Being in outside repair with ATT for 40 years, I had plenty of experience
with attempting to seal closures. First of all if the closure, splice or
what have you is NOT encapsulated it will get wet. Either from
condensation or from weather exposer. Taping a splice or connection will
only retain moister and get worse, it is better to leave a splice open to
the weather than try to tape it, better yet encapsulate it. Temperature
changes cause condensation inside closures and it will stay there. The
best thing to do is allow the closure to breath. Put a hole (3/8) at the
low point of the closure and cover with a piece of screen (to keep bugs
out). You connections will be much happier.
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Good information above. I was going to make a similar post, before my power
outage (36 hours and counting).
The biggest mistake is trying to seal something non-sealable. It either has
to be 100% encapsulated with no air leakage ever, or it has to breathe at
the lowest dry spot. Both ladder lines and coax (unless 100% bonded
internally or flooded) will breath.
If we look at commercial two-way antennas, they either seal flooded or
pressurized cables or they use rain boots or lower weather-shielded drain
holes. They don't try to seal.
I probably have hundreds of connectors and dozens of outdoor boxes, and
virtually none are sealed at the low spots. They are booted or hooded (open
at the bottom) or flooded with a dielectric compound.
Sealing things not properly designed to be sealed, like standard coax or
ladder line, is a mistake. As said above, it is much better to leave
something not flooded or pressurized open.
73 Tom
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Topband Reflector
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