Topband: Radial Wire System Comparison - (was adding a parasitic reflect

[MICHAEL ST ANGELO]

Paul,

I got a good deal on stranded teflon wire. It cost me $0. I lay it on the ground. The only issue I have with it is that the wire is stranded and it wicks in moisture. Teflon is easily nicked and the moisture finds it's way in.

You mentioned your wire is solid so you should not have that problem. 

In any case I'd be hesitant in removing the insulation and soldering. The exposed joints may corrode.

I got my wire 25 years ago. At that time teflon was cheap because scrap dealers didn't like it. The overseas recyclers they shipped wire to burned off the insulation to get to the copper; That is not possible with teflon.

Mike N2MS


> On February 1, 2018 at 9:39 AM Paul Christensen <w9ac at arrl.net> wrote:
> 
> 
> >"The reason is that the standard DA ground system as far as I know, has
> always involved strapping radials to a copper strap running along the line
> of radial intersection, clipping off the radial wire that runs past the
> strap."
> 
> Unless there's modeled or measured data, that's the "conventional wisdom,"
> -- and it makes sense in those commercial installations where it's
> impractical to use insulated wire that can withstand long-term soil
> conditions.  Or, is there really that much cross coupling that results in
> radial current cancellation when the wire is insulated?  
> 
> The wire is buried just below the ground surface and only the wire
> insulation would come in contact between radial wires.  However, the
> conductor-to-conductor distance at the overlap points would be very small.
> For the answer, I'll likely need to run a NEC 4.2 model, and assign Z axis
> distances of the radials that can be easily adjusted in NEC that results in
> anything from a wired cross connection point to any spacing distance in
> between radials.
> 
> >Why the teflon insulation?
> 
> Already acquired from a surplus supplier...a lot of it.  In addition to the
> Teflon insulation, it's solid, silver-tinned copper, 18 AWG.  
> 
> Paul, W9AC
> 
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