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Re: LF: antenna losses

To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: LF: antenna losses
From: Rik Strobbe <[email protected]>
Date: Thu, 29 May 2008 22:36:16 +0200
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Hello Marcus,

the cracked branch "connected" my antenna to a repectable birch tree, so I not quite sure wether the 91 Watt was entirely dissipated by the leave.

And I think that I wouldn't be the first one to start a fire that way.

Anyway, I alway tune the antenna on low power (25 W) resulting in just a few 100 mA antenna current. Only after that I switch to full power (350 W) and as I noticed that the antenna current was low I only transmitted for a few seconds. Maybe the alternative solution would have been to give a long 350 W carrier and just burn the leave.

At this moment it is rainy, so no transmitting tonight.

73, Rik  ON7YD

Quoting Markus Vester <[email protected]>:

Hi Rik,

playing with your figures for current and resistance, one finds that the poor little twig would have dissipated 91 watts. Makes me worry whether it could have started a bushfire... During a fieldday a couple of years ago, we ignited bits of dry grass on the LF antenna wire for demonstration, which did create some respect for RF voltage amongst the bystanders.

73 and best of luck
Markus, DF6NM


-----Ursprüngliche Mitteilung-----
Von: Rik Strobbe <[email protected]>
An: [email protected]
Verschickt: Do., 29. Mai. 2008, 9:37
Thema: LF: antenna losses


Dear all, 
 
as I tried to tune my 500 kHz antenna last right I noticed that it was detuned by about 1.5 kHz (from 503 tot 501.5) and that the antenna current was down to 1.8 A (from 2.1 A).  A first visual control of the antenna revealed no possible cause. So I started to check the coax cables and variometer, but all was OK there.  During a second visual control (it was already getting dark) I noticed that a small branch of one of the surrounding trees was cracked (probably during a thunderstorm the night before) and just one leaf was touching the antenna wire. By gently pulling the downlead wire of the antenna a few times the cracked branch moved a bit and the leaves were now about 20 cm from the antenna wire. Now the antenna was back to 503 kHz and the antenna current back to 2.1 A. 
 
Of course I know that the antenna wire should not touch any greenery, but I was surprised of the rather large effect of just one (meanwhile dry) leave touching the antenna wire (that has 1mm plastic isolation). 
 
The loss resistance of my antenna system now is 78 Ohm, including 10 Ohm coil losses (with no touching leaves).  Few weeks ago I increased the height of the top wire from 9 m to 11 m, what slightly increase the loss from 73 to 78 Ohm.  This is would bring the signal about 0.3 dB down, but is more than compensated by the increase of the radiation resistance (+1.7 dB) 
 
During the first tests in February (with the 9m high antenna) I measured a loss of 55 Ohm, so the is a seasonal variation almost 20 Ohm (or 1.2 dB). 
 
73, Rik ON7YD - OR7T 
 
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