Mast outdoor antenna build

[skatertj]

What would it take to have an outdoor antenna installed safely? I am looking to get an outdoor antenna now and would like to know what i would need for a safe install. I have looked at the comet ds150s discone but not into the cable it comes with. If there are any other recommend discones that are too expensive, please post as well. I monitor air band-150 police, 460 police/fire and 800 the most. I would like to listen to low band if i can receive it.

Heres a few extra questions
Where would be the best install location? I can put an antenna in my attice if and only if the antenna is 5' 3" and under. Otherwise i have a chimney that i could attach too or maybe some other location? I have a fence top rail pole(unmeasured but more than 10ft) that i can cut down.

Is lmr-400 at 75 ft(length dependent on location of install) good for 860mhz? How would grounding go if i have an antenna installed outside?

Thank you for any help!

 

[Rt169Radio]

A good install would be a 10 foot (maybe more if you guy wire it) top rail attached to a sturdy fence pole. Right now I have all my antennas on 20 foot top rails attached to fence poles. Their fairly easy to take down with another person for repairs or really bad storms like hurricanes etc.

Now if really want a low cost good antenna take a look at the AntennaCraft ST2.

 

[skatertj]

I have looked into the ST2 but i heard its not very good on the 800 band which i monitor the most. I have decently strong signals here where i monitor but i wouldn't want to lose too much out of an antenna. I have also been trying to keep size in factor as im not sure if i want an outside install or attic.

How much of a difference could i see in vhf air band if its outside with 10 extra feet or so?
Is a chimney mount really safe? I dont live in a old home and chimney is an active gas one.
How is lightening arresting preformed?

 

[Rt169Radio]

Am not sure how good the ST2 is on 800MHz because I don't really listen to that band, but discone antennas are good on that band, plus VHF high and UHF, but not so much on VHF low band. And any increase in antenna height will help your receive/transmit range.

I don't really know much about chimney antenna installs and lightening arresting so maybe someone else can jump in and help you?

 

[skatertj]

Well yesterday i decided to check out my chimney. Its a no go with the straps now. I have a rock chimney so, on each corner and row, rocks stick out. They arent even so the straps wouldnt make full contact. Now im thinking of just doing an attic install with a discone. I really want to open air band up with the discone the most. I use to listen to it alot in kansas but now im about 30 miles out from airport and my whips cant pick it up unless squelch is almost all the way down and then itll just be static...

So, attic with a discone for now. Maybe mast later on at 10ft over roof once i can find a location to keep it hidden from our front road.

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[Rt169Radio]

Okay, that's cool. What kind of discone are you getting?

 

[skatertj]

Not sure yet... has to stay below 5' 4" in height. Dont know if i should go with radioshack discone or comet. Those are two i have been lookin at

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[Rt169Radio]

Well the RS discone is lower in cost then the Comet discone, but the quality of it is not the best. But I don't think that will be an issue if its going to stay on the attic. But if you plan on taking the antenna out of the attic and putting it outside I would go with the Comet discone.

 

[skatertj]

I do plan to have it outside one day, but dont know when that will be. Also, if i got the comet, id replace the cable with something better for 800mhz. Maybe rs is best option for that reason?

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[Rt169Radio]

Yes, the RS discone would be a good choice then, its a little less then the Comet one. What kind of coax are you looking to get?

 

[LtDoc]

Two things you might keep in mind. No diskcone antenna has any gain. They hear fine for fairly close signals, but not for distant ones. Lot's of 'skootch' in that, not 'firm' at all. The other thing about all VHF/UHF signals is that they don't 'bend' much to follow the curvature of the earth. That means that higher is always better till it gets ridiculous. You have to get the antenna to where the signal is, or it just won't work very well. An antenna with gain can make up for a lack of adequate height to some extent, but gain isn't a 'cure-all', there stll has to be -some- signal for the antenna to 'hear'. About the only time an antenna is too high is when the normal losses in the feed line are greater than what the antenna is 'hearing'. Wish I had that problem...
- 'Doc

("Skootch" is a technical term for variability. A '+' or '-' thingy thatcovers a lot of errors. You know?)

 

[skatertj]

Im looking at probably lmr-400 at a 50ft run. Unless i can find something better for 800 at that lenght

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[skatertj]

Alright so since my vhf air comes in pretty quiet now and has static to it, would a discone in attic not do well? Im looking as air to just be a want. Need is just better reception in uhf range. 800 is always strong, vhf air statuc and very quiet, uhf for skywarn and storm chasers strong but not consistent signal. Varies alot. So i guess im just looking to get a better signal in that area

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[Rt169Radio]

Discone antennas don't have much gain-if they have any at all. So you might want to look into a antenna that has a significant amount of gain too it if you want to receive signals better.

 

[skatertj]

What about using a pre amp at like 10db gain? At the end of rg-6 coax or rg-58, that should give 4-5 db gain on or around 850mhz. Im only looking to try and get a clearer signal out of 150/450/800

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[K5MPH]

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I have an st2 it works great on 800 MHz I live in Brownsville tx and hear the south padre island pd just fine, that's 24 miles from my qth just make sure you get it high in the air and it should work fine and also this ant. Works good on the air bands to good luck......

 

[skatertj]

Id like to run the st2 but i wouldnt know where to mount it. I dont want it very visible from the front of my house and dont really want it too far away from my listening room...

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[Rt169Radio]

You could put the ST2 sideways in your attic, also why do you not want antennas visible from the front of your house?

 

[nyair1]

What would it take to have an outdoor antenna installed safely? I am looking to get an outdoor antenna now and would like to know what i would need for a safe install. I have looked at the comet ds150s discone but not into the cable it comes with. If there are any other recommend discones that are too expensive, please post as well. I monitor air band-150 police, 460 police/fire and 800 the most. I would like to listen to low band if i can receive it.

Heres a few extra questions
Where would be the best install location? I can put an antenna in my attice if and only if the antenna is 5' 3" and under. Otherwise i have a chimney that i could attach too or maybe some other location? I have a fence top rail pole(unmeasured but more than 10ft) that i can cut down.

Is lmr-400 at 75 ft(length dependent on location of install) good for 860mhz? How would grounding go if i have an antenna installed outside?

Thank you for any help!

I have the Radio Shack discone antenna outdoors at about 30ft. I use RG-6 quad shield cable with good outdoor oring connectors. I'm on my second antenna in about 20 yrs or so. Works great and i pickup UHF Milair over 200+ miles with it. I use it for my local police/fire too. I only have one 800mhz system in my area and it works fine on that. I saved my old antenna and use it in the attic as a back up when needed. Still works fine too.

 

[skatertj]

So rs doesnt sound to bad if it has height added with it. And im a college student still with my parents... i dont want to make their house look bad with an antenna haha or else i know the perfect spot but it would be fully visible

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