Posted: 1/31/2010 5:21:36 PM EDT
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Getting a metal roof (and I bet you can already see where this is going...) Can it be tuned as a random wire antenna? Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Usually a metal roof can be used as a ground plane for a physically separate antenna.
In that use the quality of the panel to panel joints and absolute dimensions in each direction apparently are less critical than trying to load the roof itself and an antenna. There are folk who write that they have successfully loaded just about every possible metal object as an antenna, so in good experimenter's spirit, give it a try (perhaps with an analyzer). Don't forget to do your RFI calculations if running any significant power, and expect a high likelihood of exciting resonant lengths of wiring - perhaps all workable or perhaps an RF mess? You won't know until you at least model the roof or do actual antenna analysis. My experiments with loading rainwear (gutters & downspouts) didn't work out at all, as loading in even 30 watts put a signal into about everything inside. Could hear & see it on audio, television and phone gear. The XYL was not happy with me at all! YMMV of course! 73 Steve K9ZW |
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Quoted:
My experiments with loading rainwear (gutters & downspouts) didn't work out at all, as loading in even 30 watts put a signal into about everything inside. Could hear & see it on audio, television and phone gear. You built the perfect RFI generator - every metal junction with even the faintest bit of corrosion becomes a noisy diode! 
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