commscanaus
Member
Just a timely reminder to go check those antenna installations when the weather allows it.
It has been just under a year since I put up a Dual Band Co-linear vertical (144/430Mhz) atop a 20ft telescopic pole here at my new location.
Already one of the threaded pins that hold the mast sections in place has become loose and the thread stripped under pressure. We get some decent wind gusts out here and the mast has been subject to some twisting action from the flexing of the vertical- which itself is 9ft tall.
To add to this- the screw which holds the vertical into it's mounting tube had loosened and fallen out completely. The only thing holding the antenna in place was the co-ax!
The ground plane elements would no doubt catch the wind and twist the whole assembly eventually causing the connector to fail and the vertical to fall into the neighbors yard or worse still, spear into the street!
I was rather shocked to find this had occurred in such a short space of time and I am now very glad that I bothered to pull the whole install down and check it over.
The mast pin has been replaced with a heavier duty unit and the screw in the antenna base has been replaced with one that has a split washer and nut to try and prevent a repeat of the screw working loose and falling out.
I cannot stress enough that antenna installs need to be checked regularly- especially in areas of high wind- and in the case of the colder parts of the world- ice buildup.
Those of you with far greater installations than my humble 20ft mast should really be doing regular inspections.
Even the car antenna's needed checking- those puny little allen wrench screws that hold Diamond and similar brand antenna elements together will work loose. Check them regularly also. It is amazing the stresses those antennas undergo at 60mph for 2 hours each day (as in the case of my commute to work)
A few minutes spent now will prevent a possible accident or loss of antenna parts at speed!
Regards, Commscanaus.
It has been just under a year since I put up a Dual Band Co-linear vertical (144/430Mhz) atop a 20ft telescopic pole here at my new location.
Already one of the threaded pins that hold the mast sections in place has become loose and the thread stripped under pressure. We get some decent wind gusts out here and the mast has been subject to some twisting action from the flexing of the vertical- which itself is 9ft tall.
To add to this- the screw which holds the vertical into it's mounting tube had loosened and fallen out completely. The only thing holding the antenna in place was the co-ax!
The ground plane elements would no doubt catch the wind and twist the whole assembly eventually causing the connector to fail and the vertical to fall into the neighbors yard or worse still, spear into the street!
I was rather shocked to find this had occurred in such a short space of time and I am now very glad that I bothered to pull the whole install down and check it over.
The mast pin has been replaced with a heavier duty unit and the screw in the antenna base has been replaced with one that has a split washer and nut to try and prevent a repeat of the screw working loose and falling out.
I cannot stress enough that antenna installs need to be checked regularly- especially in areas of high wind- and in the case of the colder parts of the world- ice buildup.
Those of you with far greater installations than my humble 20ft mast should really be doing regular inspections.
Even the car antenna's needed checking- those puny little allen wrench screws that hold Diamond and similar brand antenna elements together will work loose. Check them regularly also. It is amazing the stresses those antennas undergo at 60mph for 2 hours each day (as in the case of my commute to work)
A few minutes spent now will prevent a possible accident or loss of antenna parts at speed!
Regards, Commscanaus.
