Demon Wind

[Lone Cloud]

Well yesterday was something. Winds of 50 mph or so blew for hours. I have not been up to look at my Birdview or Winegard, but neither one gets any signal now.

Some of you may remember that I never buried my masts too deep in the ground but filled them with rebar and concrete. I also put some L shaped rebars in the bottom for additional torque resistance.

My strategy has been to not tighten down too hard on the dishes, in the hope that, instead of the wind twisting the entire mast, the top mounts would slip around instead. I will be finding out if this strategy worked later today when I go check and try to re-aim.

It was the most ferocious wind I have ever seen there. I hope there is no damage and I can just line the marks back up. I'll let you know.

 

[Lone Cloud]

Just to report back, when I got on my roof to look at my Birdview dish, I first eyed it up for any bending that might have occurred. I did that by sighting it edge-on from a couple of different angles. In both of those cases, the edge of the dish closest to me lined up straight with the edge furthest away.

The mast had not twisted, uprooted or been damaged at all. but the dish itself actually spun to about 90 degrees off of its due outh position. I looked for the marks I made to line it up again, but I did not see it. I ended up looking in the threaded holes that lock the mount to the mast. I turned the dish until the holes lined up with the circular marks the bolts made in the steel of the mast pole.

I tightened it down and got 99 west right away, but some of the other satellites were off. I think I'll have to go again with an afternoon of aiming and peaking.

My mast is buried only maybe 18 inches, because otherwise I would have had to entirely rip up a concrete walkway next to my house. With everything I did, including filling it with concrete and rebar, putting L shaped rebars in the bottom, and not tightening down too hard on the dish mount, instead of the dish bending or damaging the mast through the torque of twisting, the dish turned in the demon wind, was not damaged, and neither was the mast.

So even if you have some limitations as to depth of footing, there are things you can successfully do to avoid damage and be back up and running in good speed.

 

[phlatwound]

Glad you didn't have any damage, LC. :up

I just tighten mine down and take my chances, with my luck, if I left it loose enough to give in a high wind it would be loose enough to fly off the pole.

 

[Lone Cloud]

Glad you didn't have any damage, LC. :up

I just tighten mine down and take my chances, with my luck, if I left it loose enough to give in a high wind it would be loose enough to fly off the pole.

What about that big bolt going down into the middle of the mast? I think the dish would tear off of the mount before that bolt sheared - on the BV at least.