[Antennas] Putting up a vertical

[Chris Boone]

Coax jackets will eventually get contaminated and allow water to ingress if
out in the sun, etc (may take YEARS or decades)...the UV breaks down the
jacket..but HOW SOON depends on the quality of the cable..(one reason you
always want to use BLACK coax in the sun...the BLACK, like Black Tie Wraps,
resists UV rays better which cause the cracking, etc). If you BURY coax, it
reacts with the acidic PH in the soil and ground water...and that can lead
to early contamination and erosion of the jacket...thus allowing outside
moisture to penetrate...In a conduit, there is less change of this happening
(provided water is not allowed to pool in the conduit)...Coax in the
sunlight/weather will last ok IF the ends are weather proofed ok and the
coax is good quality but eventually it will fail (but as I said, may take
decades depending on the quality...NO Radio Shack stuff here).....In the
ground, ALL coax is best if its buried in some conduit (PVC, etc)..
Only coax/Heliax made for direct burial is what you can trust when buried in
the ground with no conduit...but for safety sakes (to keep your shovel from
cutting your coax later :), PVC it....and use weather heads or seal it with
silicon, etc. where exposed to the weather to prevent water and critters
from making a home in there.

Chris 
WB5ITT


> -----Original Message-----
> From: antennas-bounces at mailman.qth.net 
> [mailto:antennas-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of 
> fkamp at comcast.net
> Sent: Tuesday, August 30, 2005 9:52 PM
> To: ka4inm at tampabay.rr.com
> Cc: a
> Subject: Re: [Antennas] Putting up a vertical
> 
> 
> 
> Ron Youvan wrote:
> > 
> > > Make sure the coax is good quality and seal the ends properly.
> > > You'll not be able to keep the line 100% dry ... but it will work.
> > 
> >    Or use direct burial rated Coax, such as Times LMR-400 
> instead of 
> > protecting cable designed for interior use only.
> >
> 
> All this traffic about buried coax getting wet has me 
> wondering about coax that is not buried. 
> Doesnt it get wet too?  I know mine does.  At least when it 
> rains.  Sometimes it rains very hard and the stuff gets 
> drippy wet.  Of course it is not buried.  Come to think of 
> it, if it were buried, it might not get near as wet.
> 
> Just a thought.
> 
> Regards,
> Frank Kamp