[Towertalk] wet coax

Bob Nielsen nielsen@oz.net
Fri, 15 Nov 2002 06:14:14 -0800


On Thu, Nov 14, 2002 at 11:34:48PM -0500, K7LXC@aol.com wrote:
> In a message dated 11/14/02 12:48:06 PM Pacific Standard Time, 
> alwilliams@olywa.net writes:
> 
> > If the insulation in foam type coax gets wet, does that effect the vswr?  
> 
>     It shouldn't unless there's a cut in the jacket that allows water to get 
> it. The more common problem is water in the connector due to poor 
> weatherproofing. 
> 
> >  Or, if the vswr is low, does that confirm that the coax has
> >  not get wet inside?
> 
>     Mostly. If it looks like an antenna (dip in the swr), everything is okay. 
> If you've got high swr EVERYWHERE, then it's usually a coax/connector problem.

But if the VSWR is low everywhere (with a narrow-band antenna), that
could also indicate bad coax.

Bob, N7XY