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John Devoldere in his excellent book Low-Band
DX-ing describes two alternative ground systems for poor to very poor ground
conductivity:
1. Several, instead of one, ground rods,
separated by at least their length. So, instead of say one 1-meter long
rod, use five 30-50 cm rods interconnected in a dice-of-five pattern. Use
the middle rod for connection to the antenna system (balun,
transformer).
2. A large ground mat made of large strips of
chicken wire, e.g. in the shape of a cross measuring approx. 6x6
meters.
3. A large number of short,
interconnected radials laid on the ground.
I suspect for points 1 and 2 one way to improve
conductivity is to use coarse salt in the holes where the ground rods are put
down (or where the chicken wire is laid down), and to water the area (preferably
with salted water or seawater) to keep it moist.
I have used the multiple ground rod systems with
reasonable success. My ground consists of rock/pellet below a 10-cm
soil.
---From the world's northernmost DX-er--- 71°N, 29°E Bjarne Mjelde P.O.Box 58 N-9980 Berlevåg, Norway Receivers: AR7030+, KWZ-30 |