[mythtv-users] Reconnecting an old antenna

[Meatwad]

William Munson wrote:
> Marc Sherman wrote:
>> I've got an old antenna tower (probably left over from the 70s) next to
>> my house, that I plan to reconnect as soon as my shiny new HDHomeRun
>> arrives. The antennas (uhf/vhf) are still mounted at the top of the
>> tower, but the cables were all cut years ago. So I'll need to connect
>> new cables to the antenna, and run them inside to my server room in the
>> basement.

> Grounding should be done with a coax feed-through terminal block 
> designed for the purpose. This should be done at the base of the tower 
> if you are running the coax underground or at the outside of the house 
> if you run the coax in the air from tower to house. You will need to 
> drive a 3 foot long copper rod into the ground next to the block and 
> connect the block to it with a heavy gauge wire no longer than 2 foot 
> long. Follow the recommendations on the terminal block docs.

Hmmm. Grounding rods are generally available in 5/8 and 1/2 inch 
diameters either 8 or 10 feet long. Maybe it's just the region I'm in 
(Chicago suburbs) but the soil/earth conductivity conditions here call 
for a minimum of seven feet. If I can't drive it that far, I'll abandon 
it a send another down.

My best advice is to borrow a larger rotary impact hammer such as 
http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-11224VSR-SDS-Rotary-Hammer/dp/B00002246T. 
Basically, any rotary hammer that uses a spline-type locking mechanism 
to hold it's tools will work. Simply remove the tool, adjust the hammer 
for impact only, set it of the top of the rod (a ladder is usually 
required), pull the trigger and watch the rod quickly disappear into the 
earth.

Keep in mind that there may be a footing at the bottom of the foundation 
of your home/structure that may extend six or eight inches from the 
visible foundation at grade level so leave yourself some breathing room 
and try to pitch the rod on a slight angle away from the foundation as 
it is driven.

--
mw