Newbie Licensed Antenna Question

Hi all, just passed my Tech exam three weeks ago, KE0FIX. I have a used Kenwood TS-2000 on the way and need to set up my first antenna. I live in an HOA controlled neighborhood in Aurora (Colorado if anyone out of state is reading this)but still want to try and sneak something up on the roof or on the deck. I live in Aurora at 5700 feet with no neighbors to the rear of my house. I have a clear unobstructed view of the front range mountains looking over Denver and have a clear view from just south of Boulder to just south of Pikes Peak. My house and the houses across the street from the front of my house are the only things blocking the east then everything slopes back to lover elevation to the east. I think I'm lucky as far as my location as it relates to reception. I haven't yet even pressed the PTT button on my HT but can receive from many repeaters crystal clear from my deck. As a newbie with a multi band rig on the way I want to be able to listen to everything, lol. With my BCD-486 scanner I only use a telescopic radio shack center loaded whip antenna and feel I get good results. Shortwave HF really interests me but I have no room for a real HF antenna. What should I consider for my first antenna? Will my location allow for a smaller less complicated antenna? Really just needing something to get my new(to me) radio receiving so I can learn how to use it but don't want to buy something completely wrong and learn the wrong way.

For VHF/UHF you won't need much. A comet GP-1 is just over 4 feet tall. It could be mouted in the attic, back porch, or even inside the house. A can of black Krylon paint can go a long way in camouflaging.

profiledescent said:

For VHF/UHF you won't need much. A comet GP-1 is just over 4 feet tall. It could be mouted in the attic, back porch, or even inside the house. A can of black Krylon paint can go a long way in camouflaging.

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Thanks

For VHF/UHF I use a Diamond x-50 mounted in the attic.The tip is just below the peak of the roof. Works great for me, plywood decking and asphalt shingles. I believe it is about the equivalent of the Comet antenna mentions above.

The suggestions here so far aren't going to help you at all on HF. Since you are getting a TS-2000 and specifically mentioned HF.... I'm guessing you want an HF antenna. Your best bet for something that is less likely to be noticed is a wire antenna. There are many ways and many types of wire antennas you can put up... many of them almost invisible. They'll permit HF receive and transmit, and some of them even work on VHF (Off-Center Fed Dipole for HF can cover 80-2M if you have the room).

Hi Ako, congrats on the license! Couple questions:
Are you on the top floor? That would greatly reduce your problems, since your antenna wire won't be floating past a neighbor above's windows or porch.
Have you thought about compact antennas? MFJ makes several that you could actually put in the apartment or on your porch.
Any nearby trees? If you're up high enough, you could run a long wire across to a tree... another chance for a neighbor or the management to notice though, so this should be a last resort.
Best of luck. Been there, done that. And save up for a property in a non-HOA area!
Almost forgot: the ARRL has a book available about operating from an apartment or condo. I recommend it!!

n0doz said:

Hi Ako, congrats on the license! Couple questions:
Are you on the top floor? That would greatly reduce your problems, since your antenna wire won't be floating past a neighbor above's windows or porch.
Have you thought about compact antennas? MFJ makes several that you could actually put in the apartment or on your porch.
Any nearby trees? If you're up high enough, you could run a long wire across to a tree... another chance for a neighbor or the management to notice though, so this should be a last resort.
Best of luck. Been there, done that. And save up for a property in a non-HOA area!

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Thanks for the reply. I'm in a house not a condo or apartment. I think I can get away with something on the rear peak of my roof that faces west, won't be able to see it from the street, only from the field behind my house. That will be for VHF/UHF, might try a gutter HF antenna as I have a 20' down spout and about 50' of gutter across the rear of my house.

HF Antenna

Congratulations on the ARS license. You will get as many suggestions as there are other Amateur Radio operators on this site. You might want to consider contacting one of the local Amateur Radio clubs such as the Aurora Repeater Association and let them connect you with an Elmer (mentor) to assist with both the HF antenna situation as well as other technical issues that you may want to discuss going forward.

Try to avoid using the gutters on the house as the electrical connections between the different sections will work for reception but are not always good enough for any transmitting that you will probably want to do at some later time.

A reliable mentor from the a local club can save you a lot of headaches and time as you progress with your Amateur Radio practice.

73,


The Spud
Fort Collins,CO

Spud said:

Congratulations on the ARS license. You will get as many suggestions as there are other Amateur Radio operators on this site. You might want to consider contacting one of the local Amateur Radio clubs such as the Aurora Repeater Association and let them connect you with an Elmer (mentor) to assist with both the HF antenna situation as well as other technical issues that you may want to discuss going forward.



Try to avoid using the gutters on the house as the electrical connections between the different sections will work for reception but are not always good enough for any transmitting that you will probably want to do at some later time.



A reliable mentor from the a local club can save you a lot of headaches and time as you progress with your Amateur Radio practice.



73,





The Spud

Fort Collins,CO

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Thanks Spud. The gutter system will be just to receive and be able to play with and learn the radio, figure it's the easiest way to get it running. Probably just throw temp cheap vhf/uhf out on the railing of my deck to play with that side of the radio too. Going to try and make it out to the hamfest Sunday and get myself even more confused, lol. Thanks for all the suggestions.

Just a thought - you could install a TV antenna, then use the mast for your HF antenna. The FCC doesn't allow HOAs to put many restrictions on TV antennas (https://www.fcc.gov/guides/over-air-reception-devices-rule) so you could use that to get some additional height that the HOA couldn't block

dzarn said:

Just a thought - you could install a TV antenna, then use the mast for your HF antenna. The FCC doesn't allow HOAs to put many restrictions on TV antennas (https://www.fcc.gov/guides/over-air-reception-devices-rule) so you could use that to get some additional height that the HOA couldn't block

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Yea, thought about that. Any good antennas that "look" like TV antennas? If not, would attaching a ham antenna on a not in use TV antenna cause Rx/tx problems?

Good question. I know almost nothing about antennas, so someone else may tell me I'm wrong, but if you kept the TV antenna electrically isolated from your antenna it shouldn't affect it. I'm thinking you put up the mast, throw the absolute cheapest TV antenna you can get on it, then use the mast for a wire antenna, etc.

For VHF/UHF, something in the attic will work fine.
For HF, you might be able to get away with an end fed wire antenna outside. You could even disguise it as a clothesline. Some hams make their flagpoles into antennas if you can do that.

Magnetic loops may also work for inside or hidden in the yard.

Akozub said:

Yea, thought about that. Any good antennas that "look" like TV antennas? If not, would attaching a ham antenna on a not in use TV antenna cause Rx/tx problems?

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Just about any Yagi or log periodic looks like a sort of TV antenna, though those will only help you on the higher (VHF/UHF) freqs. Those sorts of antenna systems are positively HUGE for HF, so consider putting up a trap dipole for HF and orient according to your geographic interests for comms.

There used to be an antenna made by Finnco called the 6N2. It was a yagi that used traps to work on both 6 and two meters. Finnco was a large manufacturer of television antennas and the contsruction of the 6N2 was such that it could pass for a TV antenna. I used on for years and sold it at a ham fest 10 years ago. I do not know if any of them are still in existence but the they did work real well and would mount on a television rotator.
I tried looking on line for one but I could not find one.
Craig

Well, I have my 2 meter and 70cm taken care of. Decided that being at 5700' and a clear view of the front range, my deck is high enough and I'll save the roof top for maybe hf stealth. Who could complain about old glory anyway? Diamond X-50 flag pole.
And yes, there is a solar light shining on it at night.

VHF/UHF are comparatively simple. You can put one anywhere because they're so small. Attics are "best" when you have an HOA...I lived on top of Smoky Hill for a time with 3 antennas in the attic, 2 on the ceiling in the garage, and a dual band Ventenna on the roof. One trick is to put an antenna inside a section of PVC pipe, paint it to match the house, and place it outside to blend in with the siding.
Sounds like you're on the right track. Good luck and enjoy!

Now I'm thinking about a G5RF HF wire from the peak of my roof to two fence posts on opposite ends of my back yard. On the right side of my back yard is one of those big electric boxes, and a comcast box sticking up about 2 feet each. First off will this type of antenna work in a downward "V" configuration and second, will the power boxes so close make the antenna useless? Thanks for any help.

It sounds like you're considering some sort of inverted V (which may be what you meant about 'downward V' in your post).

There's a lot that goes into making one of these things radiate (and receive) properly, partly having to do with height above the ground (higher ends make them more directional, lower ends make them much less directional) and the apex angle you propose, so if you could sketch out what you actually have in mind, that would help.

Given the stock ladder line length for the feed is about 30', will that be enough feed for you given the center point on the roof peak, and can you keep it away from metal gutters, etc, in the way to the rig? Something to consider.

A sketch of your overall terrain (house/lot/fence with compass orientation) and what you're proposing would be very helpful.