Elecraft

OT: Dry air static

Classic

List

Threaded

3 messages Options

Rose

OT: Dry air static

Fred,

I recall the output capacitor of the pi-net capacitor in my HT-17
rythmatically snapping in response to the charged particles of dust in the
dry Oklahoma air
building up on the long wire antenna. (;-)

73 !

K0PP
[hidden email]

On Wed, Oct 31, 2018, 16:42 Fred Jensen <[hidden email] wrote:

> Hmmm ... There seem to be different flavors of static. My reference was
> to what is often called "precipitation static" [rain, snow, maybe hail]
> and which can sometimes also be caused by wind blowing sand/dust past
> the antenna. It sounds like bacon frying in the receiver. Each drop or
> snowflake acquires a minuscule charge falling or blowing which
> discharges into the antenna on contact. The typical semiconductor
> devices in radio front ends these days exhibit a nearly infinite
> impedance to "ground" and a tiny capacitance. The constant little
> pulses from the static charge that capacitance with essentially no
> discharge path. That's what fried the 1st 760 II and then, predictably,
> the second one.
>
> There is also the combined "static" caused by distant thunderstorms.
>
> INT QRN: "Are you troubled by static"
> QRN: "I am troubled by static"
>
> which is different than "static" caused by corona or leakage on a high
> voltage power transmission line.
>
> 73,
>
> Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW
> Sparks NV DM09dn
> Washoe County
>
> PS: For those about to tell me "nearly infinite" is a meaningless term,
> save the BW. I know, I hold a math degree. Just using a little
> editorial license.
>
> On 10/31/2018 3:10 PM, ab2tc wrote:
> > Hi,
> >
> > It's a dead short circuit for DC and low frequencies thanks to the SWR
> > bridge (it has a voltage transformer directly across the antenna
> terminals).
> > There seems to be different opinions on what is meant by "static". To me
> it
> > means a slowly varying DC voltage caused by static buildup in the clouds
> > during or before thunderstorms. The K3(S) is perfectly protected against
> > these. Some people include the transients that are caused by actual
> > lightning strikes nearby in the definition of "static". The K3(S) is not
> > protected against these as they have very strong high frequency content.
> For
> > these extra protection is needed as discussed several places in this
> thread.
> > I have a number of Alpha-Delta switches in my antenna system and they
> have
> > gas discharge tubes, but frankly I have no idea how effective they are.
> >
> > AB2TC - Knut
> >
> >
> > wayne burdick wrote
> >>> On Oct 30, 2018, at 12:50 PM, Fred Jensen <
> >> k6dgw@
> >> > wrote:
> >>> Does my K3 have a static bleed across the antenna terminal(s)?
> >> Yes.
> >>
> >> Wayne
> >> N6KR
> >> <snip>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/
> > ______________________________________________________________
> > Elecraft mailing list
> > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
> > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
> > Post: mailto:[hidden email]
> >
> > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
> > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
> > Message delivered to [hidden email]
> >
>
> ______________________________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
>
> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
> Message delivered to [hidden email]

______________________________________________________________
Elecraft mailing list
Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
Post: mailto:[hidden email]

This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Message delivered to [hidden email]

ve3fal

Re: OT: Dry air static

Snow static as well during blizzards do wonders to light up a neon bulb. I used to put one between my long-wire and ground, even wind when it would get a good swing would do the same thing

Fred
VE3FAL

Sent from my iPhone
Fred VE3FAL/CIW649

> On Oct 31, 2018, at 19:13, Rose <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> Fred,
>
> I recall the output capacitor of the pi-net capacitor in my HT-17
> rythmatically snapping in response to the charged particles of dust in the
> dry Oklahoma air
> building up on the long wire antenna. (;-)
>
> 73 !
>
> K0PP
> [hidden email]
>
>> On Wed, Oct 31, 2018, 16:42 Fred Jensen <[hidden email] wrote:
>>
>> Hmmm ... There seem to be different flavors of static. My reference was
>> to what is often called "precipitation static" [rain, snow, maybe hail]
>> and which can sometimes also be caused by wind blowing sand/dust past
>> the antenna. It sounds like bacon frying in the receiver. Each drop or
>> snowflake acquires a minuscule charge falling or blowing which
>> discharges into the antenna on contact. The typical semiconductor
>> devices in radio front ends these days exhibit a nearly infinite
>> impedance to "ground" and a tiny capacitance. The constant little
>> pulses from the static charge that capacitance with essentially no
>> discharge path. That's what fried the 1st 760 II and then, predictably,
>> the second one.
>>
>> There is also the combined "static" caused by distant thunderstorms.
>>
>> INT QRN: "Are you troubled by static"
>> QRN: "I am troubled by static"
>>
>> which is different than "static" caused by corona or leakage on a high
>> voltage power transmission line.
>>
>> 73,
>>
>> Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW
>> Sparks NV DM09dn
>> Washoe County
>>
>> PS: For those about to tell me "nearly infinite" is a meaningless term,
>> save the BW. I know, I hold a math degree. Just using a little
>> editorial license.
>>
>>> On 10/31/2018 3:10 PM, ab2tc wrote:
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> It's a dead short circuit for DC and low frequencies thanks to the SWR
>>> bridge (it has a voltage transformer directly across the antenna
>> terminals).
>>> There seems to be different opinions on what is meant by "static". To me
>> it
>>> means a slowly varying DC voltage caused by static buildup in the clouds
>>> during or before thunderstorms. The K3(S) is perfectly protected against
>>> these. Some people include the transients that are caused by actual
>>> lightning strikes nearby in the definition of "static". The K3(S) is not
>>> protected against these as they have very strong high frequency content.
>> For
>>> these extra protection is needed as discussed several places in this
>> thread.
>>> I have a number of Alpha-Delta switches in my antenna system and they
>> have
>>> gas discharge tubes, but frankly I have no idea how effective they are.
>>>
>>> AB2TC - Knut
>>>
>>>
>>> wayne burdick wrote
>>>>> On Oct 30, 2018, at 12:50 PM, Fred Jensen <
>>>> k6dgw@
>>>> > wrote:
>>>>> Does my K3 have a static bleed across the antenna terminal(s)?
>>>> Yes.
>>>>
>>>> Wayne
>>>> N6KR
>>>> <snip>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/
>>> ______________________________________________________________
>>> Elecraft mailing list
>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
>>> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
>>>
>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>>> Message delivered to [hidden email]
>>>
>>
>> ______________________________________________________________
>> Elecraft mailing list
>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
>> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
>>
>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>> Message delivered to [hidden email]
> ______________________________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
>
> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
> Message delivered to [hidden email]
>

Gary Smith-2

Re: OT: Dry air static

8-9 years back I made a beverage system,
it went over a marsh. One beverage was
800+' long & the other around 500', I had
the proper lengths at the time. I ran PVC
piping with a "T" at the top to run the
wire through to keep deer from hitting it
and to keep it off the Phragmites (swamp
reeds) below.

It was the worst antenna I have ever tried
to listen on. The dry reeds below rustling
in the wind caused so much static that the
noise level from it was more than all but
a handful of local signals. Took me weeks
to install and fight through the jungle of
reeds and I ended up taking them down
after a couple weeks of frustration. I
worked no DX with those Beverages. Sans
static from the reeds, they would have
been awesome.

73,

Gary
KA1J

> Snow static as well during blizzards do wonders to light up a neon
> bulb. I used to put one between my long-wire and ground, even wind
> when it would get a good swing would do the same thing
>
> Fred
> VE3FAL
>
> Sent from my iPhone
> Fred VE3FAL/CIW649
>
>
> > On Oct 31, 2018, at 19:13, Rose <[hidden email]> wrote:
> >
> > Fred,
> >
> > I recall the output capacitor of the pi-net capacitor in my HT-17
> > rythmatically snapping in response to the charged particles of dust
> > in the dry Oklahoma air building up on the long wire antenna. (;-)
> >
> > 73 !
> >
> > K0PP
> > [hidden email]
> >
> >> On Wed, Oct 31, 2018, 16:42 Fred Jensen <[hidden email] wrote:
> >>
> >> Hmmm ... There seem to be different flavors of static. My
> >> reference was to what is often called "precipitation static" [rain,
> >> snow, maybe hail] and which can sometimes also be caused by wind
> >> blowing sand/dust past the antenna. It sounds like bacon frying in
> >> the receiver. Each drop or snowflake acquires a minuscule charge
> >> falling or blowing which discharges into the antenna on contact.
> >> The typical semiconductor devices in radio front ends these days
> >> exhibit a nearly infinite impedance to "ground" and a tiny
> >> capacitance. The constant little pulses from the static charge
> >> that capacitance with essentially no discharge path. That's what
> >> fried the 1st 760 II and then, predictably, the second one.
> >>
> >> There is also the combined "static" caused by distant
> >> thunderstorms.
> >>
> >> INT QRN: "Are you troubled by static"
> >> QRN: "I am troubled by static"
> >>
> >> which is different than "static" caused by corona or leakage on a
> >> high voltage power transmission line.
> >>
> >> 73,
> >>
> >> Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW
> >> Sparks NV DM09dn
> >> Washoe County
> >>
> >> PS: For those about to tell me "nearly infinite" is a meaningless
> >> term, save the BW. I know, I hold a math degree. Just using a
> >> little editorial license.
> >>
> >>> On 10/31/2018 3:10 PM, ab2tc wrote:
> >>> Hi,
> >>>
> >>> It's a dead short circuit for DC and low frequencies thanks to the
> >>> SWR bridge (it has a voltage transformer directly across the
> >>> antenna
> >> terminals).
> >>> There seems to be different opinions on what is meant by "static".
> >>> To me
> >> it
> >>> means a slowly varying DC voltage caused by static buildup in the
> >>> clouds during or before thunderstorms. The K3(S) is perfectly
> >>> protected against these. Some people include the transients that
> >>> are caused by actual lightning strikes nearby in the definition of
> >>> "static". The K3(S) is not protected against these as they have
> >>> very strong high frequency content.
> >> For
> >>> these extra protection is needed as discussed several places in
> >>> this
> >> thread.
> >>> I have a number of Alpha-Delta switches in my antenna system and
> >>> they
> >> have
> >>> gas discharge tubes, but frankly I have no idea how effective they
> >>> are.
> >>>
> >>> AB2TC - Knut
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> wayne burdick wrote
> >>>>> On Oct 30, 2018, at 12:50 PM, Fred Jensen <
> >>>> k6dgw@
> >>>> > wrote:
> >>>>> Does my K3 have a static bleed across the antenna terminal(s)?
> >>>> Yes.
> >>>>
> >>>> Wayne
> >>>> N6KR