior
Post Number: 774
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Monday, August 22, 2005 - 10:44 pm: |
|
No matter where you put a antenna up,
theres always a chance lightning could
strike it. Lots of people mount antennas
in trees. |
Kid_vicious
Advanced Member
Username: Kid_vicious
Post Number: 518
Registered: 9-2004
| | Posted on Monday, August 22, 2005 - 11:03 pm: |
|
i have had an antron in the top of a tree before.
not advising it but it did get my antenna up 40' in the air when i couldnt put up a mast.
marconi, nice to hear you out there again. showed up just to put a monkey wrench in my works didya? LOL
it is a good point though, you would need to bungee the conduit to the tree.
while putting it up, i would use the branches of the tree to guide the antenna up.
|
Alsworld
Advanced Member
Username: Alsworld
Post Number: 949
Registered: 1-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 23, 2005 - 12:21 am: |
|
I have done this many times over the years. It can be quite the poor mans tower!
What I have done:
1) Use ladders to climb the tree. If not able to climb, spend one days rent on a manlift when all preparations are ready.
2) Use good quality nylon rope to tie the antenna poles to the tree. Obviously a straight tree such as a pine works great where the trunk is tall and straight. Even cheap TV antenna poles will work if all the stress is taken up by the tree trunk. Tie your poles approximately every six feet up the tree to the tree itself. Top poles may need additional support with closer ties.
3. Plan your coax run. Inside the rope ties or outside? Depends on your tree and gaps. Don't let your coax chafe.
a. Secure your coax up near the feedpoint of the antenna to the pole. Do NOT let the entire weight of the antenna rest solely on your PL-259 connector! A rain loop with electrical tape or zip ties helps here. Support the coax!
4. Near the base of the tree between roots, find a soft spot to run your grounding rod. 8ft copper is best here.
5. Run another coax loop so rain will drip down your coax at the lowest point. At the "upswing" point should be where you have a Polyphaser attached to the grounding rod and the coax connection ruuning on from there.
6. Coax Seal everything to prevent moisture intrusion.
How does that sound Marconi for a bottom basement "tower"?
Alsworld |
Mdiver
Intermediate Member
Username: Mdiver
Post Number: 285
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 23, 2005 - 11:18 pm: |
|
Great Post Above
Like THEY say higher the better.
Steve |
Capt205
Junior Member
Username: Capt205
Post Number: 35
Registered: 5-2005
| | Posted on Thursday, August 25, 2005 - 3:23 pm: |
|
I have mine up on 5 sections of 10' antenna pole from the Blue home improvement store. Coax is cable tied to the poles, and the pole is cable tied to the tree. At the bottom, there is an 8' copper ground rod driven all the way in except mabey 3 inches. There is #4 solid ground wire running from the antenna mounting bracket bolt down to the ground rod, also wire tied to the mast. Then the wire is attached to the ground rod clamp, and the clamp is secured around both the mast and the ground rod.
Coax is 175' of rg213 from feedpoint to radio and buried from the tree to the house (118'). A polyphaser is inline, mounted in a weather proof timer box, and sent to a ground rod just outside the radio room (this rod is tied to the house's ground rod by 15' of solid copper ground wire) then a short run from the polyphaser to the equipment.
So far....I have survived 5 months of some very intense West Central Florida thunderstorms...KNOCK, KNOCK. |
Bigwheel
New member
Username: Bigwheel
Post Number: 5
Registered: 10-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, November 06, 2005 - 6:01 pm: |
|
Ok I know this is an older post but here it goes.I had an a99 with the ground plane kit up in about a 50ft tree.I just climbed the tree cut out the top of it used 20ft of mast pipe with 10ft sticking out of the top of the tree and the rest of it clamped to the tree.Ran the coax down the tree then ran the ground wire down to a 8ft ground rod.The tree and antenna was on about a 700ft hill so I ran ladderline up to the antenna.It all worked very well |
