mounting a 6ft dish in a bucket of concrete
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A bucket is not going to give enough support to keep it from falling over.
Guy wires & stakes would give more support. A simple tripod with guys & stakes is even better.
Guy wires & stakes would give more support. A simple tripod with guys & stakes is even better.
I'd look for, or build, a Non-penetrating Roof mount.
Or dig a hole for the bucket, if it's just temp.
Or dig a hole for the bucket, if it's just temp.
I tried mounting a 5' solid dish in a 5 gallon plastic bucket on a 2-1/2' 3-1/2" pole and it would only fall over, it would not stay upright. I could put something against it to hold it, but when I used the motor, it would fall in that direction. Take my advice and plant it in the ground or use an NPRM. Hope you have better luck than I did. Good Luck!
The approximate wind loading for a 6' solid dish at 50mph is 170 pound feet. It would take dozens of five gallon buckets spread several feet apart to keep the dish steady.
Concrete density: 2300 Kg/cubic meter ~ 143 lb/cubic foot
143 lb/cubic foot / 7.48 gallons/cubic foot = 19.12 lb/gallon
Figuring a minimum four foot pole, you're looking at 850 pounds of force trying to tip the bucket over in a 50mph wind. If the dish is a mesh model, the force is somewhere around 510 lbs (40% less).
update i was planning on the dish being stationary for the time being looking to recieve right now a few satellites with moving the dish by hand (no way to run the control wire for an actuator and servo motor)
Looks like Harshness backs up the "NO" with some facts. 
I'll say that a 36" dish in a 5 gallon bucket will stand up pretty well most of the time.... but see this recent post:
http://www.satelliteguys.us/free-ai...ish-upgrade-90cm-only-9-25-a.html#post1720609
I'll say that a 36" dish in a 5 gallon bucket will stand up pretty well most of the time.... but see this recent post:
http://www.satelliteguys.us/free-ai...ish-upgrade-90cm-only-9-25-a.html#post1720609
Weight wise yes, but I think the base diameter of the 55 gal drum is too small, and it would still fall over.
I don't think the weight in the bucket is what's important, as someone mentioned about, the important thing is the base needs to be wide, and not flat. By not flat, what I mean is that it's best to contact the ground out at the edges not in the middle. The tripod idea is best. You could add some weight to the tripod, and if the legs are wide enough, probably a small bucket of concrete hung from the center of the tripod. Would possibly be enough.
Basically, if you've ever tried to make furniture to rest on a rug, if you make the bottom of the furniture flat, it will wobble, even if the rug floor is perfectly flat. Usually furnature that sits on the four corners of the base is stable.
I have a movable 3' Primestar dish that I have mounted on a log that is about 15" in diameter by a 15" high (approximately. The bottom of the log is cut flat, but no matter how flat the ground, it wobbles. What I usually do, however, is drive 3 wedges under the log so that it is picked up slightly off the ground and contacts the ground only at 3 places. It's actually relatively stable. It's my AMC21 dish, and hasn't moved since AMC21 went up. I had previously used it for AMC3, but had to drag it about 15' to get a partial view of AMC21.
My log wouldn't hold a bigger dish, but I think if the base was wide enough, you could do it with not a whole lot of weight. Another option.... I once mounted a dish on a utility trailer that I have. If it has a wide enough wheelbase, it should be stable enough, and you could load up the trailer with rocks for weight, and use the hitch part to level it.
Get some steel pieces from your local scrap yard and build a non penetrating mount with a welder or get a buddy who can weld come over and fix it up.
Or you could buy a non pen mount from one of the websites. eyeinthesky dot com has them i think. sadoun might have them too.
The non pen mount either way will use cinder blocks as counterweight.
I wouldn't do the bucket idea as you will end up bending and destroying your dish.
Iceberg had a 6 footer fall off a table and it mangled it pretty good.
maybe you could use some standoff brackets on your house if you want something that can come down pretty easily.
Or you could buy a non pen mount from one of the websites. eyeinthesky dot com has them i think. sadoun might have them too.
The non pen mount either way will use cinder blocks as counterweight.
I wouldn't do the bucket idea as you will end up bending and destroying your dish.
Iceberg had a 6 footer fall off a table and it mangled it pretty good.
maybe you could use some standoff brackets on your house if you want something that can come down pretty easily.
I have a 67 inch dish with the end (pole end) resting in the hole of cinder block. The edge of the dish is resting on blocks of wood for elevation, about two inches above the driveway. Each edge of the dish is secured with paving stone to keep it from rolling. It has been that way since July or August and only the strongest wind blows it over. I have wind break with trees to the West though. I believe a picture may be in order. It works well though. I move it by hand and signal meter to other sats. Have gotten 72 through 131 or so C-band. It is static most of the time on G16. I will post picture if I can get to it tonight and can figure out how to do it.
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