- Joined
- May 1, 1999
- Messages
- 38,292
- Reaction score
- 1,615
- Points
- 113
- My Satellite Setup
- Technomate 5402 HD M2 Ci, DM7000s, Transparent 80cm Dish, Moteck SG2100 DiseqC motor, lots of legacy gear. Meters: Satlook Digital NIT, Promax HD Ranger+ spectrum analyser.
- My Location
- Berkshire
Had to make this mast safe this morning, not much fun, as it had broken and moved the brick which the top bracket was bolted into and was hanging over the edge of a three storey block. Trying to lever a 20' steel mast with an 8' Triax Unix 100 antenna on top, weighing in at nearly 3 kilos was a little hairy, let alone then trying to support it whilst undoing the U bolts on the bottom bracket.
But the problems of dismounting it are not the reason I posted this, it is to emphasise that when mounting brackets on a gable, do not mount the top bracket too close to the top courses of bricks, as there is no weight above the bricks and you run the risk of a brick being pulled out, the same applies to bolting into chimneys, as a general rule don't do it.
Also, when mounting a heavy mast, make sure that the brickwork is sound enough to support it, use heavy gauge brackets, enough of them to support the weight/movement of the mast and spaced far enough apart, with appropriate fixings.
A single set of 18" T&K brackets are not really sufficient to support a 20' x 2" steel mast with a 3 kilo antenna on top, even less so when they are not spaced far enough apart and only fixed using 2" coach bolts and plastic plugs. Similarly, if you are mounting a heavy dish, or a dish on a long mast, make sure you have the right brackets and fixings.
But the problems of dismounting it are not the reason I posted this, it is to emphasise that when mounting brackets on a gable, do not mount the top bracket too close to the top courses of bricks, as there is no weight above the bricks and you run the risk of a brick being pulled out, the same applies to bolting into chimneys, as a general rule don't do it.
Also, when mounting a heavy mast, make sure that the brickwork is sound enough to support it, use heavy gauge brackets, enough of them to support the weight/movement of the mast and spaced far enough apart, with appropriate fixings.
A single set of 18" T&K brackets are not really sufficient to support a 20' x 2" steel mast with a 3 kilo antenna on top, even less so when they are not spaced far enough apart and only fixed using 2" coach bolts and plastic plugs. Similarly, if you are mounting a heavy dish, or a dish on a long mast, make sure you have the right brackets and fixings.