You likely need a 28' ladder. They aren't too difficult to find. Whatever you do, don't try doing this from a ladder that is too short. Climbing on the roof is not a great idea either. If you do, wear running shoes with a good grip and a safety harness.

I cant even leap or climb from one roof to another.
Have a bit of batman envy do we? ;)

LOL, well, even batman needs help setting up his TV. ;)

Well, small town, so biggest ladder I can get my hands on is about 28'. I don't think it'll work but I'll try.

Worst case scenario, I put an ad in the paper for free antenna mast removal and get something off someone who's now on our super fast digital cable network. :D

I have an installer who will install a tripod on the roof ridge, 2 story house.

He says its OK to just plant the legs on the roof plywood anywhere. I want him to hit the trusses of course.

1. is it ok to plant ONLY 2 of the 3 legs in the trusses

2. how do I locate the trusses for him on the outside, top of roof, from within the attic

3. what is the best way to plant the legs, is it simply to place it flat ontop of the shingles, and seal the hole, and the top of the bolts with roofing pitch

any photos would be great!

thanks

Stampeder,

1. can you tell me if the Sources (NEXTECH), or CM #3092, 3ft, 3 leg tripod, or equivalent, is good fo my situation, to be placed at the ridge, with say an 8 ft, 1 2/2" pole, with at a minimum a 4bay, and 2 x 4bays...

2. My understanding is this can only be placed at the ridge, nowhere else on the roof, and only 1 leg can hit roof joisting...

thanks

Balm,

PanaMark posted some photos of his tripod setup in his photo album. I don't know how to give you a link but try this:

Search for any post by PanaMark
Click on his name to show his profile
Select Statistics
Select Albums created by Panamark
Select Antennas and DXing Results
Select page 2 to see his antenna mount

Hope that helps...

I just purchased a Channel Master 4228HD and a 1.5" 10' long EMT conduit to mount it on. I took a photo of a potential mount location and was wondering if some experienced installers had any input for my first go at this. I photoshopped where I was thinking of installing the mast. It's not at the highest point of my house but it should have a pretty clear path to where it will be aimed (towards the furthest hydro pole in the center of the photo). Obviously the antenna is not to scale and will be mounted higher up on the 10' mast.

http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/6403/mountphoto.jpg

I also have an RCA wall mount kit with 2 brackets. I was thinking of putting bracket 1 on the facia and bracket 2 on the aluminum siding so there is support from 2 directions. I also have some angle iron that I could easily use to fashion an extra brace for more support, and I could anchor it to the flat part of the top of the wall as shown.

Does this look like a reasonable plan? Any downsides to this location? Also, what is the best way to secure the bracket to aluminum siding? Just drill and screw?

I have an installer who will install a tripod on the roof ridge, 2 story house.
He says its OK to just plant the legs on the roof plywood anywhere. I want him to hit the trusses of course.
1. is it ok to plant ONLY 2 of the 3 legs in the trusses
2. how do I locate the trusses for him on the outside, top of roof, from within the attic
3. what is the best way to plant the legs, is it simply to place it flat ontop of the shingles, and seal the hole, and the top of the bolts with roofing pitch
any photos would be great!
thanks
I like the legs of the tripod to hit Joists. The 3' tripod only opens up to 32", so that works well if you have 16" spacing on your joists.
But most roof's have 24" spacing. The 5' tripod opens up to 48" and works well.
Locating the Joists from on top of the roof is easy with a hammer. :)

Does this look like a reasonable plan? Any downsides to this location? Also, what is the best way to secure the bracket to aluminum siding? Just drill and screw?
Hi Mike, Siding isn't solid enough. I've put a 2x4 accross 2 studs with 2 long lag screws, then put the bracket on the 2x4.
The top bracket is the one that will have the most stress. I'd put a 2x4 or larger behind the facia to make it more solid before putting the bracket there.

Tom.F.1,

But most roof's have 24" spacing. The 5' tripod opens up to 48" and works well.

Thanks Tom.F.1, thats just the kind of info I needed. Now Ill check the joist spacing.

I guess to have all 3 legs hit joisting, ill need to add a cross brace between joists from in the attic

balm, hitting joists is always the best, because the problem with any sort of reflector-equipped antenna is wind load, so putting a tripod onto just the plywood is not good due to all the stresses involved.

There are a few posts waaaaay back in this thread between Yaamon and I with a trick on how to mark a joist from inside the attic so that you find joists easily from outside - you can use the Search This Thread tool to the upper right beside Thread Tools and put in the term "joist" to probably find it.

I have an original Radio Shack tripod that has never been used and I would have no qualms using it with even a DBGH! :) If the one from The Source is anything like it (I have no idea if it is) then it should be okay for up to 2 CM4228HDs or similar antennas, but they're designed for the weight of extruded steel pipe and not the much heavier EMT so that also has to be taken into consideration.

Stampeder,

The Source is anything like it (I have no idea if it is) then it should be okay for up to 2 CM4228HDs or similar antennas, but they're designed for the weight of extruded steel pipe and not the much heavier EMT so that also has to be taken into consideration.

Ahh, thats what I was getting at, I suspect they are less "heavy duty". Ill see about the extruded piping, thanks

can anyone tell me if this tripod is good enough for 1 or 2 - 4 bays, or what model it is.

it is galvanized, no rust, adjustable legs, adjustable feet, pipe is 1/8" gauge x 1 1/4" diam, specifically designed and strong for a parabola...???

thanks

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/picture.php?albumid=355&pictureid=1779

@MXMike: I agree with Tom that siding isn't strong enough. Also, this location doesn't appear to be the highest part of the roof, nor does it appear to clear the nearby buildings. This could prove to be an issue if your location is far from the transmitters you intend to receive.

can anyone tell me if this tripod is good enough for 1 or 2 - 4 bays, or what model it is.

the tripod is strong enough for an 8 ft pipe, if its solidly mounted to the roof joists. You can build supports accross joists from inside the attic.
It looks like an imitation of the CM-3092.

@MXMike: I agree with Tom that siding isn't strong enough. Also, this location doesn't appear to be the highest part of the roof, nor does it appear to clear the nearby buildings. This could prove to be an issue if your location is far from the transmitters you intend to receive.
Thanks for the advice about the siding Tom & Jase. If I choose this location I will definitely reinforce the siding.

As for the location, if I follow the line of sight to the towers I want to aim at from the location pictured, there are no taller buildings for about 200m and those buildings might only be a few feet higher. Beyond that it is very flat. If I were to mount it on the peak of my roof there would be a taller building directly across the street in the line of sight. Would I still be better off going higher in this case?

rmacdona,

thanks for the ref. to Panamarks pics, I had forgotten about his set up..:rolleyes:

Tom.F.1,

Thanks for the good advice, ill do the proper prep work first for the joisting.

Thanks for the advice about the siding Tom & Jase. If I choose this location I will definitely reinforce the siding.

Assuming the bracket doesn't happen to line up with studs in the wall (it most likely won't), one good way to do this is to bolt a long piece of angle iron to the bracket and then lag bolt that to the three closest studs (two outside the bracket one in the middle). My suggestion for angle iron is the fold in the metal makes it more ridged.

As for the location, if I follow the line of sight to the towers I want to aim at from the location pictured, there are no taller buildings for about 200m and those buildings might only be a few feet higher. Beyond that it is very flat. If I were to mount it on the peak of my roof there would be a taller building directly across the street in the line of sight. Would I still be better off going higher in this case?

It is always hard to say for sure without actually trying it, but your thoughts make sense.

I am planning to purchase an Antenna Direct 91XG. I will mount this on my chimney situated approximately 18-20' from ground level. Naturally, I would like to elevate the antenna as high as possible, so I was wondering if some users out there have suggestions for how high is too high?

It depends on how sturdy the chimney is, as well as what kind of mount you intend to use. I personally would recommend the ratcheted-metal-band type of mount because it holds the pole extremely tightly to the chimney both at the bottom and at the highest point of the chimney that you can wrap the band around. With those I've used 10' EMT poles and a single antenna with no problems. I've seen such mounts last over 30 years.

I am extremely wary of chimney mounts that require you to drill into the brick (or worse, the masonry).

so I was wondering if some users out there have suggestions for how high is too high? Uh, too high? There is no such thing unless there are height restrictions in your area, although there does come a point where you're wasting your money and time. I'm off to pick up 40' of tower tomorrow morning as the starting point for my OTA HDTV setup. Depending on how the Niagara escarpment wants to get in my way, I may have to go even higher.

Way back when, I knew guys who lived out in the country on high hilltops who were finding themselves with the urge to hang red lights off of the tops of their CB and ham rigs as a warning to low flying aircraft. And even then, we always wanted more.

Learn the chant - Height is Might!! Or as Stampeder likes to say "Altitude = Options"