I'll try that. I have a #8 insulated wire going vertical down the mast pole into the ground and then, where it then change directions and goes about 20 feet horizontal(slightly under the ground) to the other end of the yard.
You're saying I should use about ten 50' extension cords and hook them up to a jumper lead(short piece of wire with alligator clips on both ends?) and then connect each alligator clip the one end to the vertical #8 insulated wire that runs up the mast pole and is connected to the Rangemaster, which is way up in the air. Am I disconnecting the horizontal #8 wire that runs through the backyard. ALSO, if this is a problem, please one and all let me know - I can't do a complete radial. The mast pole runs against the one story add-on part of my house. This pole runs many feet above the add-on(bordered by atmosphere in all 4 directions), but at the ground, I could only have the extension cords lined up making "half a wheel" - unless I run some into the crawl space underneath the add-on(I hope this makes sense).
Yes, that's Nikita. I have a strange sense of humor. I'm not really a communist.
There is no "user" tuning of the transmitter. It is preset and designed so as not to exceed the 100 milliwatt limit.
The Talking House transmitter is designed to be placed inside rather than outside on a tower. There are two options for connecting the antenna; inside or outside using the remote antenna/tuner. The outside option is for greater range.
The remote antenna has a tuner and signal strength meter built into it. Depending upon your transmitter frequency, you set the band switch for the low or high end of the band. That simply selects the correct coil. Then you turn the adjustment knob until the meter reaches its highest reading. That is the point at which the antenna is tuned for your frequency, providing maximum signal range.
The radials I referred to serve the same purpose as the two wires you ran on the ground. Radials improve the performance of the antenna, more = better. My radials are #18 insullated wire. Normally you would place pairs of radials of equal length, opposite in direction, around the base of the antenna. My antenna is on the roof so the radials are spread out across the roof. They form the "RF" ground for the antenna which helps the antenna radiate the signal.
Recent posts regarding tower mounted Hamilton Rangemaster transmitters indicate excellent range (.5 to 1.5 mile) when the transmitter and antenna are properly adjusted. So good, the FCC shut them down.
That's why your East West Signal is poor. Because of ONE long wire.
Since you cant have a complete Circle around the base your signal will go farther in the direction with more radials. so try to get them where the most people live.
The Hamilton Rangemaster site has a lot of great suggestion for increasing range. And sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words:
http://www.am1000rangemaster.com/pdf/hints.pdf
Good Luck.
Yes the extension cords are just a convenient source of "test" radials. DO NOT CONNECT TO 110 volts!! I just realized I did not say that before. Yes I think youve got it. Just hook all the wires together at the base of your mast. Try it and see if it makes any improvment. Did your noise level test out quiet?
The ground conductivity rating of "8" means 8 millisiemens (or millimhos) per meter. This is better than average ground conductivity, with 10 mS/m being called "good," 5 mS/m being called "average," and 1 mS/m being called "poor." Moist soil gets up to about 30 mS/m. Seawater beats all soil with a conductivity of about 5000 mS/m.
So the picture really IS of Khrushchev! I was too polite to mention it at first, thinking that poor Chuck might actually look like that guy. At least Chuck's odd sense of humor did not cause him to use a picture of Stalin.
As per Carl Blare's suggestion, digging a circular trench about three feet in diameter around an antenna ground rod, about one foot deep and wide, putting in it about 50 pounds of rock salt, magnesium sulphate, or copper sulphate, and then filling the trench with water, will provide a chemical treatment for improving the ground conductivity at the base of a vertical antenna. This is recommended, in the 1970 edition of the ARRL Antenna Book, for vertical antennas used in the 160 meter ham band. After the treatment, the trench is covered with dirt, and the increased conductivity is supposed to last about three years.
I wouldn't do it myself. "Salting the earth" is not something I would want to do in my back yard. Ground radials would be better.
Again, I recommend taking all suggestions (including mine) with a grain of salt. There are just too many variables (including subjectivity as to quality of signal and whether it is listenable, to legality) and every situation is different. You need to consider all of them, and then experiment yourself.
Remember, there are reasons why the FCC and Industry Canada limit both the antenna and ground wire to 3 meters (10 feet) - they want to limit the radiating portions of your system to intentionally limit its range.
You will need to understand all the legal ramifications of ground mounting vs mounting in the air (even with a filter on the ground wire) and pick the method that you feel most comfortable with. There are many posts and threads here on this Forum that discuss this issue in depth. You will then have to choose what you are most comfortable with (in the event that there is a complaint and you are investigated)
You will need to determine exactly what a listenable signal is for you and your listeners, and attempt to achieve that. Your range will be at what point your signal degrades beyond that quality. It really doesn't matter what someone else claims is their range - their standards are, in all probability, much different than yours.
I think it's valuable to do the research and listen to others, but certainly don't take what they're saying as gospel - it really is up to you.
(again, keep in mind I don't know enough about this to make an intricate plan of action).
1. Will get more #8 insulated wire from Lowes/Home Depot.
2. Again, my current ground is a vertical run of #8 wire from the Rangemaster in the sky, which then goes horizontal slightly underneath the ground throughout much of my tiny backyard.....
3. I will take several long pieces of #8 wire, strip the insulation and place them on the ground in as much of a circular way as I can and tightly tie them all to the vertical bottom part of the original ground(described above in #2).
4. To attempt as close to a true radial of these ground wires, I'll insert come of them in the (very damp) crawl space underneath the 1 story add-on(that the first several feet of my mast pole rests against).
5. I'll have Rangemaster about 22-25 feet in the air, surrounded by atmosphere in all directions(at that point the xmtr will be slightly higher than the 2 story mainframe of my house. The xmtr will be also at least 15-20 or more from all trees in all directions.
6. If this shows results, I'll continue looking for an experienced engineer(preferably one with Part 15 experience) to tune the Xmtr.
All comments on this are very welcome.
Thanks to all for your help so far.
Chuck
My station is more of an experiment so I have
never felt any time pressure to get it optimized.
I have worked on the range situation for years.
(I'm not a broadcast engineer though.)
(Most of you guys already know this so I'll be brief.)
With a ground mounted SS-Tran AM transmitter kit,
a nine foot pole, and 16 ground radials, some 10 feet,
some 20 feet - I was able to get the following range:
Loud car radio reception within 1/4 mile of my house.
Also, reception on the car radio in random places up
to two miles away. There was one point where the
signal was very listenable 2 miles away with little noise.
The coverage area was not a circle. It was very complicated
with peaks and dips all over the place. And those peaks and
dips all occurred within the area of several long oval shaped
sections that all came together around my house.
People could listen in their houses on my street within 800
to 1000 feet from my station on good radios. The signal
overrode computer noise and that sort of thing if the
radios were oriented in the right direction.
In the down town area, about 2000 feet away, my close
friend, who is a broadcast engineer, could drive around
all over the place from store to store and hear my station
fairly well on his car radio. On good days, the signal was
loud. And he does have a very good car radio. The station
would get louder around areas where there were many
buildings. (I think this had to do with the fact that
there were many conductors in those areas that were
grounded well, so a sort of RF ground return would
be there.)
My range has always been best during dry sunny days.
When there was rain, my range would drop drastically,
and I think this is because the moisture would detune
my homemade tuning system.
There's my 2 cents.
Best Wishes
Bruce, MICRO1690/1700
Hi Chuck,
I saw your post over on radio-info as well as here..
My Rangemaster is on a pole and is just over the rooftop of my mobile home. I am on the "back" side of a 17-acre farm, so there are no neigbors to complain about anything.
When I first put the Rangemaster on, it was receivable on a car radio for about 2 miles east and west. It was about a mile going north, and undetermined going south as there is a pasture behind me (that does not belong to us.)
More recently the signal has had a way reduced range. In the midst of our current mobile home renovation (long story) one of our friends was helping and accidentally cut the audio/power line in two.
I just received my new roll of wire from Keith and will be putting the unit back on air soon. While I'm at it, I'm going to re-do some of the ground system. I might try that extension cord idea.
While my Part 15 has been down, it has reminded me of the reason I built it in the first place! I've barely had the radio turned on since we were abruptly silenced.
I had Keith install the LED for tuning to peak performance. That has helped me to tune the unit to its peak. I am legally blind, and the LED made that easier for me to do by myself.
One reception report actually came from someone about 4 to 5 miles away, just at sunrise. I was live on the air, and he heard me give a local weather report. Said he was driving along and then heard the weather and info, which he thought sounded as good or better than the licenced boys. When range was good, 2 miles was about it.
A friend of mine lives near the coast and has a Rangemaster on 1610. He just turned 73 and moved his Rangemaster closer to the ground to avoid climbing ladders any more. He says his range improved. I haven't seen his present set-up but he's done some engineering work during his radio career. He lives in a little retirement village and covers it. He just runs as a daytimer and shuts it off at night.
I hope you are able to get the system working the way you want.
Chuck,
Of the many good suggestions you have received here, I think that making the ground system as good as you can has the best chance of improving your results. Marconi considered his greatest discovery to be the need for a good connection to ground. Until he made the ground connection, he was not able to get a lot of range, either.
The fact that you are not able to get sharp tuning suggests that your impedance to ground is too high. Transmitters (like the Rangemaster) that use an RF step-up transformer at the output, do not have sharp tuning if the ground impedance is high. Get as big an area of metal as possible around the connection to ground. Metal screen, metal plate, chicken wire (as well as radials), can be used. The various metal sections have to be electrically bonded together. An 8-foot ground rod driven into the earth is not a bad idea, but you would still need the ground screen (made of radials or other metal structures), and the rod would be difficult to remove if you ever want to do so.
Don't worry about (as you describe yourself) not knowing what you are doing. Nobody else does, so why should you? Most of RF engineering involves trying something, and then trying something else if it does't work. Today, sophisticated electromagnetic analysis programs are available to aid RF design, but such programs still have not eliminated the need for a lot of tinkering.
Oh yes--try to get the ground lead from the transmitter as far as possible from the side of the house.
One thing i don't see mentioned too often here and has nothing to do with range but rather safety is the need to check for underground utilities.
Gas lines, conduits, water and cable tv are just a few things you should check for before driving a ground rod into your yard.
Always make a few phone calls if your not sure what is buried beneath the sod, I would rather see you having trouble with range over a obituary any day.
Cheers
Rock has offered excellent advice regarding checking for underground utilities before digging or staking and it should be heeded.
In my state there is an organization named OUPS (Ohio Utility Protection Service) which provides underground utility location upon request. Similar services are available in most locations.
That being said, they do a good job but don't bet your life on their locating abilities. Plat drawings and electronic locating systems do not always yield accurate results. I have the advantage of having lived here since the original trenching and I know about where the utilities are located and have witnessed OUPS marking non-existing lines and missing existing ones. They do the best they can but there are limits. I saw a backhoe hit a 22 kV 3 phase underground feed and it is not pretty or quiet. On my own property, a contractor hit the cable trunk despite it being marked. It wasn't exactly where nor as deep as was expected.
You should be OK placing horizontal radials at or just below ground level but I suggest hiring a licensed electrician to install ground stakes. The cost of a mistake is just too high.
Neil
Time-Warner cable serves my area with cable-tv and high speed internet among other things. Just two days ago I watched their Signal Security techs attempt to trace underground cables in the park I live in.
You could clearly see they were having trouble tracing some of the lines.
At first it was being handled by one tech, but eventually another tech came out to help the first one.
So it is not un-common for companies to lay services underground and not remember where they placed them, not to mention the techs working the other day probably were not here when the lines were placed in the ground. Here the water, cabe tv, phones and electrical services are buried in most of the park, except for the road entering the park.
That is where the power lines bring the service into the park and the apartments across the road from me, the poles stop right in front of my home and are routed underground.
That being said, i have to wonder why i get so much interference here when everything is underground? Simple, it's shielded underground but when it enters our homes it is free to make all the racket it wants.
I have been thinking about making some phone calls to see if they can eliminate or at least reduce some of the hash that enters my home.
At any rate, it is my belief that most utilities should be underground to save utilitie companies and the like millions of $ replacing these lines when the weather decides to rip apart the whole town, not only that but it would just look better.