Experiencing sway with my antenna mast

I use a 20 ft length of 1" gal. water pipe. We get winds up to 40 with gusts over 50> I get very little sway. Have had no problems yet. I use the same type of set up for both my VP and 918.
Chuck

That does look OK. How well is the gatepost anchored into the ground…does the fence/gatepost move if you push it?

That’s the problem…

The fences in the neighborhood (as far as the townhomes go) are almost 20 years old (18 years approximately).

Although, when we get winds of 30+ mph, the fence doesn’t move that much at all…But if you push on it, then it will move.

Thanks.

–Tim

Maybe you could put a good solid post in the ground next to the gatepost. Embed it in concrete and say it’s to support the fence/gatepost. Then you can put your antenna pole in it as well to reduce the stress on the fence :wink:

That would be nice and I wish I could do that, but I have no control over that - the neighborhood committee does. :frowning:

They also suggested that they’re going to be replacing the fences in the next year or two, but that’s a fat chance.

I guess I will see how the hose clamps work and let you know.

Thanks.

–Tim

Tim, I would change the location of the mast sections. Take the mast apart, put the 5’ section on the bottom, place a board on top of that pipe (to keep from damaging the pipe end) and drive it into the ground a few inches. Put a pipe clamp like the one you have above the gate hinge at the top of the post and one or two below. Before you try that measure the post to make sure it is over five feet tall. (NOTE: You won’t be able to drive the mast into the ground if the post is set in concrete and if you can’t get the sections to meet below the top of the post then I wouldn’t try changing the sections and go with your original plan.)
Good luck.
–Dave

Thanks Dave and everyone else that helped me.

–Tim

Well, I just went out and bought a pack of two hose clamps and borrowed a neighbors ladder. I put the two right near where the two poles connect (one on top of the connection and one right above - touching each other). I shook the 10’ pole to see if it had worked, but no luck - it still swayed. Then, just to be sure, I shut the fence door, but it still swayed.

I’m not sure what else I can do, but it seems as if the problem is that the anemometer and the solar panel are too close to eachother. Since they’re both at the very top of the 5’ pole (within 6" of eachother about), I think that’s making the antenna mast top-heavy.

–Tim

Anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks.

–Tim

Have you definitely identified the source of the problem? Is the join between the sections bad (sloppy), and one section is moving within the other? Or is the fence post moving?

Tim,

One last idea… Get a 1 - 2 foot piece of PVC pipe, that has an inside diameter no larger than the mast you have, it can be a bit smaller but cannot be larger. Cut the PVC pipe in 1/2 lengthwise, then position both halves around the joint of the mast and use the two clamps to clamp it in place above and below the joint…

Drawing of PVC cut in 1/2:
http://actionstep.com/oddsNends/PVCcut1-2.gif

-Bob

Thanks Niko and Bob.

The joint between the two masts is put as tight together as possible, but it’s still not secure. If you shake the 10 ft. mast (about halfway down - or up - the mast), then the 5 ft. mast shakes. Maybe there isn’t enough support from the fence (ie, the mast is too 15 ft. high, but only has 4 ft. of support from the fence)?

Also, as I shake the 10 ft. mast, the fence also moves slightly, but enough to notice it.

Thanks.

–Tim

Those RS masts are pretty hard material, so I don’t think pipe clips will squeeze them enough to clamp. So the two options I would try are to shim the joint, means pull it apart and put a thin strip of metal in to make the joint tight, or drill a small hole and screw a sheet metal screw to tie the two poles together. Remember that any movement in the fence post will be greatly exaggerated if you are looking at the top of the mast. Yes, I do think the support (fence) is too short for a 15ft pole, can you use just the 10ft one, or is that just too low?

It sounds to me like your only option is to use guy-wires…15 feet is quite a span without them!

I would love to use the 10 ft. pole, which would be much make the anemometer and its solar transmitter much easier to access and much more stable, but as you mentioned, that would be way to short.

Most of the surrounding trees (less than 25 feet away) are atleast 10 feet, most of them actually being atleast 15 feet tall.

Kevin, guy wires would not be allowed by the neighborhood association, but that would be great if I could use them.

Thanks for everyone’s help.

–Tim

What about hidden guy wires? Would you get away with some very fine nylon line (as used by anglers). If anyone comments say something about not wanting to meet the spider who spun that web :wink: You probably don’t need a lot of extra support to stop the swaying so line with a fairly low breaking strain will probably work.

From reading through this thread it appears to me that the problem is entirely to do with the fence post. It is just not a firm enough mount to start with. Guy wires would need to go perpendicular to the fence line and that would intrude into the neighbour’s yard. They won’t like that!
What is really needed is to move your mount off that flimsy fence. Is it possible to move the maast against the house and stay from the roof level. That is how mine is setup. I have about 20 feet of inch and a quarter water pipe from the ground. It is braced at the top of the block wall, about 8 feet above ground. That was fine at first as it only help my TV antenna. But after adding the Vantage Pro Plus I noticed it moved around in the breeze just a bit more then I thought it should. Two short stays off the roof soon fixed that and it as very stable now.
Another option is to install an outdoor TV antenna and mount the anometer just above the antenna. Tell them it is a new fandangle antenna with this gismo for keeping birds off the antenna :lol:

Chris, I don’t think I would even have enough room in my backyard, anyhow. We just got a deck built, which takes up about half of the yard, so there isn’t much room left at all.

Qwarla, I doubt the association will even allow that. :frowning: :roll:

Now, the woman that lives across the street (head of the neighborhood association) is thinking about moving to Florida sometime soon, so I am praying for that. [-o< :wink: :lol:

Thanks.

–Tim

Ohhh how nice send the mean lady my way HUH :stuck_out_tongue:

I bet Tim when he looks to buy his first house will ask one question first…

Is this part of a Neighborhood Association? If yes then the answer is NO LOL

-Bob

Ohhh how nice send the mean lady my way HUH :P

Oh yeah, by the way, I saw her the other day and she said that she was thinking about moving in Jacksonville next to Bob.