I moved two months ago and am once again in a location where I can install antennas and such for both Part 15 and Amateur use. I am thinking about possibly putting a Part 15 AM transmitter in the back yard. If I do, it won't be right away.
The back yard has no vegetation and is covered with crusher fine. Here in the Southwest, our soil conductivity stinks. I am considering covering a large area out back with chicken wire (or similar), to provide a ground screen. I would think that this would be better than individual radials from copper wire.
Comments on using this for the Part 15 transmitter? Has anyone here done this?
Joe
I moved two months ago and am once again in a location where I can install antennas and such for both Part 15 and Amateur use. I am thinking about possibly putting a Part 15 AM transmitter in the back yard. If I do, it won't be right away.
The back yard has no vegetation and is covered with crusher fine. Here in the Southwest, our soil conductivity stinks. I am considering covering a large area out back with chicken wire (or similar), to provide a ground screen. I would think that this would be better than individual radials from copper wire.
Comments on using this for the Part 15 transmitter? Has anyone here done this?
Joe
I think chicken wire would work very well, the main concern being getting a strong metal bond between the chicken wire and the ground wire from the transmitter, which might require arc-welding, but I'm not sure. There is a whole science to creating metal bonds that withstand the ground and the weather. I have read very detailed information about this buried somewhere here on this website.
I also recall reading somewhere that there are chemical & mineral additives that can be mixed with the ground to increase conductivity in a limited area. Maybe a soil expert at a university or botanical garden can supply an answer.
I am right in sync with you, mojoe, because I am clearing an area out back for a full-scale Part 15 antenna with ground radials.
I bought a 50' roll of chicken fence, cut it in half, made an "X" at the base of my antenna and it loaded up well.. (SSTran with the outdoor antenna.. Rangemaster too..)
Where the 2 pieces overlapped in the center, I just used some stripped telephone wire and found a few areas where it was possible to twist the phone wire around both pieces of the chicken fence to bond them together and soldered. (Solder sticks to chicken fencing) Laid some sandstones on the fencing to keep it flat and Wala! Run a ground wire from the Xmtr to the fencing and you're on-the-air..