while swinging, does it hit something like the chimney ?? or a cable ticking the mount ???
No & no. The tv coax is on the other side of the chimney (granted it could do with securing but has no interference with the Tempest) and the aerial is on its own clamp/strap.
Ed Oh! no only the top is moving about 2-5cm from what I can see.
swinging normally doesnāt trigger false rain, it must be something ticking on the pole or maybe the clamps that ācrackā under load ⦠maybe if you have some rubber sheet, try to wrap some between the clamps and the pole ???
Yes, Iām going to try some rubber from a cut-up drain coupling at the point where the clamps meet the mast with piccy goodness when the wind subsides.
I can fit my fist in between the chimney lip and the pole so it definitely isnāt that.
I see it oscillating at a very quick frequency side to sideOscillate That is when the wind died down a bit. It doesnāt add much to the total amount but more to the duration so it must be picking up sound from the movement? Hopefully some rubber dampening does the trick.
To take some of the sway out of my pole, I put the next size smaller pvc pole down the center of my outer pole.
So in affect, itās a double thick pole. A small stainless steel nut and bolt at the top and bottom (to lock them together) and Iāve never had sway an issue.
Yes, the issue is the mast has to be so thin to accommodate the fitting. WF needs to allow for a more robust width of mast. You canāt expect a toothpick of a pole not to have stability problems. 2" should be the minimum, not 1" and a bit
use Schedule 40 and try to make it swing
I have no problems with my 8 foot long vinyl covered wooden dowels. I also donāt have any issues with my telescoping fiberglass flag poles. The mount options are just fine.
Okay, so the afternoon turned out nice and calm so without further ado, I was up the ladder to apply the theory of cushioning any vibration as it oscillates in the gusts above 10mph >
I hope the rubber doesnāt perish too quickly (it was a cut-up pipe converter). You will notice the clamp bolts had to have a spacer (forgot what theyāre called)< I used a cut-up bracket for an aerial for the bolts not to run out of thread because I initially used a wider pole.
Hereās hoping⦠::
(My messing about and moving it didnāt trigger any rain.)
Without clicking the album linked below this is how my mast is now!
is the pole still toughing the ground ?? that could be slightly scraping under swaging. Maybe pull it up like a cm so it doesnāt tough anymore ifā¦
Mine is on a 21ā piece of SCH80 1 1/4" galvanized pipe. I threaded it and atttached a bell reducer coupling to 1" and put a 6" 1" galvanized nipple in that for TEMPEST to attach to. VERY sturdy. Even so with about 17ā of this pipe out the top of a Rohn 25G tower (cone top section) it will sway in high winds. No false rain from that.
If I take a crescent wrench and tap the bottom of the tower (some 40ā below TEMPEST) even SLIGHTLY I will see rain either heavy or very heavy. Sound definitely triggers it. A short mast thatās too still can cause very short movements/vibration thatās gonna cause false rain especially in strong gusts in storms. And if itās raining heavy already who knows what the outcome is. This is why you must have more than one gauge. Three (or more) even better.
Yes, I thought that itās resting on the tiles LED (as in metal, not the illuminating variety) flashing because itās so heavy and awkward when I put it into the clamp.
Iāll nudge it up a wee bit tomorrow if the weatherās still good.
(sorry deleted post by mistake)
Edit; Iāve had 2nd thoughts of it resting on the flashing as Led should actually have the desired effect of cushioning any sound.
I used lengths of 33.7mm galvanised pole and an array of clamps to secure it to the wall. Itās solid tubing with a wall thickness of 3.25mm.
https://www.themetalstore.co.uk/products/galvanised-tube-size-b-33-7-mm
@neil.mclean how is it going with relation to movement in windy conditions? Iām guessing itās about 36ft up from the ground! (as mine is)
Itās 9m/30ā above grade. To date Iāve not had any issues with spurious readings. I should add the maximum wind recorded since my installation is 55km/hr, so not too windy.
I have just this very minute bought a rain gauge as Iād like to have my Tempest calibrated.
Installed next to my Nylex rain gauge. It will be interesting to see how closely they correlate in the monsoon season. It is mounted on 40mm PVC with 90mm PVC half way up to ensure stability. Itās also core filled with concrete. I think it will be stable enough. In Humpty Doo, Northern Territory, Australia.
that looks like an amazing solid mount. Well done!
Not a great shot from the rooferās drone. (Mounted via Davis Instruments mounting tripod painted black, station should be about 7ā above peak of roof.)
My thought is more about how long till it gets stolenā¦. the human element is so sad.