Crazy question
 

Can one clean the elements on a antenna, to bring it back to its former self
, as when it was new, with some steel wool or something. Oil the attachment
point so they dont corrode.

Is there any mainenance tips one can do for an antenna.

The advice I received from an antenna guru (for what it is worth) is

"
For cleaning aluminum tubing, an antenna guru recommends the use of #0 steel
wool, along with dishwashing detergent. First wet the aluminum tubing with
water and wet the steel wool. Add a small amount of dishwashing detergent to
the steel wool and then scrub the aluminum. Rinse out the steel wool
periodically with water. Then add more dishwashing detergent to the steel
wool and clean again. Rinse off the aluminum tubing periodically. After
cleaning a piece of aluminum tubing, rinse it thoroughly with clean water
and then dry it off with a clean rag. When assembling an antenna after
cleaning the aluminum, apply a very thin film of Penetrox-A anti-oxidant to
all of the aluminum-to-aluminum connections. Unless you totally disassemble
and clean the traps, never attempt to clean the outer aluminum shells of
antenna traps as water and steel wool fragments can enter the traps causing
shorts and excessive trap moisture content.



When assembling any aluminum antenna, put a thin layer of based-based
anti-seize compound on all aluminum to aluminum joints. These are Penetrox-A
from the Burndy Corporation or another is Noalox. Never varnish any
antenna - the varnish penetrates into the joints and causes continuity
problems. Painting antennas for stealth can be done. Disassemble the
antenna, apply paint, then scrape away any paint where the aluminum makes an
electrical connection."



Comments welcome


--
Incognito By Necessity (:-(

If you can't convince them, confuse them.
- - -Harry S Truman




"cme" wrote in message
...
Can one clean the elements on a antenna, to bring it back to its former
self
, as when it was new, with some steel wool or something. Oil the
attachment
point so they dont corrode.

Is there any mainenance tips one can do for an antenna.

On Thu, 19 Feb 2004 06:43:25 -0800, "Incognito" wrote:
Comments welcome

Hi OM,

Baking Soda and Vinegar in the place of detergent. Much more
effective cleaner.

As for
Never varnish any antenna ...
Painting antennas for stealth can be done.
Is obviously contradictory - and within the space of two sentences.
At best, its only benefit is cosmetic and bare oxidized aluminum is
fairly invisible as it is. Attempts to "camouflage" it only attract
the eye.

73's
Richard Clark, KB7QHC

At best, its only benefit is cosmetic and bare oxidized aluminum is
fairly invisible as it is. Attempts to "camouflage" it only attract
the eye.

I had some surprising results with flat black paint on antennas.

Would you believe people walking right by a 2 x 3' horn antenna, mounted at
eye level, and not noticing it? Another foot closer, and they would have
walked right into it.

Somehow, flat black makes things "dissapear" against normal backgrounds.
Once you know it's there, you see it.

White paint is much more obvious. We had calls within days after replacing
a repeater antenna. The replacement was in a 1.5" diameter radome, and the
closest viewing point where you can actually see the antenna is about half a
mile away, due to the location of the antenna on the roof, and the height of
the building relative to the surrounding buildings.

On Thu, 19 Feb 2004 13:11:23 -0500, "Dave VanHorn"
wrote:
Somehow, flat black makes things "dissapear" against normal backgrounds.
Once you know it's there, you see it.

Hi Dave,

Now the issue becomes what is a "normal background?" Especially for
an antenna. Almost every color is darker than the sky and lends the
eye catching feature of drawing attention to it. It took years for
the Army to accept that lighting up large equipment located visually
against the sky (like on a ridge line) made it "disappear."

Oxidized aluminum does a very effective job of reflecting the
neighboring colors without specular hi-lights and thus blending in
quite well.

In reality, such disappearing acts arrive only through the viewer
becoming so used to seeing it that they are no longer notable.

73's
Richard Clark, KB7QHC

In reality, such disappearing acts arrive only through the viewer
becoming so used to seeing it that they are no longer notable.

With the flat black, I had the opposite experience.
I had people standing within arm's reach, of a large antenna, mounted at eye
level, asking me where the antenna is.
Once they saw it, they could always see it.

Very spooky.

Obviously it's at least partially psychological.

On Thu, 19 Feb 2004 14:28:38 -0500, "Dave VanHorn"
wrote:
Obviously it's at least partially psychological.

You shoulda asked them to point at the air duct. Their arms would've
sprung up automatically to the horn. Not seeing an "antenna" does not
make the antenna invisible. :-)

73's
Richard Clark, KB7QHC

"Richard Clark" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 19 Feb 2004 14:28:38 -0500, "Dave VanHorn"
wrote:
Obviously it's at least partially psychological.

You shoulda asked them to point at the air duct. Their arms would've
sprung up automatically to the horn. Not seeing an "antenna" does not
make the antenna invisible. :-)

You had to be there. We were talking about the antenna, shape size etc, the
people knew what they were looking for, and had seen unpainted versions
recently.

Sure. You can clean up metal elements with fine steel wool, and re-seal it
with varathane (or similar materials). Connection points can be cleaned up
and treated with a conductive lube. If you're restoring an old antenna,
you'll also want to think about replacing all the hardware (nuts & bolts)
with stainless steel, if available.

- Mike KI6PR
El Rancho R.F., CA

"cme" wrote
Can one clean the elements on a antenna, to bring it back to its former
self
, as when it was new, with some steel wool or something. Oil the
attachment
point so they dont corrode.

Is there any mainenance tips one can do for an antenna.

Scotch Bright is preferred. Steel slivers remaining in the aluminum *can*
accelerate bi-metalic corosion problems. Don't know how bad it can be in
actual practice, though.

--
Steve N, K,9;d, c. i My email has no u's.

"Mikey" wrote in message
...
Sure. You can clean up metal elements with fine steel wool, and re-seal
it
with varathane (or similar materials). Connection points can be cleaned
up
and treated with a conductive lube. If you're restoring an old antenna,
you'll also want to think about replacing all the hardware (nuts & bolts)
with stainless steel, if available.

- Mike KI6PR
El Rancho R.F., CA

"cme" wrote
Can one clean the elements on a antenna, to bring it back to its former
self
, as when it was new, with some steel wool or something. Oil the
attachment
point so they dont corrode.

Is there any mainenance tips one can do for an antenna.