[TowerTalk] Outdoor Enclosure
Michael Tope
Michael Tope" <W4EF@dellroy.com
Sun, 10 Dec 2000 20:10:29 -0800
The following is a summary of replies I received in response to my inquiry
on small outdoor enclosures for beverage transformers. Lots of great ideas.
Right now I am leaning towards the gray PVC electrical boxes sold at Home
Depot. Physical size and price are about right for my application.
Thanks to all who replied!
73 de Mike, W4EF
----- Original Message -----
From: "Michael Tope" <W4EF@dellroy.com>
To: "TowerTalk" <towertalk@contesting.com>
Sent: Wednesday, December 06, 2000 7:17 AM
Subject: [TowerTalk] Outdoor Enclosure
> Can anyone recommend a source for small outdoor enclosures
> suitable for mounting beverage transformers/terminations. I
> need something that is watertight and U/V stable. Somekind of
> tough plastic would be preferable as it will simplify the feedthrus
> terminals (stainless steel screws) and input/output common mode
> isolation problems. Hoping to find something reasonably inexpensive,
> as I want to build up a dozen or so transformer/termination pairs.
>
> Please reply direct and I will summarize.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Mike, W4EF................................
>
>
----- Original Message -----
From: "n5nug" <n5nug@ix.netcom.com>
To: "Michael Tope" <W4EF@dellroy.com>
Sent: Wednesday, December 06, 2000 7:25 AM
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Outdoor Enclosure
> Try gray pvc or standard pvc pipe painted with end caps. Two inch or
> larger diameter should work well. 73, Ed - N5NUG
> --
> Edward A. Goodman
----- Original Message -----
From: "alsopb" <alsopb@gloryroad.net>
> Michael,
>
> I found in Home Depot some brown plastic fiberglass (?) electrical
> boxes. They appeared to be at least triple the normal length. These
> boxes had a bracket on the back (handy for attaching to ground rod).
> There were none of the punch areas punched out. Did not find a
> cover. I just attached the beverage wires via ss screws drilled
> through the sides.
>
> It accommodated two relays and two sets of beverage matching
> transformers with 50% left over. It think it cost less than $5.
>
> In my case, I just sealed it using a plastic bag and tape. Not
> permanent but keeps the water out.
>
> 73 de Brian/K3KO
----- Original Message -----
From: "Eric Moore" <emoore@windemullerelectric.com>
> Good Day,
>
> Hoffman makes enclosures of all sizes and shapes.
>
> http://www.hoffmanonline.com/
>
> We use them exclusively for our industrial control panels, of which, some
> are mounted outdoors.
>
> They have Stainless Steel, Fiberglass, Steel enclosures available.
>
> Nema 3R or 4X (corrosion resistance) is what you would want to look at for
> outdoor usage.
>
> Saginaw Equipment makes knock off's of Hoffman enclosures which are lower
> quality, and lower cost, but still most adequate for most uses, although
> their Stainless tends to rust!
>
> Either of these would be available at you local Electrical Distributor.
>
> 73,
> Eric
> K8CCA
----- Original Message -----
From: <KI7WX@aol.com>
> Take a look at the little grey boxes that WX0B uses on his baluns. You can get them at Home Depot for about $5 to 7 dollars.
They are tough and have a gasket to seal them. I also have had good luck making cylindrical containers using schedule 40 PVC and
pvc cement. I like the boxes better though.
>
----- Original Message -----
From: "Mark Fossum" <mark@willetransport.com>
> Radio Shack has a small black enclosure normally used as an outdoor
> telephone connection box. I think they ran around $5. I've used several of
> them over the years.
>
> Mark - N0NSV
----- Original Message -----
From: "Barry Kutner" <w2up@mindspring.com>
> Mike,
> I use a standard metal electrical box, rated for outdoor use, for this
> exact purpose (Beverages). The front cover swings up to permit
> access when installing your parts. It has knockouts all around - I
> use the ones on the bottom to get wires/cables in and out. That
> way, one doesn't have to worry about weather-proofing the holes.
> 73 Barry
>
----- Original Message -----
From: "Edward L Bruns" <edbruns@juno.com>
> Check out the electrical aisle at home Depot or Lowes, what have you.
> Even wall boxes for switches, etc, can be made into exclosures. Use a
> plastic lid, RTV it on. Go wild for ten bux.
>
> Ed, W3EKT.
> ________________________________________________________________
----- Original Message -----
From: "Ford Peterson" <ford@cmgate.com>
> Check on EBay. Type in enclosures. There is a guy that sells 3 for $10
> that work great. They are utility company boxes used originally to house a
> switch to cycle your air conditioning on and off every 15 minutes. I use
> them, they work great.
>
> Ford-N0OQW
> ford@cmgate.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Pete Smith" <n4zr@contesting.com>
> The grey plastic weatherproof boxes available at electrical supplies should
> meet your needs. One big enough for what you describe was $7-8. K2ZJ
> built his Beverage boxes in weathertight metal outlet boxes, which are
> about half that much.
>
> 73, Pete N4ZR
----- Original Message -----
From: "Greg Gobleman" <k9zm@frontiernet.net>
> Hi Mike,
>
> I had the same problem. I wanted to build Baluns using toroid cores from
> Amidon per W2FMI's book. I also wanted to use them on beams and dipoles
> etc. What I did is a bit heavy for a dipole but not too bad for a beam. I
> used 3" white pvc parts. A round end cap and a threaded on one end (inside
> threads) coupler to 3" pvc. They make a screw in cap with a 1" part for a
> wrench to tighten it. I mounted a SO239 in that 1"part and used brass
> hardware for the antenna connections in the rounded end cap. It was kind of
> a Chinese finger puzzle to put together, but with a bit of pvc dope it's
> totally waterproof and the core wrapped in small dbl shield coax doesn't
> move around hardly at all inside the unit. Kind of hard to describe, but if
> you stand in the hardware section and pickup those three parts you can stick
> them together and see what I was doing. Ended up being around 7" tall and
> just a bit heavy for a dipole. Real strong though.
>
> 73
> Greg K9ZM
>
----- Original Message -----
From: W3GCG@aol.com
I have been using Radio Shack mini boxes for over 20 years now and some of
the 9 to 1 beverage impedance transformers I built then, are still in good
shape, according to the usres. See me at 1.865 khz after dark. Willy K3VW
----- Original Message -----
From: "Byron Peebles" <nz3o@arrl.net>
> I recently had a catalog that included these as new, surplus equipment.
> But, unfortunately, I didn't hold onto it. It was some place I bought
> something
> from on eBay.
>
> I'd try Yahoo and a search for surplus enclosures.
>
> They were commercial grade, waterproof and under $15 each.
> Several sizes were offered, all with appropriate feed openings.
>
> Byron
>
----- Original Message -----
From: <n4kg@juno.com>
> My Beverage transformers are wound on 1 inch
> high permeability cores. Some of them just hang
> out in the air, others are protected under upside
> plastic jars (TUMS). Liquid electrical tape does
> a nice job of protecting the (connectorless) coax.
>
> de Tom N4KG
>
--
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