[TowerTalk] Neighbors

[Chuck Counselman]

Jerry K3BZ wrote:
>Last year I elmered my next door neighbor and he's a quick 
>learner!!....now he's putting up a tower and an HF yagi...   But now
>we're wondering what sort of problems (like front end overload, etc) are
>experienced by two neighbors operating same time, same band, maybe 
>500 feet apart.


Five hundred feet is enough separation that your problems shouldn't 
be too bad.  If necessary, there are several solutions that the big 
multi-transmitter contesters use.  One is to control your rigs by 
computer, to network the computers, and to use software that prevents 
one rig from switching to a band that another rig is already on.  You 
can easily imagine lower-tech versions of this sort of interlocking.

Another part of the solution is to use bandpass filters.  You can 
switch among fixed filters manually or (preferably) automatically, 
under control of the aforementioned software.  If you're not in such 
a hurry to change bands, then put an antenna tuner between your 
antenna and your rig.

Another part of the solution is ferrite-core common-mode choking on 
cables, to reduce the amount of stuff, including both 
fundamental-frequency and intermod products, that gets from the other 
guy's transmitter to your receiver via sneaky modes.

I've seen websites devoted to this, and the aforementioned fixes are 
available commercially as well as by homebrewing.  I don't recall a 
URL, but I bet that Google could find some for you.  Also look at the 
web pages of DX clubs, and search the archives of other 
contesting.com lists.

73  -Chuck, W1HIS