On 11/21/21 2:20 PM, Chris Reeland wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I looked back at some of his original specs. to get up to speed on this
> again.
>
> This to me looks possibly iffy:
>
> " * RF grounding rod of 1 ft, solid 1" copper, with 14 ga connection wire."
>
> Would definitely change secondary behavior if it is insufficient... being
> just a foot long rod, which I am sure is less because of what sticks up for
> wire connection and all the other variables of the actual soil/earth
> conditions.
> Just a possible thought here of one of several problems that seems to be
> going on from my view point currently. Still debating on the others. Will
> wait on them for now.
>
You don't need an actual "earth" connection. What I would do is make a
conductive "rug" under the whole setup. It's also called a counterpoise.
Chicken wire, aluminum foil on cardboard, hardware cloth, whatever.
That "rug" should have a *radius* of what the height of the topload
above the rug is (or thereabouts).
The Rug, the greenwire ground (and NST case), and secondary cold end
should all be connected together. The secondary cold end to the
counterpoise, because the counterpoise is "the other end" of the
capacitor top load. The greenwire ground (and NST case) to the
counterpoise, because you don't want to get a shock if you touch it.
BTW, it's also handy because it gives a visual cue to casual observers
of "how far to stand back" (yeah, 1 coil height probably isn't enough,
but it helps).
20 years ago, I used a literal rug for this - I got a cheap carpet and
attached chicken wire to the top. I could roll it up and store it easily.