OK, I've bought my frist HF transceiver. Now I want to get on the
air.
I have some basic questions, that may sound dumb..but hey, I'm new
to this, as was everyone at one time, so...I'm wondering how careful
I need to be setting up a station ground, and setting up the antenna.
For instance, is the grounding through the wall outlet sufficient for
the radio? Or should I run a short line from true "earth
ground" (i.e.
via a pipe driven into the earth so many inches, etc.)? As for the
antenna...I have a dipole ordered and am wondering about the cautions
I've read regarding RF, and shocks, etc. Is it safe to have an
antenna
with wires exposed/un-insulated? Can an antenna come into contact
with, or lay on top of say a roof? Are antennas a shock hazard, or
spark/electrical fire hazard, RF exposure hazard? How can these
problems be reasonably minimized? Are there any other things I
need to be cautious about? Also, my father thinks I'm likely to drive
my neighbors crazy with interference from my radio :-{ Any advice?

You passed the test and you have to ask these questions?

On Apr 4, 6:18 am, "Jeff" wrote:
OK, I've bought my frist HF transceiver. Now I want to get on the
air.
I have some basic questions, that may sound dumb..but hey, I'm new
to this, as was everyone at one time, so...I'm wondering how careful
I need to be setting up a station ground, and setting up the antenna.
For instance, is the grounding through the wall outlet sufficient for
the radio? Or should I run a short line from true "earth
ground" (i.e.
via a pipe driven into the earth so many inches, etc.)? As for the
antenna...I have a dipole ordered and am wondering about the cautions
I've read regarding RF, and shocks, etc. Is it safe to have an
antenna
with wires exposed/un-insulated? Can an antenna come into contact
with, or lay on top of say a roof? Are antennas a shock hazard, or
spark/electrical fire hazard, RF exposure hazard? How can these
problems be reasonably minimized? Are there any other things I
need to be cautious about? Also, my father thinks I'm likely to drive
my neighbors crazy with interference from my radio :-{ Any advice?

Yes, I've actually had a license for awhile and didn't have the spare $
$ to buy a radio. So, I'm
a bit rusty...and also want "real life" info.

On Apr 4, 11:02 am, "cmdr buzz corey"
wrote:
You passed the test and you have to ask these questions?

On Apr 4, 8:18�am, "Jeff" wrote:
OK, I've bought my frist HF transceiver. *Now I want to get on the
air.
I have some basic questions, that may sound dumb..but hey, I'm new
to this, as was everyone at one time, so...I'm wondering how careful
I need to be setting up a station ground, and setting up the antenna.
For instance, is the grounding through the wall outlet sufficient for
the radio? *Or should I run a short line from true "earth
ground" (i.e.
via a pipe driven into the earth so many inches, etc.)?

Jeff, trying to ground your station through your outlets is not within
code nor is it recommend (except incidentary use, normally done using
the standard three prong plug that is on your equipment), as it will
probably induce RF onto your house wiring and AC mains, plus can cause
problems that could be lethal in certain situations. You should have
your station grounded to at least one if not more 8 foot ground rods.
I use five bonded together in a y pattern at my station but I believe
in overkill in certain areas, which this is one. Second there are two
types of ground, safety and RF. There is good information on the web
about this subject I suggest that you research both subjects on the
net. Try eham or the Arrl web sites.

*As for the
antenna...I have a dipole ordered and am wondering about the cautions
I've read regarding RF, and shocks, etc. *Is it safe to have an
antenna
with wires exposed/un-insulated?

Yes, it safe to have the antenna wires uninsulated, but not safe if
someone comes in contact with the wire while you are transmitting, can
cause severe RF burns depending on power used/frequency in use/and
antenna configuration.

*Can an antenna come into contact
with, or lay on top of say a roof? *Are antennas a shock hazard, or
spark/electrical fire hazard, RF exposure hazard? *How can these
problems be reasonably minimized? *Are there any other things I
need to be cautious about?

Not a good idea to have your antenna contact anything except an
insulator. As noted above antennas can be hazardous and in some
situations could become a fire hazard, such as a lighting strike
looking for a place to ground and it finds your roof to be an
appropriate place to discharge.

RF exposure is always a consideration and with the conditions you
indicated in your prior post with a close-to-ground installation, not
only do you need to be concerned with RF exposure, FCC rules required
you to consider RF exposure as a part of your installation and
operating.

Also, my father thinks I'm likely to drive
my neighbors crazy with interference from my radio :-{ *Any advice?

It is a possiblity, how much interference varies from place to place.
At one previous installation of mine, I had serious RF interference
problems. At that site I had towers, yagi, dipoles, vertical
antennas, and never ran over 200 watts. The last installation I had
was in a HOA controlled area. I ran an outdoor loop wire antenna,
indoor dipoles, and verticals. I ran up to 200 watts and never had any
complaints from the neighbors. There are so many varibles from site to
site it is just impossible to tell if you will have any interference
issues until you install your station.