Antenna Tower
starting Setup
I have two antenna masts at the moment on my house. Mast A is used for my regular reception. I also have another mast "Mast B", which is used to test antennas. I have scripts running every hour "DXing" my antennas. The results can be seen here. I normally receive 21 channels 24/7. I get all the Canadian networks plus CBS, FOX & PBS. My standard stations are listed below. However for fun I am attempting to get regular reception of fringe stations including ABC, METV and NBC. CRTC station allotment purposely makes it difficult for Canadians to do just that.
I really have wanted to consolidate my setup and clean up the appearance on the house so I occasionally have contemplated a tower. I decided on a 40ft DMX40MD tower. DMX is a premium Canadian made tower. It is a freestanding tower requiring a cement base.
Mast A
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Mast A is on the right side of my house. It is the antenna setup I normally use for everyday reception. I have a Winegard HD8800 8 bay UHF antenna pointed directly to South Coulton N.Y. In addition I have a Wade/Delhi (model unknown) VHF-hi (I think) 6 element yagi antenna pointed to Watertown. Originally this antenna was pointed to Camp Fortune when Global was on channel 6 and a problematic reception. Global is now on 14.1. Realistically I don't get Watertown 7 CBS/FOX very often with the VHF antenna as the gain is too low for fringe reception. As I get CBS/Fox regularly on 18/28.1/28.2 and there are no VHF stations anywhere else, save maybe 12 (CTV Montreal) thus I plan to ditch VHF soon. My local CTV is also VHF (13), however I have never not received CTV on UHF antenna. The top of the HD8800 is at approximately 40ft. The VHF at 35ft. Both antennas are going through a dual input Channel Master 7777 preamp.
What's really neat about this mast is it is on a hinge which I can lower very easily. I would never recommend a configuration like this as it is a 23ft mast!! It is about 20ft above the chimney. Really 10ft is about the most you ever want. However in my case my house is heavily sheltered from winds by the trees. I addition I found the mast at the Cohen Brothers recyclers and it was obviously used as a commercial mast previously. It is much thicker gauge than any mast I have seen before. The base hinge is really neat. It was fun bringing that across ottawa strapped to the top of my truck.
What's really neat about this mast is it is on a hinge which I can lower very easily. I would never recommend a configuration like this as it is a 23ft mast!! It is about 20ft above the chimney. Really 10ft is about the most you ever want. However in my case my house is heavily sheltered from winds by the trees. I addition I found the mast at the Cohen Brothers recyclers and it was obviously used as a commercial mast previously. It is much thicker gauge than any mast I have seen before. The base hinge is really neat. It was fun bringing that across ottawa strapped to the top of my truck.
Mast B
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This mast is used as a bit of a test bed. It currently contains two antennas on a rotor. The rotor is your basic Channel Master rotor. On the rotor are two antennas. Top antenna is a Delhi CYD-1430 UHF antenna. Gain is spec'ed at 13-14 dbd or 15-16 dbi!! The antenna is about at 38ft height. It has a CPA19 preamp and quad RG6 directly to a HDHomerun unit. The other antenna is my single cut channel 21 antenna (an estimated 13.9 dbd or a 16 dbi gain!). I built this antenna with the intent of getting ABC from Watertown. The antenna works well, gets 21 occasionally but I have never seem to manage to pair it with a suitable preamp. Currently it is connected to a Kitztech KT-200 preamp and then directly to a hdhomerun. Unfortunately the KT-200 has always been flaky and unpredictable. I will play with it in my upcoming "remodel", but I am tempted to get a new version of th KT-200 or try something else. When I was trying to get it to work Jeffrey from Kiztech suggested I put an fm trap before the preamp. I did this, it helped a bit, but I am concerned about it adding maybe 3 or more db loss. It all has to be revisited.
tower placement
I plan to put the tower on a hidden taller side of the house (it's a side split). The height of the second story is about 28ft so the 40ft tower will be 12 ft above the peak with another 8ft mast above that. Thus the antenna mast will top out at 50ft. The picture on the left shows the approximate location of the tower. Only two sections are shown in the picture.
I will take down and test all my antennas individually with each preamp to see the best combo that will be used for regular reception. I will then probably pop 2 more on the tower for future testing. I will probably use the hinged mast (Mast A) for the testing before final placement on the tower.
I was considering either getting the new DB8e or getting another HD8800. I would then use either the DB8e or the stacked HD8800s (equivalent to a 16 bay!) as my primary antenna. I was leaning towards the 16 bay but the DB8e has a spec'ed gain of 17.4 dbi and on paper the stacked HD8800s would be maybe 16 dbi at best. However it's all just crazy to compare hypothetical values between manufacturers.
I will take down and test all my antennas individually with each preamp to see the best combo that will be used for regular reception. I will then probably pop 2 more on the tower for future testing. I will probably use the hinged mast (Mast A) for the testing before final placement on the tower.
I was considering either getting the new DB8e or getting another HD8800. I would then use either the DB8e or the stacked HD8800s (equivalent to a 16 bay!) as my primary antenna. I was leaning towards the 16 bay but the DB8e has a spec'ed gain of 17.4 dbi and on paper the stacked HD8800s would be maybe 16 dbi at best. However it's all just crazy to compare hypothetical values between manufacturers.
I got a DB8e for testing. Testing went so well, I have decided on a DB8e as my regular everyday antenna. More on the DB8e later. My tower placement strategy is still to be decided. At the moment I am leaning towards putting the CYD-1430 UHF antennas on the rotor on the top. I would then put the channel 21 single cut towards Watertown on the tower second and finally at the bottom I may mount the DB8e with one bay towards South Colton and the second bay towards Plattsburg for Plattsburgh 38.1. Even at 30 degree separation the DB8e seems to perform well.
Beyond that my preamp strategy is to be determined. I am currently investigating a non standard preamp POE ethernet strategy, which I will test next week. Although it is a freestanding tower, in addition to a cement base, I will also loosely affix the tower to the house at the 27ft mark with a Channel Master eave mount. Other than having spare eave mounts, I have my reasons.
Change of plan! I originally wanted to install my antenna tower on the two floor side of my side split house. The plan was that I probably could have climbed the final section and a half easily for maintenance. I have since changed up the plan and will design a hinge base for the tower. That only leaves me with a small section on the other side of the house where a tower could be lowered without hitting a tree. My other worry about the North side of my house was that all the stations are to the south and I would be receiving signals over 40+ feet of metal roof. They say that if you 10 feet above the the roof diffraction would not be an issue but I was not convinced.
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First step was to manually push up two section against the wall. I was unable to safely raise three sections at once. So in the end I "walked up" the bottom two and then carried the third section on my back up the ladder. This worked surprisingly well! I then attached the third section to the eaves. I forget what I used for facia when I built the house but that tower is solidly attached to the house. I am very happy with the results. Now I dig out for the base.
New test Setup
I have finally taken down my second mast. It was my old test mast. In its place I have now put the top section of the tower temporarily in my side yard. It is used to test configurations, i.e.. preamps and antennas in advance of selection of my final tower setup. In the picture you can see the CPA19 preamp and the Kitztech preamp in the black box. The antenna shown is my channel 21 single cut.
It is pointed at Watertown at the moment. The trick is to see if it gets any fringe stations at night. If so, it will have a better chance when it is 50ft up.
It is pointed at Watertown at the moment. The trick is to see if it gets any fringe stations at night. If so, it will have a better chance when it is 50ft up.
Tower Hinge
I wanted to put my DMX tower on a hinge so I could easily pull it up and down. Unfortunately even though I sell Towers, the price is CRAZY. The hinge stubs cost ~$600 retail, so I decided to make my own. As the song goes "I stole this from a hockey card", I actually saw this on a popular Canadian antenna forum. I would provide a link except that forum is super anal about external links so why should I help them. The userid was "mrvanwinkles". Brilliant idea. On a side note, years ago I put up a HD8800 for the first time and I actually received Utica stations that morning for 3 hours (from Ottawa). I posted it in that forum, on the local reception thread. It was promptly deleted by the "moderator". Why? Because "he didn't want to give new users false expectations". Now that is moderation!
The idea behind this hack is to drive the spikes, mount the tower on the short pipes. It will be more than enough strength. For a bracketed tower it is similar idea to the provided spikes. For a self supporting tower you will also need bracketing and/or cement due to windload requirements. I will cement and bracket in my case.
The idea behind this hack is to drive the spikes, mount the tower on the short pipes. It will be more than enough strength. For a bracketed tower it is similar idea to the provided spikes. For a self supporting tower you will also need bracketing and/or cement due to windload requirements. I will cement and bracket in my case.
I bought 4 Simpson EZ spikes. They are the similar to the box store ones but stronger and welded (12 gauge) and about the same price. Ordered them from Preston Hardware in Ottawa. Used grade 8 - 4" x 1/2 bolts. The short pipe is a very thick pipe I found in my junk pile. I cut them at 12" each. I mount the bolt though the pipe 1 inch from the end. Once in place I will mark the position of the tower holes, drill more holes and use 6 grade 8 - 3" x 1/2 bolts to attach to the tower. I also use 2 cm spacer pipe I cut from pipe I found in my junk pile. I will actually use the 4th spike to mount my hand winch for the tower.
Burying the spike
Pounded the spikes, Positioned the legs. Marked where the holes should be. Drilled the holes. Repositioned the transition legs. Forced them tight with pipe clamps. Screwed in tight with 6 @ grade 8 3 1/2"x1/2" bolts. Released all clamps, repositioned the tower top (from the roof) until plumb bob was perfect. Remounted roof bracket. Added 4th post at rear for the winch post. As it is now that tower is solid. Next digging and extra cement for the base to lock it all in.
Usually with a DMX self supporting tower, you need plenty of concrete. Usually a block of at least 3' x 3' x 3' is required. However in my case I am mounting my "hybrid" tower both bracketed to my house and spiked with a base hinge (described in previous post). I decided to lock in my spikes from any shifting or torsional forces with a base cap, a slab 3' x 3' x 4". This required 6 bags of 30kg cement. After the obligatory kids hand prints and a couple of hours of sweat, considered it "locked" in. Notice the plumb bob still smack in the middle. It is strung down the middle of the 3 upright sections. The wooden post at the back is for mounting the winch, my next part of the project.
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Winch Setup
Although the weight of the tower with all gear will probably be only around 300lbs, weight and strength of the winch system is very important. I used a 3/4" 6" eye shoulder bolt ($18 from Ottawa Fastener), a 1200lb winch ($20 from Princess Auto) and a 4 ton pulley ($12 also from princess auto). Shoulder eye bolts are rated to 25% of their normal load capacity when used 45 degrees off the eye of the plane. So I over engineered.
Originally I was going to do some fancy attic attachment system and then instead decided to simply attach to the strongest point on the wall. I attached the bolt through the top plate of the first floor of the house. First I removed some drywall in my living room and drilled a 3/4" hole through the wall. Hit some nails and had issues with 3/4" bits but ultimately I got the hole drilled in 33 degree weather. Good thing I didn't do the attic solution! Had to buy a 1/2" breaker bar but boy is that bolt on tight! Seemed to work out well. I attached the winch to the post behind the tower at a nice level for turning. I then attached the winch wire on the tower at a level slightly higher than the pivot point. Yes I have lots of ladders. In the pictures what looks like rust is actually dirt and leaf bits. I temporarily patched up the living room wall. The room needed a paint job anyway.
Winch test
Tested out my winch setup. First trip down was bumpy due to the uneven layering of the cable in the new winch, but it went well. When I got near the bottom I realized I needed to cut out a little in front of the legs (see picture). So I wound it back up, cut out the wood ties and wound it down again. I am very happy with it. It is smooth and seems secure. Just takes more winding than I expected. V2 may be electric!
Wire & rotor preparation
I ran the cable needed for my tower project. It is a bit OTT but I am running 8 cables up my tower. 4 coax, 2 ethernet and 2 rotor cables (one a cat5). I used a 1" conduit. Note to self, use a 1.5" conduit next time. All RG6 quad coax and only cat5 for the ethernet.
I put a cross side support in for a second rotor. For now it will hold a small VHF - basically only for channel 13. Used 2 u-bolt clamps to hold the side arm. The side arm was leftover metal from my last home made antenna project. I drilled holes every foot if I ever wanted to move the rotor over for a bigger yagi style antenna.
I replaced the standard TMCA with a thrust bearing mount (BBMB). This will help the main rotor which will have an 8 bay (HD8800) and 2 small-ish UHF arrow style antennas. I used a lighter and taller mast than I normally would because of the three antennas. The thrust ball bearing will help longentivity.
I will face mount my DB8e, on the tower, near the rotor, for my day-in day-out reception.
I put a cross side support in for a second rotor. For now it will hold a small VHF - basically only for channel 13. Used 2 u-bolt clamps to hold the side arm. The side arm was leftover metal from my last home made antenna project. I drilled holes every foot if I ever wanted to move the rotor over for a bigger yagi style antenna.
I replaced the standard TMCA with a thrust bearing mount (BBMB). This will help the main rotor which will have an 8 bay (HD8800) and 2 small-ish UHF arrow style antennas. I used a lighter and taller mast than I normally would because of the three antennas. The thrust ball bearing will help longentivity.
I will face mount my DB8e, on the tower, near the rotor, for my day-in day-out reception.
Trial and Tribulations of Towers and Trees
Configured the tower. Started winching it up and hit some leaves. Trimed the leaves and winched it up and hit some more. After triming again this time with my 36 foot ladder, I started it up again. Got up about 60 degrees hit some leaves that were not going away. Was very late, so I lowered it down, and realized I needed some design changes!
Final setup
Realized my original design was OTT and unnecessary. Really you can pick up CTV-13 with a coat hanger so I ditched my VHF antenna. In addition why the second rotor. I shortened the top mast and put my strongest pipe in place of the previous long lightweight one. On the top mast I put two good antennas, the CYD-1430 at 46 ft, and the Winegard HD8800 at 43 ft. This has the added bonus on keeping it slightly below 15m, thus preventing any possible bylaw issues in my area. I then face mounted my regular day in day out use antenna (the DB8e) on the tower at about 37ft. One bay is aimed at Watertown, one bay at Plattsburg. This is about a 60 degree beam width. That antenna should not work as well as it does. Finally for fun, I put a four bay clone at 39ft. aimed between Montreal and Plattsburgh. Before raising, I tested all antennas and preamps. Interestingly even while lying on the ground it received most local stations.
Face mounting the DB8e on the DMX is very very easy and looks way cool. Note the DMX is a 40' tower on a one foot hinge addition and a 7ft mast (5'8"above tower peak). First night I am getting ABC and all the Watertown stations but it looks like a unusually good reception night. I will have to wait for some long term results. In the pictures you can see my old chimney mast still up.
Summary
46ft - CYD-1430 on a RCA TVPRAMP1R preamp pointed towards Watertown (on rotor)
43ft - Winegard HD8800 on a Kitztech KT-200 preamp pointed towards Watertown (on rotor)
39ft - 4 Bay Clone on a CPA-19 preamp pointed towards Mount Mansfield Vermont
37ft - DB8e on a Channel Master 7777 (dual input one) pointed towards Watertown and Plattsburg.
Face mounting the DB8e on the DMX is very very easy and looks way cool. Note the DMX is a 40' tower on a one foot hinge addition and a 7ft mast (5'8"above tower peak). First night I am getting ABC and all the Watertown stations but it looks like a unusually good reception night. I will have to wait for some long term results. In the pictures you can see my old chimney mast still up.
Summary
46ft - CYD-1430 on a RCA TVPRAMP1R preamp pointed towards Watertown (on rotor)
43ft - Winegard HD8800 on a Kitztech KT-200 preamp pointed towards Watertown (on rotor)
39ft - 4 Bay Clone on a CPA-19 preamp pointed towards Mount Mansfield Vermont
37ft - DB8e on a Channel Master 7777 (dual input one) pointed towards Watertown and Plattsburg.
So far so good
Some antenna porn pictures...
Climbing the tower
I needed to move my DB8e antenna slightly. It had one bay pointed at Plattsburgh, the other bay at Watertown. It should have had one bay at South Colton. Doesn't seem like much but it was 32 degrees off. It makes a difference with a remote 4KW station (WNYF). I could have lowered the tower on its hinge but since it was a minor adjustment to the lowest antenna I decided to give the tower a climb!
The climbing was easier than I thought. The tower was very steady (I am 6ft, 200lbs). I used a normal fall protection harness I had for roofing.
I'll see how the reception changes over the next week and maybe go up again next week for a final tweak.
The climbing was easier than I thought. The tower was very steady (I am 6ft, 200lbs). I used a normal fall protection harness I had for roofing.
I'll see how the reception changes over the next week and maybe go up again next week for a final tweak.
