[TowerTalk] Cadwelding to Rohn 45G and 55G

[Larry Loen]

I got a private note indicating some real-world problems (holes in the
pipe) when Cadwelding Rohn towers on at least some occassions.  So, for the
record, it doesn't look like a great idea to Cadweld.  Maybe I should
simply follow Rohn's instructions and use their clamp gear.  Other gear
recommended here probably works as well, but why not follow the
manufacturer's recommendation?


WO7R

On Fri, Feb 12, 2016 at 12:38 PM, Larry Loen <lwloen at gmail.com> wrote:

> I am in the process of putting in two new towers on my property (yes, I am
> blessed).
>
> I'm a little nervous about Cadwelding to the legs.  I suppose you'll all
> tell me it has been done dozens of times, but I have visions of blowing a
> hole through one of the legs near the bottom of my tower.
>
> The alternative, I suppose, is to get a set of quality ground clamps,
> clamp it maybe three times (I assume this would help the impedance a bit)
> and the inspect it over time.
>
> I also plan to have an extensive "ground ring" around the tower.  On my
> current crankup, I cadwelded to all three "legs" except it was easy to
> Cadweld to a nice thick base and not to the tower, proper.  Effectively
> required, in fact.  So, I Cadwelded to stuff that wasn't a big deal,
> structurally.  Here it would be.
>
> 1.  Do I Cadweld anyway?  How to be sure the tower leg isn't weakened?
>
> 2.  Do I do it to a single leg or all three?  I could "feed" my ground
> ring from a single leg, I suppose.
>
> This is all in excess of what Rohn shows, which is a single, clamped line
> from the tower, but I've always taken it for granted the smart thing to do
> is have a more extensive network.  I plan on three rods, connected as a
> ring, and then copper "lines" out from each of them to another rod, a total
> of six in all.  That's all easy and been done (by me) before.  Question is,
> what's the best way to connect to the tower itself?  I have the "buried
> tower section" type of base.  We will be pouring concrete late next week.
> So, I have about a month to plan and execute my ground system.
>
>
> Larry WO7R
>