city SWLing Question
 

I am moving to Rochester NY and am planning on living right in the city
there. I am wondering what the SWL will be like with the houses packed
right on top of each other. My present situation is good with
underground utilities. Will my next door neighbor's computer trash end
up on the power lines right outside my window and destroy any chance I
have to swl? Is there anything I can do to mitigate the noise beyond
sticking antenna in back yard far away from power lines?

I would like to hear how others fare while living in a city
environment.

thanks.

NEO

city SWLing Question
 

Bart Bailey wrote:
In posted on Wed, 13 Dec
2006 03:07:21 GMT, Bart Bailey wrote: Begin

I posted three pics that illustrate the proximity of power lines
to my house. nntp:alt.binaries.pictures.tools

Better format would be news:alt.binaries.pictures.tools

--

Bart

Ok, thanks for the post Bart. I'm going to be very limited when I get
there. Looks like I'll be renting a small studio or room for the first
3mos. Some kinda not-so-obvious wire plugged into a portable for the
first go around. I'll bring my homebrew BCB loop too.

I don't know exactly how to access the binaries of your antennas you
posted. 15 years ago I would have used uuencode on my unix machine.
Please give me a hint how to retreive.

regards,
NEO

city SWLing Question
 

Ok, got em Bart. I tried to go there with web browser but outlook
opened up and they were right there.

So if you do ok with that setup then I might have a fighting chance.
It almost looks like wires go directly over the roof. Is that right?
Also looks like there is a phone pole sprouting directly out of your
roof. Just the photo angle I 'm sure.

Thanks again.

regards,
NEO

city SWLing Question
 

On 12 Dec 2006 18:06:21 -0800, "N9NEO"
wrote:

I am moving to Rochester NY and am planning on living right in the city
there. I am wondering what the SWL will be like with the houses packed
right on top of each other. My present situation is good with
underground utilities. Will my next door neighbor's computer trash end
up on the power lines right outside my window and destroy any chance I
have to swl? Is there anything I can do to mitigate the noise beyond
sticking antenna in back yard far away from power lines?

I would like to hear how others fare while living in a city
environment.

thanks.

NEO

I have the year 2000 ARRL handbook, and chapter 28 gives some pretty
good basic stuff on EMI, whether you're generating it or receiving it.
The ARRL RFI Book is also available from Amazon at $18 bucks.

I do okay with just the noise blanker in my rig -- there are all kinds
of external devices you can get nowadays from Timewave, GAP and MFJ.

Bob
k5qwg

city SWLing Question
 

Bob Miller wrote:
On 12 Dec 2006 18:06:21 -0800, "N9NEO"
wrote:

I am moving to Rochester NY and am planning on living right in the city
there. I am wondering what the SWL will be like with the houses packed
right on top of each other. My present situation is good with
underground utilities. Will my next door neighbor's computer trash end
up on the power lines right outside my window and destroy any chance I
have to swl? Is there anything I can do to mitigate the noise beyond
sticking antenna in back yard far away from power lines?

I would like to hear how others fare while living in a city
environment.




You'll want to pay particular attention to your antenna installation.

Noise WILL be higher than in the weeds, owing to a greater number
and higher density of sources. You'll get crap from older TV sets, noisy
monitors, dimmers and security lights (which can be the WORST), air
conditioners, garage door openers, and some street lights, and corona
discharges on powerline insulators. In older homes, your own wall warts,
and powersupplies may contribute, because of the way older wiring is
laid out.

And don't overlook trash from broadcasters. In higher, local signal
areas, overload, harmonics, splatter, and digital has can all contribute
to headaches on the SW bands.

Selection of a noise avoiding antenna, like an MTA, by RF Systems,
or loop by Wellbrook, and the like, will help. Proper grounding will
often help, but not always. And installation of the antenna at noise
minima will help.


Take care with your installation, and you can enjoy SWL and what
AMDX remains, nearly as much as you can in the suburbs.

city SWLing Question
 

D Peter Maus wrote:
Bob Miller wrote:
On 12 Dec 2006 18:06:21 -0800, "N9NEO"
wrote:

I am moving to Rochester NY and am planning on living right in the city
there. I am wondering what the SWL will be like with the houses packed
right on top of each other. My present situation is good with
underground utilities. Will my next door neighbor's computer trash end
up on the power lines right outside my window and destroy any chance I
have to swl? Is there anything I can do to mitigate the noise beyond
sticking antenna in back yard far away from power lines?

I would like to hear how others fare while living in a city
environment.




You'll want to pay particular attention to your antenna installation.

Noise WILL be higher than in the weeds, owing to a greater number
and higher density of sources. You'll get crap from older TV sets, noisy
monitors, dimmers and security lights (which can be the WORST), air
conditioners, garage door openers, and some street lights, and corona
discharges on powerline insulators. In older homes, your own wall warts,
and powersupplies may contribute, because of the way older wiring is
laid out.

And don't overlook trash from broadcasters. In higher, local signal
areas, overload, harmonics, splatter, and digital has can all contribute
to headaches on the SW bands.

Selection of a noise avoiding antenna, like an MTA, by RF Systems,
or loop by Wellbrook, and the like, will help. Proper grounding will
often help, but not always. And installation of the antenna at noise
minima will help.


Take care with your installation, and you can enjoy SWL and what
AMDX remains, nearly as much as you can in the suburbs.

Peter, you and Bob and the other folks have given a good rundown of the
exact set of issues I have to deal with here in the Bay Area. I know I
have a somewhat noisy house, but the real garbage is the incredibly
RFI-rich environment outside. With three local 50kW AM stations at
arm's length, two of which blurt out harmonics up to 6 or 7, a passell
of neighbors with trash outdoor lighting and several noisy powerlines
nearby, it's a wonder anything can get through the mess.

I don't use a Wellbrokk of other loop (I probably ought to try one),
just a DX-Ultra (coax lead-in) strung out as best I can on a small lot,
and a 60-foot plus 20-foot lead-in Inverted L terminated at a matching
transformer outside, with coax lead in. I phase these two together for
noise purposes with a MFJ-1026. The contraption helps in some cases,
not so much in others. The nosie blanker on the radio helps some too.

The single most annoying things, which none of my noise-reduction
artillery can effectively handle, are the malfunctioning transformers
and streetlights in the neighborhood. Once a month, I have to make a
trip around on foot at night to see what is malfunctioning and where,
and report it to PG&E and the County to get it fixed. It's a hassle,
but it's well worth the trouble.

Bruce Jensen

city SWLing Question
 

bpnjensen wrote:
D Peter Maus wrote:
Bob Miller wrote:
On 12 Dec 2006 18:06:21 -0800, "N9NEO"
wrote:

I am moving to Rochester NY and am planning on living right in the city
there. I am wondering what the SWL will be like with the houses packed
right on top of each other. My present situation is good with
underground utilities. Will my next door neighbor's computer trash end
up on the power lines right outside my window and destroy any chance I
have to swl? Is there anything I can do to mitigate the noise beyond
sticking antenna in back yard far away from power lines?

I would like to hear how others fare while living in a city
environment.




You'll want to pay particular attention to your antenna installation.

Noise WILL be higher than in the weeds, owing to a greater number
and higher density of sources. You'll get crap from older TV sets, noisy
monitors, dimmers and security lights (which can be the WORST), air
conditioners, garage door openers, and some street lights, and corona
discharges on powerline insulators. In older homes, your own wall warts,
and powersupplies may contribute, because of the way older wiring is
laid out.

And don't overlook trash from broadcasters. In higher, local signal
areas, overload, harmonics, splatter, and digital has can all contribute
to headaches on the SW bands.

Selection of a noise avoiding antenna, like an MTA, by RF Systems,
or loop by Wellbrook, and the like, will help. Proper grounding will
often help, but not always. And installation of the antenna at noise
minima will help.


Take care with your installation, and you can enjoy SWL and what
AMDX remains, nearly as much as you can in the suburbs.

Peter, you and Bob and the other folks have given a good rundown of the
exact set of issues I have to deal with here in the Bay Area. I know I
have a somewhat noisy house, but the real garbage is the incredibly
RFI-rich environment outside. With three local 50kW AM stations at
arm's length, two of which blurt out harmonics up to 6 or 7, a passell
of neighbors with trash outdoor lighting and several noisy powerlines
nearby, it's a wonder anything can get through the mess.

I don't use a Wellbrokk of other loop (I probably ought to try one),
just a DX-Ultra (coax lead-in) strung out as best I can on a small lot,
and a 60-foot plus 20-foot lead-in Inverted L terminated at a matching
transformer outside, with coax lead in. I phase these two together for
noise purposes with a MFJ-1026. The contraption helps in some cases,
not so much in others. The nosie blanker on the radio helps some too.

The single most annoying things, which none of my noise-reduction
artillery can effectively handle, are the malfunctioning transformers
and streetlights in the neighborhood. Once a month, I have to make a
trip around on foot at night to see what is malfunctioning and where,
and report it to PG&E and the County to get it fixed. It's a hassle,
but it's well worth the trouble.

Bruce Jensen

Yea, all you guys are right. I'll probably reference this thread when
I get settled in Rochester. I've got 10 acres on a hilltop available
to me an hour south of Rochester so I'll take a ride up to the top of
the hill and see what that sounds like. I think closest house to the
property is about a half mile, so should be nice and quiet. I can't
commute that kind of distance so I'll just have to live with whatever
noise is there - beyond Bruce's approach of evening recon and calling
in grid peeps to fix their probs.

73
NEO