You live in a place where you don’t get any radio signal at all. Even if you get it, it isn’t strong enough for you to receive or broadcast communication.
If that’s the case, then you need to improve the signal. But you aren’t ready to spend money on an antenna yet.
You don’t need to if you know how to build a 40 foot antenna mast.
With this skill, you can not only improve the radio signal, but you can also extend the WiFi connection big time.
But do you know how to build one? No worries, I will show you now.
What Is An Antenna Mast?
You might be thinking, what the hell in an antenna mast. Can’t blame you as many don’t know what it is.
It isn’t any life-changing tool. Yes, it is. But what I meant was not a difficult thing to understand at all.
You can say, it is more like a cup holder. But instead of the cup, here you have a large wooden metal holder, that holds the antenna way off the ground.
So, it is like a tower that extends the antenna to heights to improve range. But what makes it different is the fact you can take it down whenever you like.
Tools Required For Building Antenna Mast:
Before you get ready to build the antenna mast, first get the tools. So, what tools do you need?
Here they are:
- Get a shovel for digging up the soil.
- For the base structure, you will need an aluminum tube. It can be around 15-20 feet long and 3 inches in diameter.
- You will need some fiberglass tubes. Two to be exact. One is around 17-feet in height and 10 mm in diameter. The other to be 12-feet tall and 5 mm in diameter.
- To elevate the mast, you will need a winch and pulley. Make sure the parts get galvanized as they will be outside in extreme conditions
- For the anchor of the mast, you need 4 metal rebars. It is the first thing that gets in the hole after you shovel out the soil.
- Some steel tubes get also required to make the base stronger.
- Other than that, you need some other stuff like nuts, bolts, clamps to put together all the things for the mast.
How to Build a 40 Foot Antenna Mast?
You’ve got the tools. Great! Now, it is time to put together the thing.
Let’s start then.
Step 1:
The first step is simple, Find the place, where you’re going to install the antenna mast. If you found it, then take the shovel and make a 3×3 feet hole in the ground
Step 2:
Got the hole? Fine, then it is time to install the anchor. So, take those metal rebars that you’ve got and stick them into the freshly made hole.
Step 3:
When you’ve got the rebars installed, the structure is already in place. All you need to do is take the steel tube and shove it into the hole around the base you’ve just made. Make it go under 2-feet of the ground.
Step 4:
If you’ve done that, then you can use the metal bar for the grounding point. Make sure the bar you’ve got is bigger than the hole.
Step 5:
After that, you feel out the entire hole with cement.
By the way, don’t forget to add the U-bolt washer to the thing as it is where you will attach the pulley. It should be below the two posts to have that hand-crank winch attached to the pulley.
To move forward with the build, you need to for a while. Let the cement dry up
Step 6:
Ok, it dried up at last. Now, you have to install the central part of the antenna mast. Get the aluminum tube that is the base of the mast. You need to figure it out for pivoting on it. It should be around 5 feet. So, drill a 1-inch hole if you locate the area of the tube.
Step 7:
Now, you will attach the steel post in that area on the aluminum tube to make the pivot system. To do that, insert a bolt into the tube and steel post. The bolt will be the pivoting point.
Step: 8
Get the bolt adjusted using a wing nut on the opposite side of it. Then just try to move the tube up and down to see if the pivoting point is working or not.
Step: 9
Now comes the part of elevating the mast. So, take the winch and the pulley that you’ve got and fasten it to the aluminum post.
Step: 10
The pulley should face the same direction as the falling aluminum tube. Your winch and pulley will be face-to-face.
Step: 11
Install the winch in the middle of the steel post. It should come with some instructions which you should follow to do that.
Step: 12
Then take the cable and attach it to the winch. Meantime, the loosened wire should be passed across the pulley.
Step: 13
Pull the wire up and tie it to the bottom of the aluminum tube. Secure it washers or spacers whichever you’ve got. If you’ve got the wire fastened tight in place, you will be able to pull up the mast using the winch.
Step: 14
It’s time to finish the whole thing. To do that, take the drill. You need to make a one-inch hole on the aluminum tube that is above 2ft from the bottom.
Step: 15
Take a 10-inch fiberglass tube next and again drill a 1-inch hole at the same height from the bottom of it. But this time on both sides of the bottom part.
Step: 16
You will repeat the entire thing with a 5-inch fiberglass tube, but just on one end this time.
Step: 17
After getting that done, attach those tubes with nuts and bolts. So, what you will do is that the 10-inch fiberglass will be at the top end of the aluminum tube. Meanwhile, the 5-inch tube will be going on the 10-inch fiberglass tube.
Fit them tight. Make sure no poles on it move. And that’s how to build a 40′ antenna mast.
Yes, you’ve finished the thing!
What’s The Advantage Of A 40′ Antenna Mast?
Obviously, building a 40′ antenna mast will take a lot of work. But is it worth it? For that, knowing the advantage of the thing would come in handy.
- It will improve the broadcast and receiver signal.
- You can get it up and down whenever required.
- You can improve connectivity up to 40 feet with ease
- A properly installed mast will last for years. So, it is a good investment of time for sure.
What’s The Disadvantage Of A 40′ Antenna Mast?
To be honest there aren’t many disadvantages.
- Except for the fact, it will take some space within the property. Because the structure is somewhat big.
- And obviously, you’ve got to put the time to build the thing.
- Not to forget for the parts and stuff, you need to spend some bucks.
But if you weigh the benefits, it might be worth going through all of it.
FAQ:
What’s the right height to install an antenna for better reception?
You should install at least 30-50 feet about the ground level to get better reception.
Is it ok to use PVC pipe for the structure?
It is ok to use PVC. But they won’t last as long as aluminum tubes. And you don’t want to repeat the whole thing every couple of months.
Do you need to maintain the antenna mast?
Yes. After some time, the mast will wear out and the pivoting point works as smoothly. That’s why regularly lubricating it to keep the mechanism working right is vital.
Also read:
1. What is ANT Radio Service?
2. How to Install Sirius XM Radio in Car
Conclusion:
Is it hard to build a 40’ antenna mast? Depends on who is building it. If you’re good with DIY, then it might not feel that hard. But either way, there is work required as well as the need to put on time.
But as I’ve mentioned already, if you weigh the goods from the bad, it is worth building the antenna mast. So, why wait?
