This one goes into the "lessons learned" category.
For the past 5 years I have used a J-Pole antenna for our transmitter. Purchased through KB9VBR, it is well made and very simple to use. It does a great job, very efficient, and pretty much disappears in the dark.
Since we opened the park display on November 21, I have been fighting the dreaded "hum" or "buzz". I know all the tricks and won't go into them now. When someone that I appreciate and admire posted a writeup of different displays in our area stated that there was a buzz on this larger show, I knew who he was talking about. (Very kind of him not mentioning my name or the display.) Still, it bugged me. I've been fighting this "buzz" and not getting any results. That is, until tonight.
The J-Pole uses a direct connection to ground via the pole that it is mounted on. using a piece of top-rail-fence, we simply sit the pole on the bare ground and anchor it with three guy-wires. Easy. Turns out this year the ground wasn't so "bare". No one noticed that the loam was supper thick under the point where we put the antenna. No wonder nothing I tried fixed it. The pole was not fully grounded. I would not have found it except that after pulling the whole thing down and checking all the connections and tweaking the clamps holding the pole to the ground, as I put it back up and turned the transmitter on, I noticed that while I was holding the pole, the buzz diminished.
To make the fix even better, I drove a metal stake into the ground right next to the pole and put a clamp around both. A guarantee that we were into solid ground.
So, the next time you have a buzz in your radio, do all those things that many have stated up here to correct it. Along with it, make sure your pole is properly grounded. It makes a world of a difference.
Lesson Learned!
ALG
For the past 5 years I have used a J-Pole antenna for our transmitter. Purchased through KB9VBR, it is well made and very simple to use. It does a great job, very efficient, and pretty much disappears in the dark.
Since we opened the park display on November 21, I have been fighting the dreaded "hum" or "buzz". I know all the tricks and won't go into them now. When someone that I appreciate and admire posted a writeup of different displays in our area stated that there was a buzz on this larger show, I knew who he was talking about. (Very kind of him not mentioning my name or the display.) Still, it bugged me. I've been fighting this "buzz" and not getting any results. That is, until tonight.
The J-Pole uses a direct connection to ground via the pole that it is mounted on. using a piece of top-rail-fence, we simply sit the pole on the bare ground and anchor it with three guy-wires. Easy. Turns out this year the ground wasn't so "bare". No one noticed that the loam was supper thick under the point where we put the antenna. No wonder nothing I tried fixed it. The pole was not fully grounded. I would not have found it except that after pulling the whole thing down and checking all the connections and tweaking the clamps holding the pole to the ground, as I put it back up and turned the transmitter on, I noticed that while I was holding the pole, the buzz diminished.
To make the fix even better, I drove a metal stake into the ground right next to the pole and put a clamp around both. A guarantee that we were into solid ground.
So, the next time you have a buzz in your radio, do all those things that many have stated up here to correct it. Along with it, make sure your pole is properly grounded. It makes a world of a difference.
Lesson Learned!
ALG
