Envelope-to: dave@picks.force9.co.uk
Delivery-date: Sun, 31 Jul 2005 20:23:35 +0100
From: Steve Dove <dsp@hifidelity.com>
To: rsgb_lf_group@blacksheep.org
Date: Sun, 31 Jul 2005 19:21:59 -0000
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Subject: Re: LF: Suitable ground?
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Hi J.B.,

Here on top of a ridge, I've become quite 'well' acquainted with wells various.  
Ask me sometime about the dowser, how accurate he was, and why the well-
driller hates him.  And me.

Well heads tend to be less useful as RF or even safety grounds than would be 
expected;  after all a big chunk of metal in a deep hole sounds ideal, right?

Except for a few things:  The steel almost certainly doesn't go all the way down 
the well, indeed current practice here (Pennsylvania) is for just the top length (10 
- 20' or so) to be steel, the rest plastic, and then only down until the soil/rock is 
capable of holding the bore by itself, which often isn't far down at all.  Secondly, 
steel rapidly acquires a patina of rust, which makes for a lousy metal-to-dirt 
electrical interface.  Thirdly, if it is an active well (i.e. there's a pump at the 
bottom of it) the electrical noise of the pump running, or at the very least ker-
chunking on and off will induce itself into your ground and hence the antenna 
system;  in the same vein, there will be close coupling between general mains-
borne noise and your ground system, which again the receiver will hear  -  
especially so if the casing is used as a local safety ground for the pump. 

All that said, give it a try.  At the very least the run-out to the well-head will make 
a good radial/counterpoise.  But don't count on the well as the keystone to a 
decent RF ground.

        Cheers,

                Steve

http://www.w3eee.com


07/30/05 22:53:15, "J. B. Weazle McCreath" <weazle@hurontel.on.ca> wrote:

>
>
>  From:   "J. B. Weazle McCreath" <weazle@hurontel.on.ca>
>
>  To:     <rsgb_lf_group@blacksheep.org>
>  Date:   Sat, 30 Jul 2005 23:53:15 +0100
>  Subject:LF: Suitable ground?
>
>
>
>  Hello LFer's,
>   
>  The soil at my QTH is composed mostly of gravel, which makes getting a
>  decent ground for RF purposes rather difficult for two reasons, driving in
>
>  ground rods, and
>  poor soil conductivity.  However, about 150 feet from my house is a water
>  well in
>  the form of an 8 inch diameter steel pipe that goes down 275 feet!  Has
>
>  anyone
>  on the list had any experience using such as a ground for a Marconi 
antenna?
>   
>  Cheers, J.B.
>  VE3EAR - VE3WZL
>
>  EN93dr
>   


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