Cost of 100ft tower?

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5Rya

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Just out of curiosity not that I will be getting one anytime soon since I don't have the money or enough open space to have a tower but wondered what would be the cost including having a company put it up. I know there would be a lot of variables but just an estimate would satisfy my curiosity. :)
 

chief21

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Considering local construction permits, possible engineering requirements, concrete, labor and, of course, the cost of all that steel - I wouldn't be surprised to see a figure somewhat north of $10-15K.

John AC4JK
 

mmckenna

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Chief21 sounds pretty close.

Of course it's sort of like asking "How much does a new car cost?" The devil is in the details. It would depend on the capacity of the tower. Add into that your location in Buffalo, and you need to consider ice load, wind load, etc. That changes the requirements based off your antenna wind load/ice load. That impacts the foundation size, etc. etc. etc.

Considering you posted this in the "Scanner, Receiver" forum, I'd guess you are just looking at a few small receive antennas. That keeps it simple, but I'm not sure if a simple Rohn 25G is going to work at 100 feet with Buffalo weather/ice/wind loads. At 100 feet tall, you will need at least 2 or 3 levels of guying. That adds to the complexity. A self supporting 100 foot tower is probably going to be outside the realm of a hobbyists budget.

Altering your expectations might be necessary. While 100 feet would be nice, you'd still get improved coverage with 30 feet of self supporting tower/monopole.
 

902

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I'd bump up the rating of the tower and not get the 25G, but go for a 45G instead, considering the potential of ice loading. I might even bump it up from there, depending on what you intend to put on top (and on the sides) of it. I've never been to Buffalo, but I've seen pictures of your winters.

The price tag is about right. It's not cheap.

And, don't forget the cost of the most important things:
Your antenna and feedline.

A 100 ft. tower with an AEA Isopole antenna on top of it fed with RG-8X is a waste of money. I wouldn't even run a Diamond and LMR400.

Personally, I would want to get a commercial quality antenna for the band I'm interested in, and at least 1/2" LDF hardline. 7/8" for UHF. Professionally done, that should be trouble-free for quite a while. And, if the dollar value is prohibitive, forget the tower and STILL get the best antenna and feedline you can get. It's money well spent.

The other thing you might consider: a wooden utility pole that's set in the ground with an auger. Bolt the antenna on the pole, be VERY careful with the cable, but pincers on the boom truck can pick that thing up and plant it very solidly wherever you'd want it.

Sounds like a fun summertime project!
 

N4GIX

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Google searching is very useful. A search for "100' self-supporting tower" yields a wealth of information and prices.

Here for example is a 100' self-supporting tower for a discounted price of $8333.75 (plus shipping and installation):

Sabre - S3A LDA 100 ft Series 3 Self-Supporting Tower (C05-109-310) from Solid Signal

Or, you could go with a 100' Rohn 25G guyed tower "kit" that supplies all the needed hardware. Correctly installed it is rated at up to 110 mph winds. Cost $5126,60 (plus shipping and installation). Figure on about $800 for the concrete base and guy points.

http://www.solidsignal.com/pview.as...0MPH-Rev-F-Guyed-Tower-(25G110R100)&c=Antenna Towers&sku=
 
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N5TWB

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The other thing you might consider: a wooden utility pole that's set in the ground with an auger. Bolt the antenna on the pole, be VERY careful with the cable, but pincers on the boom truck can pick that thing up and plant it very solidly wherever you'd want it.

Sounds like a fun summertime project!

The local FD is wondering about the wisdom of that approach as the mounting solution for a very small 800 MHz antenna for an outlying fire station. A mid-July derecho (info link below) has effected a decided list to the east in the pole.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derecho
 

iamhere300

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Even a pole can be installed improperly.

How much will a 100 foot tower cost? How much does beef cost. Thats right, it depends on the cut, weight, and quality of the beef, just like a tower depends on the loading, reliability, and foundation.

100 foot of Rohn 45 would probably run around 7k, for the steel, concrete, and installation.

Cell capable would run about 60k plus.
 
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