I have a 5.8GHz digital cordless phone system (two handsets and base
station) that has reasonable range. It works fine inside the house and
within about 30-50m of the house outside. The house is steel frame clad
with cementitious planking and plasterboard lining, and has a steel roof.

Is it possible to improve the range of the handsets outside the house using
simple supplementary aerials or by relocating the base station? If so where
might I find design details?

I am competent with tools (I built the house) but don't know much about
radio.

David

On Wed, 23 Sep 2009 12:47:17 +1000, "David Hare-Scott"
wrote:

Is it possible to improve the range of the handsets outside the house using
simple supplementary aerials or by relocating the base station? If so where
might I find design details?

Hi David,

I'm astonished you get as far as you claim. To get further can be
achieved, but the manufacturer and the FCC both conspire to make that
a difficult job (you don't see any antenna jacks do you?).

73's
Richard Clark, KB7QHC

Apart from installing higher gain antennae on each unit, there is nothing
you can do.
The steel frame will act like a Faraday shield.
How far do you want the phone to work?
John
"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message
...
I have a 5.8GHz digital cordless phone system (two handsets and base
station) that has reasonable range. It works fine inside the house and
within about 30-50m of the house outside. The house is steel frame clad
with cementitious planking and plasterboard lining, and has a steel roof.

Is it possible to improve the range of the handsets outside the house
using simple supplementary aerials or by relocating the base station? If
so where might I find design details?

I am competent with tools (I built the house) but don't know much about
radio.

David

"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message
...
I have a 5.8GHz digital cordless phone system (two handsets and base
station) that has reasonable range. It works fine inside the house
and within about 30-50m of the house outside. The house is steel
frame clad with cementitious planking and plasterboard lining, and
has a steel roof.

Is it possible to improve the range of the handsets outside the house
using simple supplementary aerials or by relocating the base
station? If so where might I find design details?

I am competent with tools (I built the house) but don't know much
about radio.

David

VK2KC wrote:
Apart from installing higher gain antennae on each unit, there is
nothing you can do.
The steel frame will act like a Faraday shield.
How far do you want the phone to work?
John

150m would be nice if it can be done without too much trouble.

David

Mount the base unit outside the house, high and clear with good LOS to
wherever you want to use it? You may need another unit on the other side
of the house.... grin

Height and removal of path obstructions all help.

Also think about mounting it behind a window. There will be some loss
but it might be better than the walls. Experiment!

Cheers Bob VK2YQA

David Hare-Scott wrote:


150m would be nice if it can be done without too much trouble.

David

On Sep 22, 10:47*pm, "David Hare-Scott" wrote:
I have a 5.8GHz digital cordless phone system (two handsets and base
station) *that has reasonable range. *It works fine inside the house and
within about 30-50m of the house outside. *The house is steel frame clad
with cementitious planking and plasterboard lining, and has a steel roof.

Is it possible to improve the range of the handsets outside the house using
simple supplementary aerials or by relocating the base station? *If so where
might I find design details?

*I am competent with tools (I built the house) but don't know much about
radio.

David

That is about the same range I get on mine. I used to put my base
station upstairs to improve the range. This worked well enough to fill
some areas in my yard that were not covered. Some of the range
extending antennas for wireless routers may help. I think they are in
the same frequency range.

Jimmie

My answer was to find a 900 MHz unit at a thrift store.

In article
,
"VK2KC" wrote:

Apart from installing higher gain antennae on each unit, there is nothing
you can do.
The steel frame will act like a Faraday shield.
How far do you want the phone to work?
John
"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message
...
I have a 5.8GHz digital cordless phone system (two handsets and base
station) that has reasonable range. It works fine inside the house and
within about 30-50m of the house outside. The house is steel frame clad
with cementitious planking and plasterboard lining, and has a steel roof.

Is it possible to improve the range of the handsets outside the house
using simple supplementary aerials or by relocating the base station? If
so where might I find design details?

I am competent with tools (I built the house) but don't know much about
radio.

David


Not at 5.8 Ghz it won't. It will not even be seen at that frequency. Now
if the guys house was stucco/chicken wire with holes smaller that 1/4"
then maybe, but Steel Frame Members are why to long to be a worry, at
these frequencies.....

On Sep 22, 7:47*pm, "David Hare-Scott" wrote:
I have a 5.8GHz digital cordless phone system (two handsets and base
station) *that has reasonable range. *It works fine inside the house and
within about 30-50m of the house outside. *The house is steel frame clad
with cementitious planking and plasterboard lining, and has a steel roof.

Is it possible to improve the range of the handsets outside the house using
simple supplementary aerials or by relocating the base station? *If so where
might I find design details?

*I am competent with tools (I built the house) but don't know much about
radio.

David

David, before you give up, you can ALWAYS add an external antenna by
capacitively coupling the to antenna. Try this:

I live in a older triple wide manufactured home with aluminum siding.
The door bell on the front door was mechanical. There was no bell for
the back and no way to put in standard wired bells. I bought a pair of
electronic battery operated bells. The central unit always hears the
front door bell because it is 10 feet away and through glass windows.

The back door bell unit could not be heard by the control unit unless
the two doors leading to the outside were open. Not much good that
way. I cured the problem by drilling a hole just above the outside
push button unit and running a solid copper wire through the hole and
bent the end into a circle and left it close to the bell unit. Inside
the "mud room", I ran the wire several feet up and over a storm door
and along the ceiling toward the actual house. Still one aluminum
covered wall between the wire and the central bell unit. Now the
central unit always hears the back pus button unit. If it couldn't, I
was prepared to run the wire on into the house a ways.

So, try running a wire from the phone base unit to the outside of your
house. Experiment with length and placement to see if you get improved
distance. My electronic bell runs in the 300 MHz range, but may well
work for your unit, as well.

Good luck, Paul KD7HB

You wrote:
In article
,
"VK2KC" wrote:

Apart from installing higher gain antennae on each unit, there is
nothing you can do.
The steel frame will act like a Faraday shield.
How far do you want the phone to work?
John
"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message
...
I have a 5.8GHz digital cordless phone system (two handsets and base
station) that has reasonable range. It works fine inside the
house and within about 30-50m of the house outside. The house is
steel frame clad with cementitious planking and plasterboard
lining, and has a steel roof.

Is it possible to improve the range of the handsets outside the
house using simple supplementary aerials or by relocating the base
station? If so where might I find design details?

I am competent with tools (I built the house) but don't know much
about radio.

David


Not at 5.8 Ghz it won't. It will not even be seen at that frequency.
Now if the guys house was stucco/chicken wire with holes smaller that
1/4" then maybe, but Steel Frame Members are why to long to be a
worry, at these frequencies.....

The apetures in the frame are mostly about 1200mm by 600m and the members
are 38mmx75mm. I expected that the signal would go right through with
little interferance but I wanted check with the experts. If that is the
case it seems to me that moving the base station outside the frame a bit
which does little to alter the line of sight to handsets 50m away will not
do very much good. Would you agree?

David