Looking for suggestions for rooftop mounting of antenna...

[KC8WLZ]

Hello,

I plan to mount a small ground plane antenna to a vent pipe on my roof. The antenna is the Radio Shack 20-176 ( http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103641&cp ) which I will use for 2M and 70cm transmitting as well as general all band recieving.

I live in a antenna restricted neighborhood. I plan to paint the antenna black. Does anyone have a suggestion on what type of black paint to use and should I lightly sand the elements to "prep" them prior to painting???

Thanks in advance!

 

[1979lee]

well as long as the pain dosent contain any metal you should be ok , heck with that antenna i doubt any one will see it, even if you dont paint it ,
good luck

 

[Woodstock]

I have one of those antennas and they are pretty hard to spot unless you are looking for it. Maybe you could try a flat black paint so it doesn't reflect light or a weatherproof paint so it lasts for a while.

 

[kf4lne]

Let it sit up there for a while and the natural discoloration caused by the weather will hide it.

 

[specman]

I've used 2 of those antennas in the past and while they work reasonbly well, they tend to suffer quite badly from deterioration due to weather. I would suggest that painting it will likely improve the durability; however I would suggest picking a flat grey color instead of black, which can actually highlight it against a bright sky.

If your vent pipe is plastic you can mount the antenna down somewhat on the pipe for even more concealment.

 

[4436time]

....nevermind...