[TVARC] Flagpole Wind Load

[Ed Deichler]

Rick,

By all means, lower the antenna.  I also have a 6BTV with the DX
Engineering tiltbase.  I lowered it when Irma came through for peace of
mind.  Not long after, I suffered a bent support of the antenna mount when
a microburst suddenly came through in a storm.  A neighbor had a palm tree
snap off.

BTW, 2 1/2 inch PVC sounds too narrow to accommodate the 80 meter coil at
the top.

73 de Ed

On Mon, Aug 28, 2023 at 1:33 AM w3us at casa-aloha.net <w3us at casa-aloha.net>
wrote:

> Great question Rick!  I’ve had my 6-BTV/flagpole up for about three years
> now, and yes it does sway a bit in the wind.  I usually lower my flag (yes,
> I do fly one) when winds are over 12-15MPH.  I recommend a nylon flag as it
> places less stress on the flagpole.  As for using the tilt - I’ve only
> lowered mine when under a hurricane warning, such as Ian last year.  The
> tilt base makes it easy to lower the antenna whenever you feel comfortable
> doing so.
>
> Good luck, and welcome to the 6-BTV family!
>
> Rusty - W3US
>
> On Aug 27, 2023, at 16:03, <rick at kd9my.com> <rick at kd9my.com> wrote:
>
> Hello all,
> I finally got my 6BTV installed this week and disguised as a flag pole
> (2-1/2” pvc).
> Ground plane is a combination of radials and 45 sq ft of ground screen
> bonded to an 8’ driven ground rod at the base.
> Preliminary testing shows good results on FT8.
>
> My question is:
> Do others lower the antenna/flagpole when high winds are predicted?  If
> so, what speed?
> The whole thing does move around a little with the wind.
> I used the DX Engineering tilt over base so, it won’t be  hard to fold
> over if needed.
>
> Thanks,
> Rick KD9MY
>
>
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