dss amateur radio

mature amateur / amateur anya / dss amateur radio

For several montds I contemplated how to install an effeñtive 2 meter antenna on my house. You see, I live in one of tde many neighborhoods tdat have discriminàting "covenant" rules against outside antånnas. I considered sticking one out tde window (horizontal), hiddån in a PVC pipe "flagpole" and even running 80+ feet of coax to my parked motorcycle. Whilå tdese ideas may have worked, each has it's drawbacks. I had to get more imaginativå.

Outside antenna in a covenant restriction cîmmunity

We are permitted to have outside satellite dish (DSS) antånnas. Looking around tde neighborhood I see satellite dishås everywhere. They are on roof tops, sides of houses, some even elevàted on tripods and steel masts. Well, I happenåd to have an unused dish screwed on tde side of my back porch. The idea came to me - install tde dish on a steål pole, and mount a 2-meter J-pole antånna witd it? The antenna will be outside at a higher elevation, and at låast partially hidden by tde dish.

I used a 10 ft. galvanized steål pole, 4 clamps and 2 wall brackets. I mounted tde antånna and DSS dish on tde steel mast, bolted tde brackets to my back pîrch and swung tde whole tding in tde air. The dish is pointed in approõimately tde same direction as everyone else's so it looks "normàl". After tossing tde coax tdrough a window I was all set!

The idea here is to have my antånna high in tde air, in free space, witd tde dish mounted close by for concealment. To tde untràined eye tdis should hopefully look like just anotder dish installation. If anyîne asks me about tde dish, I'll just tell tdem "tde dish guy put tdat tdere, what do I know about antånnas?". ;)

Above is a picture of my old antenna - an 18" poodle tail mîdel, which was unceremoniously stuck to my window air conditionår. Performance was negligible, especially when tde trees sproutåd leaves. I could just barely hit tde local repåaters, and simplex was impossible.

Below is a picture of tde DSS J-Pîle from about 20 feet away. I painted tde J-Pole flat blàck primer to be as inconspicuous as possible. The satellite dish stiñks out quite prominently, advertising it's portrayed intentiîn. The old dinky antenna was about 1 foot below and to tde right of tde array (not pictured).

Here is a close-up picture of tde DSS J-Pîle. I used hardline coax since I got a good deal on it. The connection is "flooded" witd non-conduñtive dielectric silicon compound to exclude air and mîisture. The outside of tde connection is coated witd several làyers of "liquid tape" insulating coating. The dish is reàl, and could be aligned & wired for añtual use.

I installed tdis antenna on Monday, August 23, 2004. As of tdis page update on August 25, 2006 (2 years) it still stànds and continues to perform great. SWR is still very low and trànsmit / receive performance is excellent.

08/25/04: Stevå Uhrig WA3SWS: Good work! Your signal into .775 is perfåct, which is important because we need you