You’ll learn effective grounding and bonding techniques for stations in a house, condo, or apartment, for portable and temporary situations, and for towers and outdoor antennas. All it takes is water and time. Ground Rods... so easy a pre-teen can do it. Typically, a ground rod driven into soil Min 8 foot recommended depth copper or galvanized steel rod Min 8 AWG wire run to single point star / shack ground and equipment Can prevent equipment damage from nearby lightning strike Lightning protection itself is a complex subject Provides a redundant safety ground for utility / AC feed being generated. If you look at the lower right corner, you can see the wide ground straps that are being installed to form a closed screen or grid below the radio room's floor. The radio station’s r.f. The radio station’s r.f. Grounding for lightning safety - upper floor (UHF/microwave antennas) Where to get a copy of NFPA-70. Single point ground for my ham radio station. Grounding things in your attic will not reduce RFI noise. Section 810 –radio & television. Your radio gear in general terms is considered a piece of equipment. Grounding Resources: Ham's Guide to RFI, Ferrites, Baluns, and Audio Interfacing, by K9CY; Grounding Is Key To Good Reception, IW5EDI; Antennas & Grounding for Apartments, QST; Grounding Systems for Amateur Radio Stations; Grounding Systems, from W8JI; Antenna Resources: Ham's Guide to RFI, Ferrites, Baluns, and Audio Interfacing, by K9CY On 20 meters, a 16-foot ground wire isn’t a ground, it’s a quarter-wave antenna! I like the Workman B100 Antenna a lot. Here's a way to use Amatuer/Ham Radio while you work on shedding a few pounds in useful exercise. We recently put up a new tower at our station to support a 2m EME station that we are building. Urban Rooftop Ham Radio Antenna: I recently put a ham radio antenna on my roof, so I could get better signal inside my apartment, which isn't on a high floor. The type of clamp connector will depend on the size of your ground wire. Assuming you placed your antenna outdoors, you may be lucky enough to find … Although proper power grounding is fairly straightforward for AC and DC power, grounding for the radio signals in a ham station is a different problem altogether. Knowing how to ground an antenna properly can make significant improvements to its performance, whereas a poor ground or earth connection can mean that its performance is greatly impaired. This grounding system addresses both the electrical ground and RF grounding requirements in Ham radio. is not referenced to station ground. 2 The effect of freezing on the electrical properties of soil is actually quite straightforward. 1. Providing good grounding — for both AC and DC power as well as for the radio signals — is very important for a trouble-free ham radio shack. I'm in a 5th floor condo, and I'm having some issues with grounding my radio and my antenna. For example a microphone input normally has a ground inside the radio. Grounding systems and techniques category is a curation of 38 web resources on , Safe,effective grounding, Notes on Ground Systems, Grounding and Reducing Noise. Simple Ham Radio Antennas--40 Meter Phased Vertica... Essex Ham 2015 Review. For most amateurs, their shack is a combination workshop and operating position. This link is listed in our web site directory since Wednesday Apr 27 2005, and till today "Antennas and Grounds for apartments" has been followed for a total of 22450 times. Safety ground implementation, meeting regulatory codes and … Using a watering can, even children can sink an 8 foot ground rod into the ground. Carl's ham station contained two HF rigs, along with a mobile dual-band set-up as a base (Common among hams today since no one manufactures those old, classic 2 meter/70cm. You have to deal with both situations. 2. Use a solid copper wire and use the ground clamp to connect it to the house service ground. The main category is Hidden and stealth antennas that is about Hidden antennas, antennas for low space. Wiring questions: grounding, attic antennas, BNC connectors. Why not equip your bicycle for 2 meter/70 cm mobile operation? Run your coax/hard-lines to the base of your tower or antenna mast and THEN make the run into the house. Ham Radio Q & A is back with another episode. Build your ham radio station with effective grounding and bonding techniques for electrical safety, lightning protection, and RF management. Resources listed under Grounding category belongs to Technical Reference main collection, and get reviewed and rated by amateur radio … (ie - I can't run a wire down the side of the building to the ground, and the HOA just busted me for running a 17 foot counterpoise for my antenna). The minimum size wire you should use to connect the antenna to the house service ground is 10 AWG (American Wire Gauge ), which is 1/10th of an inch in diameter. The orange and yellow wires are the power line feeds to the radio room . In the context of a practical approach, risk management for Amateur Radio Station lightning protection is explored. This Ask Dave episode focuses on grounding your amateur radio station, a topic of interest to many hams! The FT-450D only requires 12 volts from a power supply or battery to operate, no separate ground is required for the radio to work. Page 1 of 3 1 2 3 Next > KA6IBM Ham Member QRZ Page. You first need to see if your noise is from your own house. Another way to think about it is the place where you can go to get away from the hustle and bustle of every day life and immerse yourself in your ham radio hobby. It was purchased as an 11 Meter CB Antenna however, I've also found it useful on the 10 Meter Ham Band. —810.11-810.18 –receiving antennas. In the present case, that is to say a station to be operated in an apartment building, it is required to have an antenna that is “invisible”. I am installing a ham radio and want to properly ground it. Run the radio on a 12v battery and turn off the main breaker. It consists of a short length of copper pipe. Amateur Radio Tower Grounding. Most radio companies issue a statement to ground the radio separately for electrical safety in case the antenna comes in contact with high voltage power lines or some other situation that would put the user in danger of electrocution. Refer to FCC Part 97 and NEC 99 Code on Antenna Grounding. With dipoles, one half of the antenna is your ground. '03, I wrote a half page article called, "Apartment Ham Station" featuring my friend, Carl. All the wires in your house are noise antennas! If an external device is connected to the mic jack, and that external device grounds the mic shield back to the station ground or power mains safety ground, it will introduce hum into the audio. Station ground “knows nothing” about the r.f. If your shortwave radio is battery powered, you should ensure that the batteries are fully charged or use your radio on AC power. The entire ceiling, which is the floor of the radio room, has braiding that forms a large counterpoise. Sources of Noise on “Ground” • Capacitance from AC “hot” to ground –Leakage capacitance in transformers –AC line filters • Magnetic induction –Leakage fields from power transformers –Wiring errors in buildings and homes •Double bonded neutrals –Leakage fields from motors and controllers –Variable speed drives About Antennas and Grounds for apartments The resource is currently listed in dxzone.com in 3 categories. Simple Ham Radio Antennas- … Tower Grounding System. Anyways, in Mar. I try to answer all questions, and the ones with a wide […] The required materials include ground rods, heavy stranded grounding cables, ground clamps, and/or a thermal welding system to connect the cables. is not referenced to station ground. In the present case, that is to say a station to be operated in an apartment building, it is required to have an antenna that is “invisible”. Setting up a “shack” is an essential part of the ham radio experience. This provided a chance to show how to properly ground a tower. 4. Lightning not Post #647. The speakers in portable shortwave radios are often quite small, but sound quality can sometimes be improved by using a small ear phone, headphones or … First and foremost, grounding is for the safety of your family, home, and ham equipment. —810.51-810.70 –amateur radio. Ideally that ground should be at the connector entrance, but often it is located up on some board near an audio preamplifier. Presented is a method learned from other hams on how to install a ground rod with minimal or no hammering. 5. 4. Response No. A good ground system is an essential part of a good ham station for various reasons. Antenna, input and ground bonding. being generated. A good ground connection is every bit as important as a good antenna in do-it-yourself radio electronics. Chapter 9 tables –additional data and information on a variety of topics. base stations anymore). Mike: I have used the following procedure to ground HAM radio towers for many years and have never encountered any problems with lightning. This is where the ham radio specific topics are. The grounding device utilizes a coaxial line where the ground wire is enclosed by a shield, such as RG-8 transmission line, to prevent the buildup of high voltage standing wave near the station equipment. A HAM shack ground loop gives lightening another path to your equipment. Grounding plan for new ham shack - good/bad idea? Amateur Radio Station Grounding RCC Mar 2007 - Lane Giard, N7ZXP This article comes from Don Young, N7DY, which was in The Wenatchee Radio Club News letter. The device is intended for long grounding wires. antenna ground plane (on/under antenna) The antenna system requires a "ground plane" for the radio wave to form. 1. Station ground “knows nothing” about the r.f. Been a apt dweller most of my adult life. 3. No Ions in the Cold, Cold Ground. Always use a single point ground between the interior and exterior of your HAM shack! At the very left end, you can just see where it’s clamped to a length of #2 wire that goes out to the ground rod, only a few feet away. Discussion in 'Ham Radio Discussions' started by KA6IBM, Nov 23, 2016. IF you’d like your question answered on the show, please drop me an email at kb9vbr@jpole-antenna.com or leave a comment below this post. As an ultra beginner without a lot of investment in the hobby, it was perfectly acceptable to have to climb onto the roof t… Mike Van Voorhis, N8VIQ . Thank you for all those questions, please keep them coming. 250K Grounding Conductor Connections – Comprehensive section on equipment grounding identification of ground terminals etc. Various grounds are clamped to it. Grounding an antenna properly makes the antenna safe to use and also enables the best to be made of the performance of the antenna. I read with great interest Roy Lewallen's discussion of the conductivity of frozen soil and its effect on the performance of ground dependent antennas. 810-21 Grounding Conductors – Receiving Stations (referenced by 810-58) Carefully note (h). Post # 651. Grounding the case (usually with a ground screw conveniently provided thereupon) will reduce the risk of operator injury and equipment damage. Home Forums > Discussion Forums > Ham Radio Discussions > What can I use for a ground in an apartment? Eliminate ground loops and multi-point ground connections when possible. Lastly, practical grounding methods are presented that are based on the foregoing considerations. The best way to create a good ground connection is to use a metal cold water pipe. I have a Commercial Radio License, Extra Amateur License and 30+ years working with 2-way Radio, Paging, Trunking, HF and Microwave Radio Systems and Mobiles at a Fortune 50 Company. Connect the ground of the Rotator Case shield also to the Ground Buss Bar. In this short, well-made video, "taverned" shows us how he used a mag mount antenna, a simple C clamp, and a basic ground system to convert his mountain bike into a mobile station. —810.7 –bonding and grounding. Is considered a piece of equipment antenna safe to use a metal Cold water pipe case shield also the. 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