Has anyone given thought to converting attic "techshield" insulation
to a HDTV suitable antenna? I have a roof dormer (vertical section)
that faces the desired reception direction.

I am thinking a UHF patch antenna and a VHF patch antenna and then
combining the two - traditionally.

Ideas?

On Sat, 27 Sep 2008 10:50:34 -0500, - HAL9000 wrote:

Has anyone given thought to converting attic "techshield" insulation
to a HDTV suitable antenna? I have a roof dormer (vertical section)
that faces the desired reception direction.

I am thinking a UHF patch antenna and a VHF patch antenna and then
combining the two - traditionally.

Yes, I've used the stuff for patch antennas at 2.4GHz. It has a very
convenient aluminum foil layer on both sides. It works fairly well
with various foam dielectrics being useful well into the microwave
region. I'm still not sure of the electrical characteristics of the
varous insulating foam boards. I did best (so far) using common
Styrofoam, glue, and aluminum foil. Also common stationary store sign
board material. Lots of foam board types out the
http://www.rigidfoammachining.com/rigid-foams.html
The hard part is figuring out which type of foam your favorite
insulation uses and what the manufactory has added. I found one brand
that has some kind of anti-static conductive additive added to prevent
the foam board from turning into a big capacitor and zapping the
installer. Kinda marginal for an antenna. Be careful and do some
measuring.

However, you're not going to do well with HDTV and patch antennas.
Unless you're building a single channel TV antenna, the patch antenna
is just too narrow band to be useful. It's also difficult to build
complex structures on home insulating foam. The patch size will be
rather huge to cover the lower VHF frequencies.

Good idea for a fairly narrow band patch antenna, but HDTV is the
wrong application.


--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

"- HAL9000" wrote in message
...
Has anyone given thought to converting attic "techshield" insulation
to a HDTV suitable antenna? I have a roof dormer (vertical section)
that faces the desired reception direction.

I am thinking a UHF patch antenna and a VHF patch antenna and then
combining the two - traditionally.

Ideas?


I have one patch antenna. I made it from online plans for 1.58 GHz -- a GPS
antenna for my old Garmin handheld. With a short length of coax attached, I
secure the patch antenna to the luggage rack and not worry whether the
Garmin is near a window. (Newer units are more sensitive -- no need.)

The patch antenna is not very directional, a good thing for GPS, since you
want a view of the whole sky but maybe not such a good thing for TV
reception unless you want a non-directional antenna. I think the patch
antenna is circular polarized. You'll lose 3 dB using it for linear
polarization.

Sure, it might work for UHF TV but it doesn't seem like the ideal.

Sal M. Onella wrote:
"- HAL9000" wrote in message
...
Has anyone given thought to converting attic "techshield" insulation
to a HDTV suitable antenna? I have a roof dormer (vertical section)
that faces the desired reception direction.

I am thinking a UHF patch antenna and a VHF patch antenna and then
combining the two - traditionally.

Ideas?


I have one patch antenna. I made it from online plans for 1.58 GHz -- a GPS
antenna for my old Garmin handheld. With a short length of coax attached, I
secure the patch antenna to the luggage rack and not worry whether the
Garmin is near a window. (Newer units are more sensitive -- no need.)

The patch antenna is not very directional, a good thing for GPS, since you
want a view of the whole sky but maybe not such a good thing for TV
reception unless you want a non-directional antenna. I think the patch
antenna is circular polarized. You'll lose 3 dB using it for linear
polarization.

Sure, it might work for UHF TV but it doesn't seem like the ideal.



You'd have better luck making a collinear quad out of coat hangers.

(It's fun actually talking about antennas instead of BS...)