I've decided to sink a pole for my dish, but wondering if I should use an aluminum fence pole from home depot or some other time of pole / pipe?. Any suggestions?
What kind of pole?
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Would a 2 inch pole handle a 120cm dish, or something thicker? I've seen those big black pipes at Home Depot in the plumbing section (like a water main) and thought about those.
One of the problems with my current setup (I just noticed) is that I overtightened to the point that the pole began to crush (from round to oblong). Would like to find a new pole to avoid that situation.
One of the problems with my current setup (I just noticed) is that I overtightened to the point that the pole began to crush (from round to oblong). Would like to find a new pole to avoid that situation.
No matter what size of pole fill it to the top with cement and that should stop any flex and reduce the chance of crushing it!
The good thing about galvanised pipe it it will last for years without rusting!
2" handles a 36" dish and SG2100 motor NO PROBLEM, so should be OK if just using a fixed 1.2m dish, go as big as you can with the pipe if in doubt.
The good thing about galvanised pipe it it will last for years without rusting!
2" handles a 36" dish and SG2100 motor NO PROBLEM, so should be OK if just using a fixed 1.2m dish, go as big as you can with the pipe if in doubt.
stardust1 said:
That's what I used for my BUD, well actually I used schedule 80 (even heavier), but I'd go to a scrap yard rather than a plumbing supply house. When I talked with plumbing supply places they only wanted to sell very long sections (21 feet I think) and wanted big bucks. The scrap yard stuff is cheap, you do have to clean off some surface rust, and I was able to find one already the right length.
That said, for a small 1.2M dish, schedule 40 seems like overkill. It would seem like a galvanized or iron pipe from a big box store filled with concrete would be plenty.
I would suggest a nonshrink grout and fill it before installing it so you can make sure there are no airpockets and it is filled from end to end. I wouldn't use concrete because it has aggregate that may result in voids inside the pipe if not done propperly.
I used sched 40 and painted it good.. Will last forever. Cement will rust your pipe if you use a normal metal pipe, even if you paint it, so avoid that. My first mast was a galv pipe, like the fence post type... Too much flex for my channel master and I did not want to fill it with cement because it seemed like a pain. A few dollars more on the difference and I got a heavy water pipe.
I used a 2-3/8 galvanized fence post from HD for my 6ft mesh (fixed on G13)
and it's just fine. Of course I did not use the polar mount on that dish. I modified an old PStar Az/El mount (less weight) since it's fixed in place anyway. Depends on your setup and estimated wind loads.
and it's just fine. Of course I did not use the polar mount on that dish. I modified an old PStar Az/El mount (less weight) since it's fixed in place anyway. Depends on your setup and estimated wind loads.
I used galvanized fence post and filled it to the top with Quikrete. As I filled it, I'd kick it repeatedly to shake out all the air bubbles (and there were a lot of them). I'd add Quikrete, a little water, kick-kick-kick, repeat until no more bubbles came out. It set up hard as a rock and worked great. I also used two pieces of all-thread as cross-members to keep the pole from breaking free and rotating in the concrete.
Just don't make the mistake I did with my first-ever batch of Quikrete, which was to use way too much water. It still set, and it'll do for me for right now, but it didn't set nearly as strongly as it should have. Instead of setting up hard as a rock like it should have, it's fairly easily scratched. It should still hold the pole well enough, though. It has for the last few months, anyway, even in some very high winds.
I have an old Primestar dish with a 3" pole mount, so I had to shim it out with a layer of duct tape. Heh... It's not permanent, and a really strong wind can still blow it slightly out of alignment, but it worked. I should dig up the pictures I took and post them.
Just don't make the mistake I did with my first-ever batch of Quikrete, which was to use way too much water. It still set, and it'll do for me for right now, but it didn't set nearly as strongly as it should have. Instead of setting up hard as a rock like it should have, it's fairly easily scratched. It should still hold the pole well enough, though. It has for the last few months, anyway, even in some very high winds.
I have an old Primestar dish with a 3" pole mount, so I had to shim it out with a layer of duct tape. Heh... It's not permanent, and a really strong wind can still blow it slightly out of alignment, but it worked. I should dig up the pictures I took and post them.
I used 2" EMT, filled with concrete. I wish I had chosen something stronger, in the wind I was getting a little wobble, so I had to attach three guy wires.
in the elec section of home depot they had 2" steel masts, the kinda that your hydro goes from the pole to and then down. they looked incredibly strong, their galvanized as well. but expensive, 2" 10ft long was $60 I think.
in the elec section of home depot they had 2" steel masts, the kinda that your hydro goes from the pole to and then down. they looked incredibly strong, their galvanized as well. but expensive, 2" 10ft long was $60 I think.
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